Kobe Bryant Chinese transliteration: Kobe Bryant, Kobe Byrne (Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macau)[1], Kobe Bryan (Taiwan)[2] Nickname: Flying Warrior, Black Mamba[3][4] No.: 8 (1996-2006)[5], 24[6 Residence: Newport Beach, CA[7] Former residence: Italy[8][9] Languages: English, Italian, Spanish[10][11] Constellation: Virgo[12] Draft: Selected by the Charlotte Hornets in the first round of the 1996 NBA Draft, 13th overall, and traded to the Los Angeles Lakers on July 11 of the same year. Hornets received Vlade Divac[8][9] NBA Playing Years: 14 years[13] 2009-2010 Season Salary: $23.03 million[14] Contract Status: 7 years, $136.4 million, signed 2004/7/15, expires summer 2011[14]; 3 years, $83.5 million, signed 2010/4/3, expires summer 2014[15] Family Members Wife: Vanessa Bryant (of Mexican descent) Father: Joe "Sweet Pea" Bryant (8.7 points per game in 606 career NBA games) Mother: Pamela Bryant Sisters: Celia Bryant and Shaya Bryant Older daughter: Natalia Diamond Bryant Younger daughter: Gianna Maria-Onore Bryant[9][16][17]
[edit]Biography
Childhood
Kobe -Bean Bryant was born on August 23, 1978, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, the youngest of three children of Joe Bryant and Pamela Bryant. [8] His parents named him Kobe-a Japanese name for steak-before he was born, and as a child Kobe saw it on the menu of a restaurant. [18] Kobe has two sisters, Celia and Shaya. Kobe's father, Joe, played eight seasons in the NBA for the Philadelphia 76ers, San Diego Clippers, and Houston Rockets. [9][8] When Kobe was about a year old, Joe was traded to the Clippers and he moved to Southern California with his family. Kobe began learning to play basketball from his father when he was three years old. He admired Magic Johnson as his favorite player and declared the Los Angeles Lakers his favorite team.[8] Kobe then moved to Southern California with his family. [Joe was traded to the Rockets and spent one season in Houston before retiring from the NBA in 1983. [19] When Kobe was six years old,[20] Joe moved his family to Italy again to continue his professional basketball career. Joe signed with a team in the town of Rieti. The three children would practice their Italian after school, and after a year they were all fluent in Italian. [9][8] Kobe spent eight years of his childhood in Italy[9] where he enjoyed playing soccer in addition to basketball. He is a fan of FC Barcelona, with his favorites being former Barcelona players Ronaldinho and Lionel Messi, who has played for Barcelona since 2004. [20] When Joe retired in 1991[21] he moved his family back to the United States. [8][22]
High school
Kobe went to Raul Merion High School in Pennsylvania. He started all four years of high school. [9] As a high school junior, he averaged 31.1 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game, earning him Pennsylvania State Player of the Year. As a senior in high school, Kirby averaged 30.8 points, 12 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 4 steals and 3.8 caps. He led Raul Merion High School to a 31-3 record, including a 27-game winning streak from his high school days as Kirby (wearing No. 33) until the end of the season, to the state championship. [8][19] Kirby scored a high school career-high 50 points against Marple Newtow and posted 34 points, 15 rebounds, 6 assists, and 9 caps in the district title game. [9] Kobe attended the Adidas ABCD camp in 1995 and met later teammate Lamar Odom. [23] In his final three years of high school, he led his high school varsity team to a 77-13 record. With a total of 2,883 points in high school, Kobe became the Southeastern Pennsylvania record for the most points scored in high school basketball, breaking the records of Hall of Famer Wilt Chamberlain (2,359 points) and St. Joseph's player Carlin Warley (2,441 points). [9][8] In high school Kirby had already begun to reach out to social celebrities, and in 1996 Kirby invited R&B diva Brandy Norwood to his senior prom. [8][24] (Minor spoiler: Kobe later made a guest appearance on one of Brandy's sitcoms called Moesha[24]) Kobe scored a 1080 on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) at graduation,[25] which was enough to secure him a basketball scholarship to a decent college. Duke University was eager to recruit Kobe to the school, but Kobe chose to skip college and go straight from high school to the NBA Draft. [8][26]
NBA career
1996 draft Kobe 1996 transfer to the Los Angeles Lakers Kobe Bryant was drafted by the Charlotte Hornets with the 13th overall pick in the first round of the 1996 draft.At 17 years old, this made him the youngest guard player drafted directly out of high school into the NBA. [8] Becoming the 27th player to enter the NBA directly from high school and one of two high school players to enter the league in 1996 (the other being Jermaine O'Neal). [19] Because Lakers general manager Jerry West valued Kobe's talent, on July 11, 1996[19] he traded Lakers center Vlade Divac to the Hornets for Kobe. The freed up salary space also set the stage for the signing of free agent Shaquille O'Neal the following summer. [8] Since Kobe was only 17 years old, his parents had to sign him with a team instead, and Kobe could not sign with a team on his own until after he turned 18 years old. [27][28] Initial NBA career (1996-1999) Kobe's first two seasons were spent as a reserve player in order to acclimatize him to the NBA game. In his first three seasons, the Lakers rarely won a playoff game, being swept out of the playoff Western Conference Finals in both 1998 and 1999. [8] In his rookie season, Kobe made 71 appearances (six starts), averaging 7.6 points, 1.9 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and 15.5 minutes per game. At the time, he became the youngest player in NBA history to appear in a game (a record later held by teammate Andrew Bynum[29]), and he was also the youngest player to start. [9] He won the 1997 All-Star Game dunk contest. [30] He was also named to the second team of the NBA Rookie of the Year along with his teammate Travis Knight that same year, and became the youngest player to be named to the Rookie of the Year lineup. [31][32] The 1996-97 season ended after Kobe made three "airball" shots in the final seconds of the game. [He missed his first shot to win the game in the fourth quarter, and then missed two three-pointers in the final minute of overtime to tie the game. That's how the Utah Jazz beat the Lakers in the first round of the playoffs. Shaquille O'Neal commented a couple years later, "[Kobe] was the only guy who dared to take a shot like that in that moment." [34] During the 1997-98 season, Kobe averaged 15.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 26.0 minutes of playing time. Became the highest scoring player in the league among non-starters and the most points scored by a Laker as a bench player in Lakers history (starting fewer than 10 games). [19] Kobe's increased playing time was due to the team's "small lineup" tactic, in which Kobe would play the small forward position instead of the usual point guard/point guard position. [35] Kobe also finished second in the 1998 NBA Sixth Man of the Year race. [36] Kobe was named to the 1998 All-Star team by fan vote in his second season, and was joined by fellow teammates Shaquille O'Neal, Eddie Jones, and Nick Van Exel,[37] a result that made it the first time since 1983 that four players from the same team had been selected to the same NBA All-Star Game; meanwhile Kobe became the youngest All-Star in NBA history. [8] During the 1998-99 season, Kobe was the only player on the team to play in all 50 games (due to a labor dispute, he only played in 50 games the entire season), averaging a team-leading 1.44 steals per game throughout the season, and scoring the second-highest amount of points on the team at 19.9 points per game. [9] With Eddie Jones and Nick Van Exel traded, Kobe became the team's starter. [19] In the middle of that season, Kobe signed a six-year contract with the Lakers worth approximately $70 million. [38] The contract allowed Kobe to play for the Lakers through the 2003-04 season. Despite only being in the early stages of his career, some sportswriters have already begun to compare Kobe's skills to those of Michael Jordan and Earvin Johnson. [27][39][40] And the playoffs didn't get much better that year, getting swept out of the Western Conference semifinals by the San Antonio Spurs. [41] Lakers dynasty period (1999-2002) With the arrival of Phil Jackson in the 1999-2000 season, Kobe entered the second phase of his career, during which it transformed Kobe from a star to a superstar. [8] Phil Jackson utilized the triangle offense tactics he used to win six championships with the Chicago Bulls to help the Lakers become an NBA championship caliber team, as evidenced by the three consecutive championships in 2000, 2001, and 2002. [42] At the beginning of the season, Kobe had to spend six weeks in the stands after injuring his right hand in a preseason game against the Washington Wizards. After returning to the game under the tutelage of the new coach Kobe's offensive power to enhance the 1999-2000 season on behalf of the Lakers 66 appearances in 38.2 minutes Lakers dynasty O'Neal Kobe Jackson can average 22.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.9 assists. [8][19] The average number of assists and steals were first on the team. The return of O'Neal and Kobe, along with a strong bench, gave the Lakers the 5th highest number of regular season wins in NBA history - 67. O'Neal won the regular season MVP that year, while Kobe was named to the second team of the NBA's Best XI and was named to the first team of the NBA's Best Defense for the first time (becoming the youngest player to win that honor). [43] He was named to the All-Star team for the second time that same year, and has since begun a streak of 12 consecutive All-Star Game selections. In the playoffs Kobe played only a number two role, but had a well-rounded performance of 25 points, 11 rebounds, 7 assists, and 4 caps in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals against the Portland Trail Blazers. [44] There was likewise an aerial pick-and-roll tie-in with O'Neal to win the Western Conference Finals series. In the Finals against the Indiana Pacers, Kobe sprained his ankle in the second quarter of Game 2 and did not play again until Game 4 In Game 4, O'Neal left the game with a full foul in overtime, and Kobe scored eight points to lead his team to a 120-118 win. [45] He contributed 21.1 points per game in the 2000 playoffs, and after a six-game battle in the Finals, teamed up with O'Neal to lead the team to its first NBA championship since 1988. [8][45][46][47] A commemorative photo of Kobe with his parents after the 2000 championship Kobe was photographed with his two older sisters, Sharia and Shayla During the 2000-01 season, Kobe made 68 appearances and improved in every statistic, averaging 28.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, and 5.0 assists per game, and improving his minutes played to 40.9. But it was also the year that the conflict between Kobe and O'Neal began to emerge. [48] Although the Lakers only had 56 wins this season, 11 fewer than the previous season, they went a remarkable 15-1 in the playoffs. They easily swept the Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings, and San Antonio Spurs until losing an overtime game against the Philadelphia 76ers in the Finals. [49] Kobe posted 29.4 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 6.1 assists in 16 playoff games, and in the playoffs O'Neal proclaimed Kobe to be the best player in the league,[33] and his improved offense helped lead the team to a second consecutive NBA championship. [8][19] Although his points per game dropped to 25.2 in the 2001-02 season, he still managed to deliver 5.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists across the board, and Kobe shot a career-high 46.9% from the field that season. In the 2001-02 season Kobe was also named to the NBA Best XI for the first time. In the same year Kobe received his first All-Star Game MVP trophy with a total of 31 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. [8] In the playoffs, Kobe faced the Trail Blazers in the first round and again swept the opposition 3-0, beat the Spurs 4-1 in the second round, and the Kings 4-3 in the Western Conference Finals; in the Finals, he beat the New Jersey Nets 4-0 to win his third consecutive NBA championship. In the playoffs, Kobe averaged 26.8 points on 51.4% shooting, along with 5.8 rebounds, and 5.3 assists, which accounted for 1/4 of the team's scoring.[8][19][50] At the age of 23, Kobe became the youngest player to win three championships. [51][52] Brief slump (2002-2004) In the 2002-03 season, after a 50-32 regular season, Kobe played in all 82 games of a season for the first time, averaging 30.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 5.9 assists, and 2.2 steals in 41.5 minutes of playing time. Averaged 40.6 points per game for the entire month of February 2003, becoming only the third player in NBA history to average 40 or more points in a single month. [9][19] He averaged 32.1 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 5.2 assists in 12 playoff games, but lost to the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference semifinals, missing out on the Finals. [19] In the 2003-04 season, the Lakers had Hall of Famers Karl Malone and Gary Payton, along with perennial All-Stars O'Neal and Kobe, and the Lakers built one of the strongest starting lineups in league history. [53] But in the summer of 2003, Kobe was involved in a sex scandal at the CO Hotel in Eagle County, Colorado. Kobe traveled between the Lakers and the courts several times that season. [8] In the final game of the regular season, the Lakers played the Trail Blazers. Kobe led the Lakers to victory with two shutouts and won the Pacific Division title. In the final moments of the fourth quarter, Kobe hit a three-pointer to tie the game and send it into overtime. [54] The game ended up going into a second overtime, and Kobe hit another clutch three to help the Lakers win 105-104. [54] The Lakers still got their 27th 50+ game regular season win in team history and defeated the Rockets, Spurs, and Minnesota Timberwolves in the playoffs, 4-1, 4-2, and 4-2, respectively, advancing to the NBA Finals again after 2002, but were defeated by the Detroit Pistons, led by Finals MVP Xichon Billups, in five games. [8][53] In the Finals, Kobe averaged 22.6 points per game to go along with 4.4 assists on a dismal 35.1% shooting percentage. [55] In September 2004, Kobe's sex scandal finally ended when the woman would not testify again. [8] After the 2004 NBA Finals loss, Jackson and O'Neal left the Lakers. Jackson wanted to leave his coaching position for a while[8] and was replaced as coach by Rudy Tomjanovich[56]. After requesting a trade, O'Neal was sent to the Miami Heat for Lamar Odom, Caron Butler, and Brian Grant[57]. Immediately following as a free agent, Kobe turned down a contract offered by the Los Angeles Clippers and signed a seven-year contract worth $136.4 million with the Lakers. [8][58] Disappointing playoff run (2004-2007) During the 2004-05 season, Kobe's reputation was greatly damaged and he was subject to controversy and criticism due to the events of the previous season. Phil Jackson published a new book, The Last Season: A Team in Search of Its Soul, in which he detailed the turmoil of the 2003-04 Lakers season and criticized Kobe, calling him "uncoachable uncoachable." [59] In the middle of the season, head coach Tomjanovich abruptly resigned as head coach, citing health concerns. After Tomjanovich's departure, Lakers assistant coach Frank Hamblen took charge of the team for the remainder of the season. [60] After O'Neal's departure, Kobe had to learn to be the team's leader, averaging 27.6 points per game. In the 2004-05 season Kobe totaled **** got 10 40+ games. But the team failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 1993-94. [61] In this post-season awards, due to the Lakers' overall decline, Kobe did not make the Best Defensive Lineup, and the Best Lineup was only named to the third team. [62][63] Phil Jackson returned to the Lakers for the 2005-06 season[64] while the Lakers once again made the playoffs. The Lakers posted a 45-37 regular season record, and Kobe's scoring skyrocketed to 35.4 points per game, and added 5.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists. Despite his vastly improved individual numbers - and his first scoring title - his team has struggled. In the playoffs, they were eliminated from the postseason after a 3-1 lead over the Phoenix Suns was overturned. In the Lakers vs. Dallas Mavericks game on December 20, 2005, Kobe scored 62 points in the first three quarters (he did not play in the fourth quarter), and when he came off the court, his personal score of 62 points was higher than the Mavericks' team's score of 61 points, making him the first player to do so since the introduction of Kobe's single-game, 81-point, 24-second rule.[65] In the playoffs, his team struggled with a 3-1 lead over the Phoenix Suns, and were eventually eliminated from the playoffs. Kobe was the first player to do so since the introduction of the 24-second rule,[65] and is best known for his 81-point game on January 22, 2006, against the Toronto Raptors. Kobe shot 28-of-46 from the field and scored 55 of his 81 points in the second half.The 81 points were second only to the 100 points in a single game set by Wilt Chamberlain. [8] In the 2005-06 season, Kobe scored 2,832 total **** points, which ranks seventh in NBA history. [9] 8 → 24 finished fourth in the 2006 Most Valuable Player voting, but he received 22 first-place votes-behind the eventual winner, Steve Nash. [66] After that, Kobe decided to change his jersey number for the 2006-07 season, from #8 to #24. He wore number 24 in high school at first, and switched to number 33 in 1996. [5] After the season, Kobe said in a TNT radio interview that he had intended to go with number 24 in his rookie season, but was unable to do so, and that the number 33 jersey had been retired with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Kobe had worn number 143 at the Adidas ABCD camp, so ended up choosing the sum of three numbers-8 as his number. [5] He himself once said, "The significance of the number 24 is 24 hours, and I want to put all my energy into basketball, and that's why I chose the number 24. I wouldn't be Kobe if I couldn't put my whole heart and soul into it seriously. 24 is the best interpretation of me." [67][68][69] In the 2006-07 season, after the number change, Kobe again won the scoring title with an average of 31.6 points per game, and was once again selected as an All-Star.[8] In the All-Star Game, Kobe scored 31 points, had six assists and six steals, and was honored as the MVP of the All-Star Game for the second time.[70] Kobe scored 10 50-plus points in the season, surpassing the number of 50+ points Jordan set in the 1986-1987 season by 8. 1987 season's record of eight. [9] However, in the playoffs, the Lakers again lost to the Suns in the first round of the playoffs, 1-4. MVP season (2007-2008) On May 27, 2007, ESPN reported about Kobe's desire for West to return to the Lakers and manage the team again. [71] and later said that if Kobe won the 2008 NBA Most Valuable Player Trophy if West's return to the Lakers could not happen, he would like to see himself traded. [72] However, three days later, Kobe appeared on Stephen A. Smith's radio program to express his displeasure that someone on the team had told him that he was responsible for O'Neal's departure, and publicly stated, "I want to be traded! I want to be traded." Three hours after making this statement, Kobe said in another interview that he decided to retract his request for a trade after speaking with head coach Jackson.[73] In a separate interview, Kobe said that he was "not interested in being traded". [73] Became the youngest player ever to reach 20,000 points (29 years, 122 days) on December 23, 2007 against the New York Knicks. [74] Kobe made 82 appearances this season, averaging 28.3 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.4 assists, and 1.84 steals per game,[19] leading his team to a 57-25 record. he was officially honored as the NBA's Most Valuable Player when he swept the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs on May 6, 2008, and Kobe received the first regular-season MVP trophy of his career [75]. He was also named to the NBA Best XI, Best Defensive XI, and All-Star Game that same year, and eventually led his team to the 2008 NBA Finals, where they lost to the Boston Celtics. [8] Averaging 30.1 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 5.6 assists in 21 games in the playoffs. [19][76] Back-to-back championships (2008-2010) The Lakers opened the 2008-09 season with a seven-game winning streak initially. [77] Kobe then led the team to a team-record tying best opening 19-game record of 17-2,[78] and by mid-November, the Lakers were 21-3.[79] Kobe led the team to win several games against rivals vying for the NBA championship, including a 92-83 win over the Celtics in the Christmas game,[79] a 105-88 win on January 19, 2009 over the Cleveland Cavaliers,[80] a 6-0 run from January 30 to February 8, 2009 (which included a second win over the Celtics and Cavaliers, respectively). [81] As a result, the Lakers remained in first place in the Western Conference all season. Kobe continued his dominance this season, making his 11th consecutive All-Star Game and remaining the strongest contender for the Most Valuable Player award. [82] Kobe was honored as Western Conference Player of the Month in both December and January, and was a three-time Western Conference Player of the Week. [83] In January 2009, Kobe had two triple-doubles, bringing his career triple-double total to 16 games. Kobe's last triple-double was back in 2005. [84] In the 2009 All-Star Game, Kobe had 27 points, four assists, four rebounds and four steals, sharing the All-Star Game MVP trophy with O'Neal. [85] In this season Kobe also had a very outstanding scoring performance, 2009 Madison Square Garden single-game highest score-61 points in the game photo February 2, 2009, Lakers vs. Knicks, Kobe hit 61% of the game, 61 points, and ultimately 126-117 won the game. Kobe's score became the highest scoring game at Madison Square Garden, breaking Bernard King's record;[86][87] also the 61 points were the highest single-game score of the 2008-09 season. By the end of the season, Kobe had moved from 21st to 17th on the NBA's overall scoring list, surpassing (in chronological order) Elgin Baylor,[88] Adrian Dantley,[89] Robert Parish,[90] Charles Barkley Charles Barkley). The Lakers got 65-17 in the regular season, with Kobe averaging 26.8 points per game, and lost the MVP voting election to LeBron James. Went 4-1, 4-3, and 4-2 in the playoffs with wins over the Utah Jazz, Rockets, and Nuggets, leading the Lakers to the NBA Finals for the second straight year. It ended with a 4-1 victory over the Orlando Magic in the Finals, while Kobe won the Finals MVP trophy. He became the first player to average 32.4 points and 7.4 assists per game since Jerry West in the 1969 NBA Finals series,[91][92] as well as the second player to average 30 points, five rebounds, and five assists per game in a Finals series after Michael Jordan, and became the sixth Lakers player to win the NBA Finals MVP. [8][93] Kobe continued to lead the defending champion Lakers as an elite team for the 2009-10 season. Kobe continued to contribute significantly during the season, hitting a three-point buzzer-beater against the Heat on December 4, 2009 with a one-footed jumper. [94] Kobe considers this goal to be one of his luckiest. [94] He suffered a broken right index finger in a December 11, 2009 game against the Timberwolves. [95] Despite the injury, Kobe chose to continue playing and did not intend to make any decision to take a leave of absence or sit out. [96] In the December 16, 2009 game, Kobe once again pulled off a shutout, defeating the Milwaukee Bucks in overtime after missing the final shot of regulation. [97] On January 1, 2010, Kobe once again shut out the Kings with a crushing three-pointer. [98] On January 21, 2010, Kobe became the youngest player to reach 25,000 points (31 years, 151 days), but the Lakers lost to the Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Center Arena. [99] On January 31, 2010 against the Celtics, Kobe hit a quasi-shootout with 7.3 seconds to go to help the Lakers, who were down by 11 points in the fourth quarter, walk away with the victory. [100] For that night's game on February 1, 2010, Kobe's career point total reached 25,208, surpassing Jerry West. [101] On February 23, 2010, Kobe (Kobe's 1,000th game) hit a three-pointer in the final 4.3 seconds against the Memphis Grizzlies, his sixth game-winning shot that season. [102][103] In a post-game interview about the late, quasi-shootout, Kobe said, "Every one of those is like a first for me, always a new experience." [102] On March 10, 2010, the Lakers played the Raptors, and Kobe hit a post-up jumper in the final 1.9 seconds to give the Lakers a 109-107 win, his seventh game-winning shot that season. [104][103] By the end of the regular season, Kobe had risen to 12th on the NBA's overall scoring list, surpassing (in chronological order) Jerry West[101], Reggie Miller[105], and Alex Inglish[106] respectively; and for the fifth consecutive year, he was named to the NBA's First XI of Best Lineups[107][108] and NBA's First XI of Best Defensive Lineups NBA Championship Finals MVP First XI. [109][110] On April 23, 2010, Kobe's postseason career total reached 4,465 points, surpassing Jerry West and ascending to the throne as the Lakers' playoff scoring champion. [111] On April 28, 2010, Kobe's individual playoff appearances reached 180, surpassing Michael Jordan and moving up to 12th in NBA history. [112] On May 9, 2010, Kobe broke the Lakers' all-time playoff scoring record of 1,643 goals held by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and was crowned the Lakers' all-time playoff scoring leader with 1,649 goals. [113] Kobe led the Lakers into the playoffs as the top seed in the Western Conference, facing the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round. [114] The Lakers defeated the Thunder after six games. [115] and swept the Utah Jazz in the second round of the playoffs. [116] In the Western Conference Finals, the Lakers battled the Suns in six games, with the Lakers eventually defeating the Suns to win the Western Conference Championship and advance to the Finals for the third consecutive year. [117] In the Finals, the Lakers met their 2008 NBA Finals rivals, the Boston Celtics, and the Lakers ultimately defeated their opponents in Game 7 of the series to win the NBA Championship. Kobe won his 5th championship and won back-to-back Finals MVP trophies. [118][119][120] In the beginning of the season, Kobe shot a career-high (49.3%) from the field. However, between December 11 and January 23, he shot only 43% due to finger and back injuries.[119][120] On April 3, 2010, Kobe reached an agreement with the team on a contract extension, signing a three-year contract worth $83.5 million, with details of $25.2 million for the 2011-12 season, $27.8 million for the 2012-13 season, and $30.4 million for the 2013-14 season.[121][122][123][124] Kobe's career-high shooting percentage was a career high (49.3%) at the start of the season. -14 season $30.4 million. Kobe's salary for the 2013-14 season is of a different significance, as it will make Kobe the first player to make more than $30 million in a single season since Michael Jordan did so in 1996-97 and 1997-98. [121]
International playing experience
Kobe began his career at the highest level of international play with the U.S. national team in 2006. [122] He was named to the U.S. national team for the 2004 Athens Olympics, but eventually withdrew from the team due to injury. [8] He was a member of the 2007 U.S. Men's Adult Team and U.S. State Basketball Tournament Champions, who went 10-0 in that tournament and earned a spot on the national team for the 2008 Beijing Olympics Kobe (wearing #10) Ger. He started all 10 games and ranked third on the team in free throw attempts and free throws made, fourth in field goals made, and three-pointers made. Among all teammates, Kobe is 15th in scoring, 14th in assists and eighth in steals. has scored in double figures in eight of the 10 games. He shot 53 percent from the field and averaged 16.3 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 3.1 assists per game. [122] On June 23, 2008, Kobe was named to the United States men's national basketball team for the 2008 Beijing Olympics. It was his first appearance in the Olympics. [123] On August 24, 2008, Kobe scored 20 points, including 13 in the fourth quarter, and had six assists as the U.S. defeated Spain 118-107 in the final against Spain. Breaking the embarrassing record of the U.S. team since the 2000 Olympics with no championship. He averaged 15.0 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game, shooting 46.2% from the field in eight games. [27] On February 11, 2010, Kobe was again named to the U.S. men's basketball team's roster for the 2010 World Championships in Turkey, and also became a member of the roster for the 2012 London Olympics. [124][125] On July 6, 2010, U.S. team director Jerry Cronjello stated that Kobe Bryant was confirmed to miss the 2010 World Championships for health reasons. [126]
Player profile
Kobe is a point guard with the ability to play the small forward position. Considered one of the NBA's most versatile[127][128] players, he has been selected to the NBA All-Star Game in every year since 1999 and has played in the last 11 (2000-2010) All-Star Games in which he has participated (missing the 2010 All-Star season due to injury). [9] Sportswriters and sports commentators often compare Kobe to Michael Jordan, but Kobe has always disliked the comparison. [129] In 2007, ESPN's sportswriters voted for the greatest point guard of all time, which resulted in Kobe being ranked second behind Jordan. [128] Kobe was a prolific scorer, averaging 25.3 points per game for his career, along with 5.3 rebounds, 4.7 assists, and 1.5 steals (as of March 28, 2010). [130] He is a player who has the ability to create shots for himself, and he shares the NBA record of hitting 12 three-pointers in a single game. [131] Kobe is often considered one of the NBA's most prolific scorers,[132] despite his average 45.5%[130] career shooting percentage. He uses his speed and athleticism to elude defenders in order to finish. In addition to this, he is an excellent defender, having been named to either the first or second-team of the NBA's best defensive lineup in 10 of his last 11 seasons (2000-2010). [9] Both Turner Television Network (TNT) and Sporting News named Kobe the NBA's 10-year player of the year from 2000-2009. [133][134]