Interviewee: Kobe Bryant
Interviewer: Fox Business
Date: July 09, 2009

Kobe Bean Bryant, Los Angeles Lakers’ famed shooting guard, started young in the NBA. However, what the 6’6” basketball leviathan lacked in age, he more than compensated for on the hardcourt.

Los Angeles Lakers clasped four NBA championships with Kobe Bryant. A three-time MVP at the All-Star Games, he is a 12-time All-Star selection and a seven-time, first-team All-NBA selection.

Early in 2010, Kobe Bryant became the leading scorer of all time for his team, smashing Jerry West’s record. He also became the youngest NBA player to score beyond 25,000 points.

Kobe Bryant was only 17 when the Charlotte Hornets drafted him in 1996. Traded to the Los Angeles Lakers for center Vlade Divac, he debuted in the league at 18, the youngest NBA player ever.

Kobe Bryant lost no time wowing fans, smashing records at the 1997 Rookie Game with 31 points and 8 rebounds. He also became Slam Dunk Champion at the same year’s All-Star Weekend. During his second NBA season in 1998, Kobe Bryant was picked for the All-Star Game, the youngest player ever at 19.

By 2001, Kobe Bryant had averaged 28.5 points and 5.9 rebounds a game. He has not let up since; he charged in nearly all of the Lakers’ statistical categories from then on.

On January 22, 2006, Kobe Bryant amassed 81 points in a match against the Toronto Raptors. This score remains the most for anyone in a single NBA game, next only to Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point record.

Unsurprisingly, Kobe Bryant was made part of the US basketball delegation to the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. With such powerhouses as LeBron James and Dwayne Wade, he helped the American “Redeem Team” in capturing the gold.

An offspring of NBA star Joe Bryant, Kobe Bryant was anything but born to play on the hard courts. His father taught him how at age three.

Kobe Bryant first made a name for himself on the courts of Lower Merion High School in Pennsylvania. When he was a senior, USA Today named him the National High School Player of the Year.

Duke University tried to lure Kobe Bryant then, but he opted to be drafted by the Hornets straight out of high school. The rest, as we know, is history.