Kobe Bryant

     Kobe Bean Bryant named after a Japanese Steakhouse is a young athlete born in Philadelphia, PA.
Kobe is the son of a former NBA player Joe "Jellybean" Bryant. In 1984 Joe Jellybean ended his career moving the entire family to Italy where he played in an Italian League. Growing up Kobe had a passion for soccer, in fact he wanted to play for a professional soccer team in Italy. The family later returned to Philadelphia in 1991, Kobe attended Lower Marion high school where he joined the high school's basketball team, leading them to the State Championship four years in a row.

Kobe was drafted into the NBA straight from High school. In 1996 he was picked be Charlotte Bobcats, he was later traded to the Los Angeles Lakers. He was voted to become a starter in NBA all star game, becoming the youngest NBA All Star Player of all time. Bryant went to help his team win three consecutive championships and voted first team all-NBA in the 2002-2003 season.

Later on after the Lakers won the NBA championship, Kobe was accused of raping a hotel worker in Colorado. The case against Kobe was dismissed in 2004. Kobe was really having a hard time bouncing back from that false accusations.

Kobe recovered from that and he helped his team get back in shape for the 2007-2008 season. Kobe helped his team get to the finals, but they were defeated by the Boston Celtics. Bryant played on the U.S. Olympic team winning two consecutive gold medals in 2008 and 2012.