After high school, Bryant was the 13th overall pick of the 1996 draft, selected by Charlotte, which traded his rights to the Lakers in exchange for center Vlade Divac.
Bryant also starred for two decades with the Los Angeles Lakers, winning five championships and making 18 All-Star Games before hanging up his basketball shoes following the 2016 season.
Bryant won five NBA championships for the Lakers and amassed a number of accolades. He was the NBA's Most Valuable Player in 2007-08, a 15-time All-NBA selection, 18-time All-Star and 12-time All-Defensive team member. He twice was named the MVP of the NBA Finals and was the All-Star Game MVP four times.
Bryant played in 1,346 career games and retired as the third-leading scorer in NBA history with 33,643 points. On Saturday night, Lakers star LeBron James passed him on the all-time list when he scored 29 points against the Philadelphia 76ers. Bryant stands behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Karl Malone and James on the all-time list.
The 41 year-old was a two-time Olympic gold medalist in basketball, having won the tournament with United States at the Beijing games in 2008, and again at London in 2012.
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