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Kobe Bean Bryant (born August 23, 1978(1978-08-23)) is an American All-Star shooting guard in the National Basketball
Association (NBA) who plays for the Los Angeles Lakers. Bryant is the only son of former Philadelphia 76ers player
and former Los Angeles Sparks head coach Joe "Jellybean" Bryant.
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Bryant rose to national prominence in 1996 when he
became the first guard in league history to be drafted out of high school. Bryant and then-teammate Shaquille O'Neal
led the Lakers to three consecutive NBA championships from 2000 to 2002. Since O'Neal's departure following the 2004
season, Bryant has become the cornerstone of the Lakers' franchise, and was the NBA leading scorer during the 2005-06
and 2006-07 seasons.
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In 2003, Bryant made headlines when he was accused of sexual assault. The charges were dropped
after Bryant's accuser declined to testify, and the two sides ultimately settled the matter outside of criminal court.
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---------- Early Life ---------
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Kobe Bryant was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the youngest child and only son of Joe and Pam Bryant (they also have
two daughters, Shaya and Sharia). His parents named him after the famous beef of Kobe, Japan, which they saw on a restaurant menu.
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When Bryant was six, his father left the NBA, moved his family to Italy, and started playing professional basketball there.
Bryant acclimated to the lifestyle there and became fluent in Italian. At an early age, he learned to play soccer and at first
his favorite team was AC Milan. He has said that if he had stayed in Italy, he would have tried to become a professional soccer
player, and that his favorite team is FC Barcelona. Bryant is a big fan of FC Barcelona manager Frank Rijkaard and Barça star
Ronaldinho.
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In 1991, the Bryants moved back to the United States. Kobe earned national recognition during a spectacular high school career at
Lower Merion High School in the Philadelphia suburb of Lower Merion. His SAT score of 1080[2] would have ensured his basketball
scholarship to various top-tier colleges. Bryant has stated that had he decided to go to college after high school, he would have
attended Duke University.[3] Ultimately, however, the 17-year-old Bryant made the decision to go directly into the NBA.
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---------- 1996 NBA Draft ---------
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Before he was chosen as the 13th overall draft pick by the Charlotte Hornets in 1996, the 17-year-old Bryant had made a lasting impression
on then-Lakers general manager Jerry West, who immediately foresaw potential in Bryant's basketball ability during pre-draft workouts. He
went on to state that Bryant's workouts were some of the best he had seen. Immediately after the draft, Bryant expressed that he did not
wish to play for the Hornets and wanted to play for the Lakers instead. Fifteen days later, West traded his starting center, Vlade Divac
to the Hornets for the young Kobe Bryant.
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---------- Private Life ---------
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In November 1999, 21 year old Bryant met 17 year old Vanessa Laine while she was working as a background dancer on the Tha Eastsidaz music
video G'd Up. Bryant was in the building working on his debut musical album, which was never released.
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The two began dating and became engaged just six months later in May 2000, while Laine was still a senior at Marina High School in
Huntington Beach, California. To avoid media scrutiny, she finished high school through independent study. According to Vanessa's cousin
Laila Laine, there was no prenuptial agreement. Vanessa said Kobe "loved her too much for one".
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They married on April 18, 2001 in Dana Point, California. Neither Bryant's parents, his two sisters, longtime advisor and agent Arn Tellem,
nor Bryant's Laker teammates attended. Bryant's parents were opposed to the marriage for a number of reasons. Reportedly Bryant's parents
had problems with him marrying so young, especially to a woman who was not African-American. This disagreement resulted in an estrangement
period of over two years, during which Kobe Bryant did not have any contact with his parents.
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The Bryants' first child, a daughter named Natalia Diamante Bryant, was born on January 19, 2003. The birth of Natalia influenced Bryant to
reconcile his differences with his parents. Vanessa Bryant suffered a miscarriage due to an ectopic pregnancy in the Spring of 2005. In the
Fall of 2005 the Bryants announced that they were expecting their second child. Their second daughter, Gianna Maria-Onore Bryant, was born
on May 1, 2006. Interestingly, Gianna was born 6 minutes ahead of former teammate Shaquille O'Neal's daughter Me'arah Sanaa, who was born in
Florida.
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* Courtesy of Wikipedia
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