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Born in 1978 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Kobe Bryant spent his early years in Italy and joined the NBA straight out of high school. A dominant scorer, Bryant won five NBA championships and the 2008 MVP Award with the Los Angeles Lakers. Although later seasons were marred by injuries, he surpassed Michael Jordan for third place on the NBA all-time scoring list in December 2014. The following year, he announced his plan to retire after the 2015-16 NBA season. In his second season as guard, with the Lakers, Bryant was voted a starter for the 1998 All-Star Game, becoming at 19 the youngest All-Star in NBA history. He then teamed up with superstar center Shaquille O'Neal to win three consecutive NBA championships, and was voted first-team all-NBA from 2002-04. He also inked multi-year endorsement deals with Adidas, Sprite and other top sponsors. Although the Lakers struggled after O'Neal left in 2004, Bryant performed brilliantly. He scored 81 points against the Toronto Raptors in January 2006, the second-highest single-game mark in NBA history, and led the league in scoring that year and the next. In 2008, Bryant was named Most Valuable Player and carried his team to the NBA Finals, where they lost to the Boston Celtics. In the 2009 NBA Finals, the Lakers beat the Orlando Magic to win the championship. Shortly afterward, Bryant was part of the memorial service to honor friend and music superstar Michael Jackson. The following year, the Lakers won their second straight title by defeating the Celtics. Bryant played on both the 2008 and 2012 U.S. Olympic teams, winning consecutive gold medals with teammates Kevin Durant, LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony, among several other top players.
We picked Kobe because he showed a lot of people what real hard work is. He has this mentality of always working and never giving up. Kobe has been an ispiration to people all around the globe. He is a person that will never give up until he does what is right.