Kobe's Basketball Career
Kobe Bryant has led the Los Angeles Lakers to five NBA Championships and is a 13-time NBA All-Star and 2008 Olympic Gold Medalist. He is the all-time leading scorer in Lakers franchise history and currently ranks sixth on the NBA’s all-time regular season scoring list. Bryant earned the league’s Most Valuable Player Award in 2008 and led the NBA in scoring during the 2005-06 and 2006-07 seasons. He was the 2009 and 2010 NBA Finals MVP and ranks third all-time in NBA post-season scoring.
Bryant has been selected thirteen times to the All-NBA First Team and eleven times to the All-Defensive Team. He has started in every NBA All-Star Game that has been held during his career, winning the All-Star MVP award four times (2002, 2007, 2009 and 2011). He won the NBA Slam Dunk Contest in 1997. Bryant enjoyed a successful high school basketball career at Lower Merion High School, where he was recognized as the top high school basketball player in the country. Selected with the 13th overall pick in the 1996 NBA Draft, he became the first guard in league history to be drafted out of high school.
Kobe's Philantrophy
Kobe Bryant devotes time, financial resources and his philanthropic passion to causes that benefit youth and young adults in need.
He actively volunteers his time to Make-A-Wish Foundation and has granted more than 100 wishes to children with life-threatening medical conditions – the most of any professional athlete. Kobe is also actively involved with NBA Cares, and has dedicated hundreds of hours to local service projects through the league’s grassroots service initiative.
Kobe serves as the National Ambassador for After-School All-Stars, a national after-school enrichment program for at-risk youth. In this role, he visits with children at ASAS sites throughout the country, emphasizing the importance of education and being a life-long learner.
Kobe has been a key voice for action during recent global crises, soliciting support for the victims of the conflict in Darfur, the earthquakes in China and Haiti and the disaster in Japan. He recorded several high-profile public service announcements to raise awareness for each cause and made significant financial contributions to service organizations on the ground in each affected area.
Other organizations that Kobe has previously supported include: St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital, the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, the Pediatric AIDS Foundation, The Center for Abused Children, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Plaza de la Raza Cultural Center (East L.A.).