In 1999, Bryant appeared on a remix of "Say My Name" by Destiny's Child on the Maxi single model of the song. Bryant admitted to an adulterous sexual encounter together with his accuser however denied her sexual assault allegation. However, Bryant's attorneys requested the public sale house to return the items. Before the scheduled trial, a settlement was reached allowing the auction house the sale of less than 10% of the items. They married on April 18, 2001, at St. Edward the Confessor Catholic Church in Dana Point, California.

It was featured on his debut studio album, Finally Rich, as part of the deluxe edition. For the NBA 2K21 soundtrack, Damian Lillard, underneath his stage name Dame D.O.L.L.A., launched a tribute track also titled "Kobe," that includes Snoop Dogg and Derrick Milano. In 2011, Bryant was featured in Taiwanese singer Jay Chou's single "The Heaven and Earth Challenge" (天地一鬥, pronounced "Tian Di Yi Dou"). Not to be confused with the American soccer player Coby Bryant.

He was not included within the montages on the 2020 VMAs and Emmys, held later within the year. The Lakers concluded the 2007–08 regular season with a 57–25 record, finishing first in the Western Conference and establishing themselves for a first-round contest towards the Nuggets. In Game 1, Bryant, who mentioned he made himself a decoy by way of many of the game, scored 18 of his 32 points in the final 8 minutes to keep Los Angeles safely ahead. That made Denver the first 50-win group to be swept out of the first spherical of the playoffs for the explanation that Memphis Grizzlies fell in 4 to the San Antonio Spurs in 2004.

They simply swept the Portland Trail Blazers, Sacramento Kings, and San Antonio Spurs, earlier than dropping their first recreation in opposition to the Philadelphia 76ers in OT. They would go on to win the following four games and convey their second championship to Los Angeles in as many seasons. Bryant ended up making the All NBA Second group and All NBA Defensive Team for the second year in a row.

Since his second year in the league, Bryant has been chosen to begin each NBA All-Star Game that has been held in the final fourteen years. He has gained the All-Star MVP Award 4 times , tying him for probably the most All Star MVP Awards in NBA history. He is a 14-time member of the All-NBA staff and an 12-time member of the All-Defensive group; he's also the youngest participant ever to obtain defensive honors. At the 2008 and 2012 Summer Olympics, he gained gold medals as a member of the USA nationwide group. In 2009, Sporting News and TNT named Bryant the highest NBA player of the 2000s . Tragedy struck the world of basketball and sport generally on 26 January 2020 when Bryant was killed in a helicopter crash in California at the age of 41.

During the season, Bryant signed a six-year contract extension value $70 million. The all-time leading scorer in Lakers history, Bryant was the primary guard in NBA history to play 20 seasons. His 18 All-Star designations are the second most all time, and he has the second most consecutive appearances as a starter.

Before the 2018 soccer season, Kobe popped by the Alabama campus for a go to. This was August, solely months faraway from The Benching—when Nick Saban swapped Jalen Hurts for Tua Tagovailoa at halftime of the nationwide championship recreation. Kobe’s message was intended to resonate with each, with all.

He put $6 million into sports drink company Body Armor in exchange for a 10% equity stake in the company, according toESPN. He additionally turned a spokesperson for the model and took part in recruiting different model ambassadors. Bryant’s web price on the time of his death on Jan. 26, 2020 was about $600 million, according to Forbes. Bryant is survived by his spouse Vanessa, who's the executor of the Bryant estate according toFox and ESPN, and his daughters Natalia, Bianka and Capri. “There’s no such thing as having a balance,” Prescott said about his takeaway from the reading.