Kobe Bryant was considered as one of the most decorated NBA players in the history of the game with 18x All-Star, 5x champion, and 2x finals MVP and he has registered a massive 81 points against Toronto Raptors in 2006, which is the second-highest individual score in NBA history after Wilt Chamberlain (100).
Kobe Bryant was one of the highest-paid athletes in NBA even after his retirement and is ranked as the second-highest NBA player of all time, behind only Kevin Garnett in total career earnings. Kobe was born on August 23, 1978, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and his father, Joe was a 76ers player.
In his career, Kobe averaged 25 points, 4.7 assists, 5.2 rebounds in the regular season and 25.6 points, 4.7 assists and 5.1 rebounds in playoffs.
Kobe Bryant Net Worth:
From Lower Merion High School in Philadelphia, Kobe debuted in the league in 1996 with his overall 13th first round pick by Charlotte Hornets, later traded to LA Lakers. He signed his first big contract with Lakers in the summer of 1999 earning $10 million per season for the next few years. Kobe’s last drawn annual salary from the Lakers was $25 million.
According to Forbes, Kobe Bryant amassed an incredible net worth of $600 million before his death in 2020. The NBA icon played 20 seasons in his career and earned over $325 million while playing for Los Angeles Lakers.
Kobe Bryant Achievements and Records:
- 5× NBA champion (2000–2002, 2009, 2010)
- 2× NBA Finals MVP (2009, 2010)
- NBA Most Valuable Player (2008)
- 18× NBA All-Star (1998, 2000–2016)
- 4× NBA All-Star Game MVP (2002, 2007, 2009, 2011)
- 11× All-NBA First Team (2002–2004, 2006–2013)
- 9× NBA All-Defensive First Team (2000, 2003, 2004, 2006–2011)
- 3× NBA All-Defensive Second Team (2001, 2002, 2012)
- 2× NBA scoring champion (2006, 2007)
- NBA Slam Dunk Contest champion (1997)
Kobe Bryant Endorsements:
Considering his highly marketable image in the NBA, Bryant signed a $48 million six-year contract with Adidas at the start of the 1996-97 season. His earlier endorsements include deals with The Coca-Cola Company, advertisements for McDonald's, promoting Spalding's new NBA Infusion Ball, Italian chocolate company Ferrero SpA's brand Nutella, his own series of video games by Nintendo among others.
Following his sexual assault case in 2003, Kobe's endorsement contracts with McDonald's and Nutella were terminated. However, contract with Nike, who had signed him to a five-year, $40–45 million contract just before the incident, was the exception. After recovering his image two years later, a deal with Coca-Cola was resumed and Bryant was also the cover athlete for NBA '07 and Call of Duty: Black Ops in 2010.
Bryant promoted Nike's Hyperdunk shoes in 2008 through a fake stunt of jumping over a speeding Aston Martin. Later, he released the fourth edition of his signature line by Nike, the Zoom Kobe IV and Zoom Kobe V in 2010. Bryant shot a commercial for Turkish Airlines with then-FC Barcelona star Lionel Messi in September 2012. In 2013, Kobe was the fifth highest paid athlete in the world behind Floyd Mayweather, Cristiano Ronaldo, LeBron James and Lionel Messi, according to Forbes.
Kobe Bryant Investments:
Beside his gigantic salary and endorsement deals, Kobe also made several investments that rewarded him profits in millions. In 2014, Kobe purchased 10% shares of the energy drink brand BodyArmour for $6 million, which is worth $200 million as of 2018.After launching a venture-capital company with Jeff Stibel called Bryant-Stibel, they invested in The Players Tribune, LegalZoom, Dell, Alibaba and Scopely among others.