59 Fun Facts About Kobe Bryant

Kobe Bryant was named after what?

Kobe's parents chose the name after seeing Kobe beef, a style of Japanese beef from the city of Kobe, on a restaurant menu before he was born.

How many seasons did Kobe's father, Joe Bryant, play in the NBA?

Joe Bryant played eight NBA seasons, from 1975 to 1983, with the Philadelphia 76ers, San Diego Clippers and Houston Rockets, before taking the family to Italy to continue his career.

When Kobe was six, his family moved to which Italian town so his father could keep playing?

The family settled first in Rieti, in Lazio, in 1984, when Joe Bryant signed there; they later lived in Reggio Calabria, Pistoia and Reggio Emilia.

Which soccer club did Kobe, who played the game as a boy in Italy, call his favourite team?

Kobe grew up an A.C. Milan supporter while living in Italy and remained a fan for life, visiting the club at the San Siro in later years.

Kobe played high school basketball at Lower Merion, located just outside which city?

The family had moved back to Philadelphia when he was 13, and he first enrolled at Bala Cynwyd Middle School.

As a senior, Kobe led Lower Merion to its first state championship in how many years?

Lower Merion's 1996 PIAA Class AAAA title was its first state championship in 53 years; that season Kobe was named Naismith High School Player of the Year and a McDonald's All-American.

Kobe finished high school as Southeastern Pennsylvania's all-time leading scorer, passing which NBA legend?

Kobe's 2,883 career points passed Wilt Chamberlain and Lionel Simmons to make him Southeastern Pennsylvania's all-time high school scoring leader.

In May 1996, Kobe was the prom date of which R&B singer?

Kobe took Brandy, then starring in the sitcom Moesha, to Lower Merion's senior prom in Philadelphia in May 1996; the two had met earlier that year and stayed friends.

Which team originally selected Kobe in the 1996 NBA draft before trading him to the Lakers?

The Charlotte Hornets took Kobe 13th overall in 1996 on the Lakers' behalf, having agreed before the draft to trade his rights to Los Angeles.

The Lakers acquired Kobe's draft rights in exchange for which center?

The Hornets sent Kobe's draft rights to the Lakers for Vlade Divac, the Serbian centre who had played for Los Angeles since 1989; moving his salary also helped clear room to sign Shaquille O'Neal.

Which Lakers general manager made the trade for Kobe after watching him work out?

Jerry West, the Lakers' general manager, was sold by a pre-draft workout in which the 17-year-old Kobe outplayed retired Lakers defender Michael Cooper; West then set up the Divac trade.

How did Kobe arrive at the number 8 he wore in his first Lakers decade?

Kobe said he added the digits of 143, his Adidas camp jersey, since 1 + 4 + 3 makes 8; he wore it from his 1996 rookie season until 2006.

At 18 years and 158 days, Kobe became the youngest what in NBA history?

On January 28, 1997, at 18 years and 158 days, Kobe became the youngest starter in NBA history; at his debut that November he had also been, at the time, the youngest player ever to appear in a game.

Kobe won which All-Star weekend event in 1997, at 18 the youngest champion ever?

Kobe won the 1997 Slam Dunk Contest in Cleveland at 18, the youngest winner ever; he also played in the Rookie Game that weekend and made the All-Rookie Second Team.

In his second season, Kobe Bryant was runner-up for which NBA award?

In 1997-98 Kobe, then a bench player, finished second to Danny Manning for Sixth Man of the Year; fans also voted the 19-year-old into the All-Star starting five.

Kobe's play took a leap in 1999 when which coach was hired by the Lakers?

Phil Jackson, hired in June 1999 after his six titles with the Bulls, installed the triangle offense; Kobe and Shaq then won three straight championships from 2000 to 2002.

In the 2000 Finals against Indiana, Kobe hurt his ankle in Game 2 after landing on whose foot?

Kobe sprained his ankle landing on Jalen Rose's foot in Game 2 and missed Game 3; he returned to hit the key overtime shots of Game 4 after Shaq fouled out, and the Lakers won in six.

The Lakers completed their three-peat in 2002 by sweeping which team in the Finals?

The Lakers swept the New Jersey Nets 4-0 in the 2002 Finals, completing the three-peat; Shaquille O'Neal was Finals MVP for the third straight year.

At what age did Kobe become the youngest player ever to win three NBA championships?

Kobe was 23 when the Lakers completed the three-peat in June 2002, the youngest player to own three rings; Shaq took Finals MVP all three times, and Kobe's own came in 2009.

On January 7, 2003, Kobe set an NBA record by making how many three-pointers in one game?

Kobe hit 12 three-pointers against the Seattle SuperSonics on January 7, 2003, a record later tied by Donyell Marshall and passed by Stephen Curry (13) and Klay Thompson (14).

The Lakers lost the 2004 Finals in five games to which team, after which Shaq was traded?

The Detroit Pistons beat the Lakers 4-1 in the 2004 Finals; that summer Shaq was traded to Miami, Phil Jackson left, and Kobe re-signed as the franchise centrepiece.

Kobe took the nickname 'Black Mamba' from a codename in which films?

Kobe borrowed 'Black Mamba' from the assassin codename in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill films, saying he wanted to strike with the snake's 99% accuracy at maximum speed.

On December 20, 2005, Kobe scored 62 points in just three quarters against which team?

Against the Dallas Mavericks on December 20, 2005, Kobe had 62 points after three quarters, more than the whole Dallas team's 61, and sat out the fourth.

How many points did Kobe score against the Toronto Raptors on January 22, 2006?

Kobe scored 81 points against the Toronto Raptors on January 22, 2006, the highest single-game total in the NBA since Wilt Chamberlain's 100 in 1962.

Kobe's 81-point night broke a Lakers franchise record of 71 held by whom?

Elgin Baylor's 71 points against the Knicks in November 1960 had stood as the Lakers' record for 45 years; Wilt Chamberlain later played for the Lakers but his 100-point game came as a Philadelphia Warrior.

Kobe won his first scoring title in 2005-06 by averaging how many points a game?

Kobe averaged 35.4 points in 2005-06, the highest since Michael Jordan's 37.1 in 1986-87; he became the fifth player to average 35 or more, after Chamberlain, Baylor, Barry and Jordan.

Why did Kobe switch from 8 to 24 in 2006?

Kobe explained that it was his first high-school number, worn as a Lower Merion freshman before he took 33; in 2017 the Lakers retired both 8 and 24, a first for one player at one franchise.

Which mid-season trade in 2008 helped Kobe lead the Lakers to a 57-25 record and his only MVP award?

The February 2008 trade for Pau Gasol from Memphis transformed the Lakers; they went 57-25, Kobe won his only MVP, and they reached the Finals before losing to Boston in six.

Kobe played all 82 games of 2007-08 despite an injury to which body part, rather than opting for surgery?

Kobe tore a ligament in his shooting-hand pinkie in February 2008, with an avulsion fracture, but postponed surgery, played all 82 games and carried the injury through the Beijing Olympics.

In the 2008 Olympic final, Team USA beat which country 118-107 for its first gold since 2000?

Team USA beat Spain 118-107 in Beijing; Kobe scored 20 points with six assists, including the decisive fourth-quarter plays, and the USA won its first Olympic gold since Sydney 2000.

Kobe won his first Finals MVP in 2009 as the Lakers beat which team in five games?

The Lakers beat the Orlando Magic 4-1 in the 2009 Finals and Kobe, averaging 32.4 points, was named Finals MVP; he repeated a year later against Boston for his fifth ring.

On December 4, 2009, Kobe beat the Miami Heat with a buzzer-beating one-legged three-pointer over whom?

Kobe's off-balance, one-legged three at the buzzer over Dwyane Wade gave the Lakers a 108-107 win over Miami on December 4, 2009, one of several game-winners he hit that season.

Kobe's four All-Star Game MVP awards tied a record held by which Hall of Famer?

Kobe's All-Star MVPs came in 2002, 2007, 2009 (shared with Shaq) and 2011, tying Bob Pettit, who won four with the St. Louis Hawks between 1956 and 1962.

At the 2012 All-Star Game, Kobe scored 27 points to pass whom as the career All-Star Game scoring leader?

Kobe's 27 points in the 2012 All-Star Game in Orlando carried him past Michael Jordan's 262 career All-Star points; LeBron James later overtook Kobe's total.

Kobe travelled to which country in 2011 for experimental Orthokine platelet-rich plasma therapy?

Kobe flew to Düsseldorf, Germany, in summer 2011 for Orthokine treatment on his arthritic right knee, and returned for more in 2013.

In April 2013, Kobe tore his Achilles tendon in a game against which team?

Kobe ruptured his left Achilles against the Golden State Warriors on April 12, 2013, then stayed on to sink two free throws before limping off.

Which former teammate coached Kobe in his 19th season, 2014-15?

Byron Scott, a Lakers teammate in Kobe's rookie year, coached him for his final two seasons; 2014-15 ended in January with a torn rotator cuff against the New Orleans Pelicans.

Kobe announced his retirement on November 29, 2015, through which outlet?

Kobe announced his retirement in a first-person poem published on The Players' Tribune, the athlete-run site founded by Derek Jeter, on November 29, 2015.

Kobe was the leading vote-getter for the 2016 All-Star Game with 1.9 million votes, beating whom?

Kobe's 1.89 million votes topped the 2016 All-Star balloting ahead of Stephen Curry's 1.6 million, as his farewell season turned into a league-wide ovation.

How many shots did Kobe take while scoring 60 points in his final NBA game?

Kobe went 22 of 50 from the field for 60 points against Utah on April 13, 2016, outscoring the Jazz 23-21 by himself in the fourth quarter.

Kobe was the first guard in NBA history to play how many seasons?

Kobe's 20 seasons, all with the Lakers, made him the first guard to play that many and the first player to spend 20 seasons with one franchise; he retired as the Lakers' all-time leading scorer.

With 33,643 career points, where did Kobe rank on the NBA's all-time scoring list at his death?

Kobe's 33,643 points ranked fourth all-time at his death: LeBron James had passed him for third in Philadelphia on January 25, 2020, the night before the crash.

Kobe won an Academy Award in 2018 for which animated short film?

Dear Basketball, animated by Glen Keane with music by John Williams, won the 2018 Academy Award for Best Animated Short, plus an Annie Award and a Sports Emmy.

Beginning in 2018, Kobe wrote, produced and hosted which film-breakdown series on ESPN?

Detail, which premiered on ESPN+ in April 2018, had Kobe breaking down playoff game film from a player's perspective; Peyton Manning later fronted an NFL version.

In March 2014, Kobe paid $6 million for a 10% stake in which sports drink company?

Kobe's $6 million for about 10% of Bodyarmor in March 2014 was worth an estimated $400 million to his estate when Coca-Cola bought the whole company in 2021.

Before his rookie season, Kobe signed a six-year, roughly $48 million deal with which brand?

Kobe signed with Adidas in 1996 for six years and about $48 million, producing the KB8 line; he moved to Nike in 2003 and the Zoom Kobe series followed.

Kobe met his future wife Vanessa in 1999 while she was working as what?

Vanessa Laine was working as a background dancer on a music video, Tha Eastsidaz's 'G'd Up', when Kobe met her on set in November 1999; they married on April 18, 2001.

What type of helicopter was Kobe travelling in when it crashed on January 26, 2020?

The Sikorsky S-76B had left John Wayne Airport in Orange County bound for a youth game at Kobe's Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks; all nine aboard died.

The NTSB concluded that the pilot of Kobe's helicopter probably became disoriented by what?

The NTSB found the pilot flew into thick clouds and likely suffered spatial disorientation, misjudging the helicopter's attitude; the fog that morning had grounded LAPD helicopters.

Kobe's second Naismith Hall of Fame induction, in 2025, was as part of which group?

The 2008 Redeem Team, which restored USA Basketball's Olympic gold in Beijing, was enshrined as a unit in the Hall's class of 2025; Kobe had been inducted individually in the class of 2020.

On which date does Los Angeles mark Kobe Bryant Day?

August 24, written 8/24, pairs the 8 Kobe wore first with the 24 he wore last; Los Angeles first declared Kobe Bryant Day in 2016, and Orange County followed in 2020.

Kobe and Vanessa were founding donors of which Smithsonian museum, giving it his 2008 Finals uniform?

Kobe and Vanessa Bryant were founding donors of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which opened in 2016, and gave it the uniform he wore in the 2008 Finals against Boston.

Kobe's middle name, Bean, came from what?

Bean comes from his father's nickname, Jellybean, which Joe Bryant carried from his playing days; Kobe's first name came from Kobe beef, spotted on a restaurant menu.

Besides English, which two languages did Kobe speak fluently?

Kobe spoke Italian and Spanish fluently: Italian from his boyhood in Italy, and Spanish, which he used in interviews and spoke with his wife Vanessa's Mexican-American family.

Which jersey number did Kobe wear for Team USA at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics?

Kobe wore number 10 for Team USA at both Beijing 2008 and London 2012, since FIBA rules at the time limited jersey numbers to 4 through 15.

What SAT score did Kobe post, enough for admission to any college he considered?

Kobe scored 1080 on the SAT, comfortably enough for the colleges he considered, such as Duke and North Carolina, before announcing in April 1996 that he would go straight to the NBA.

What was the name of the multimedia production company Kobe founded?

Granity Studios, Kobe's multimedia company, produced the Oscar-winning short Dear Basketball, the ESPN+ series Detail, podcasts and young-adult novels such as The Wizenard Series.

In a 2008 Nike Hyperdunk video, Kobe appeared to leap over what?

In the 2008 Nike Hyperdunk viral video Kobe seemed to clear a speeding Aston Martin driven straight at him; the stunt was widely judged to be staged, since a real attempt would have been far too dangerous.

How much funding did the venture capital firm Bryant-Stibel launch with in 2016?

Bryant-Stibel launched in August 2016 with $100 million of Kobe's and Jeff Stibel's own money, targeting media, data, gaming and technology companies.