Hall of Fame Professional Basketball Player and Olympic Games gold medal athlete. A perennial National Basketball League (NBA) All-Star, he played his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers. On November 3, 1996, he debuted as the youngest player (18) in an NBA game. During his career, he won five NBA championships, was named to the All-Star team 18 times, was a 15-time member of the All-NBA Team, and was a 12-time member of the All-Defensive Team. He was the NBA Most Valuable Player in 2008, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, and an Oscar Winner. He was the son of NBA player Joe Bryant and began playing basketball when he was three years old. He was the first freshman in decades to start for the varsity basketball team at Lower Merion High School in Ardmore, Pennsylvania. In his junior year, he was named Pennsylvania Player of the Year. He ended his high school career as Southeastern Pennsylvania's all-time leading scorer with 2,883 points, beating the records of Wilt Chamberlain and Lionel Simmons. Although he drew the interest of college recruiters from Duke, Michigan, North Carolina, and Villanova, he decided to enter the 1996 NBA draft. Originally drafted by the Charlotte Hornets, he was traded to the Lakers. He represented the United States at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, where the team won gold medals. He received an Oscar for the 2017 short "Dear Basketball." In 2020, he was killed in a private helicopter crash with eight other people, including his 13-year-old daughter Gianna. That same year, Bryant was posthumously inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Hall of Fame Professional Basketball Player and Olympic Games gold medal athlete. A perennial National Basketball League (NBA) All-Star, he played his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers. On November 3, 1996, he debuted as the youngest player (18) in an NBA game. During his career, he won five NBA championships, was named to the All-Star team 18 times, was a 15-time member of the All-NBA Team, and was a 12-time member of the All-Defensive Team. He was the NBA Most Valuable Player in 2008, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, and an Oscar Winner. He was the son of NBA player Joe Bryant and began playing basketball when he was three years old. He was the first freshman in decades to start for the varsity basketball team at Lower Merion High School in Ardmore, Pennsylvania. In his junior year, he was named Pennsylvania Player of the Year. He ended his high school career as Southeastern Pennsylvania's all-time leading scorer with 2,883 points, beating the records of Wilt Chamberlain and Lionel Simmons. Although he drew the interest of college recruiters from Duke, Michigan, North Carolina, and Villanova, he decided to enter the 1996 NBA draft. Originally drafted by the Charlotte Hornets, he was traded to the Lakers. He represented the United States at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics, where the team won gold medals. He received an Oscar for the 2017 short "Dear Basketball." In 2020, he was killed in a private helicopter crash with eight other people, including his 13-year-old daughter Gianna. That same year, Bryant was posthumously inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Bio by: Apollymi
Gravesite Details
Exact location of burial is being kept private at the request of his family. The current plot rumoured to be Kobe is not where he is laid to rest
Family Members
Advertisement
See more Bryant memorials in:
Records on Ancestry
Advertisement
