Tragedy struck the world of basketball and sport normally on 26 January 2020 when Bryant was killed in a helicopter crash in California at the age of forty one. All nine people on board, including Bryant’s 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, died in the crash. National and international tributes got here flooding in from sports activities stars, fans and celebrities. Bryant truly made his mark on the history of basketball, and his demise leaves an immense void.

Through Shakespeare, I learned concerning the nature of mankind. From The Iliad, I started to query on the age of 12 if I recognized with the hero Hector or Achilles. Taking tests helped me steady my pulse and think clearly beneath duress.

He went to high school within the suburbs of Philadelphia, however he grew up in Italy. His father, Joe "Jellybean" Bryant, performed within the NBA for several years earlier than shifting the household to Italy so he might play in the Italian basketball league. Kobe Bryant was recognized for his impressive work ethic and devotion to basketball, but he also discovered time to enjoy life and pursue ventures off of the court docket in his retirement.

Bryant would see an increase in minutes when the Lakers "played small", which would function Bryant playing small forwardalongside the guards he would often again up. Bryant was the runner-up for the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year Award, and through fan voting, he also became the youngestNBA All-Star starter in NBA history. He was joined by teammates O'Neal, Van Exel, and Jones, making it the first time since 1983 that four gamers on the identical staff had been chosen to play in the identical All-Star Game. Bryant's 15.four factors per recreation was the best of any non-starter within the season. Born in Philadelphia and partly raised in Italy, Bryant was acknowledged as the highest high-school basketball player in the united states while at Lower Merion High School in Pennsylvania. The son of former NBA player Joe Bryant, he declared for the 1996 NBA draft after graduation, and was selected by the Charlotte Hornets with the thirteenth total choose; the Hornets then traded him to the Lakers.

After profitable their third title in 2002, Bryant and the Lakers encountered difficulties. In the 2003 playoffs the Lakers were defeated in the second round. Several months later Bryant was accused of raping a young woman in Colorado. He maintained his innocence, and all charges were eventually dropped when the woman refused to testify after a monthslong campaign of harassment by fans of Bryant and a few members of the media. (Bryant later apologized, admitting that he realized his accuser didn't consider their sexual encounter was consensual, and a civil suit was settled in 2005.) The incident tremendously tarnished his image. Led by Bryant, the Lakers returned to the finals in 2004, however they had been upset by the Detroit Pistons.

"Not unhealthy for the seventh-best participant within the league," mentioned Bryant, referring to a preseason ESPN rating of the NBA's prime players. He went on to attain forty, 42, and forty two in his subsequent three video games. It was the sixth time in his career he scored 40 or more factors in four straight games, a feat exceeded only by Wilt Chamberlain . At the 2012 NBA All-Star Game, Bryant scored 27 points to move Michael Jordan because the career scoring leader within the All-Star Game. He additionally suffered a broken nose and a concussion within the third quarter of the All-Star Game after a tough foul from Dwyane Wade. In April, Bryant missed seven video games with a bruised left shin.

Bryant's United States nationwide team profession finally started in 2007. He was a member of the 2007 USA Men's Senior National Team and USA FIBA Americas Championship Team that finished 10–0, received gold and qualified the United States males for the 2008 Olympics. He began in all 10 of the USA's FIBA Americas Championship games.

This marked the fifth time in Bryant's career and the first time with out Shaquille O'Neal to go to the NBA Finals. The Lakers then misplaced to the Boston Celtics in 6 video games. On December 23, 2007, Bryant turned the youngest player to reach 20,000 points, in a sport in opposition to the New York Knicks, in Madison Square Garden. In the next 2003–04 season, the Lakers had been capable of purchase NBA All-Stars Karl Malone, and Gary Payton to make one other push on the NBA Championship. Before the season started, Bryant was arrested for sexual assault. This brought on Bryant to miss some games as a end result of court docket appearances or attend courtroom earlier in the day and travel to play video games later in identical day.