UNCASVILLE, Conn. - At just 17 years old, a National Basketball Association recruit from Lower Merion High School was selected in the first round of the NBA Draft in the summer of 1996.
His name was Kobe Bryant and the ambitious teenager would soon become not only one of the greatest players who ever wore a purple and gold uniform, but also one of the greatest basketball players of all time.
Celebrating Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant's incredible 20-year NBA careerThe idea that Bryant would be unable to attend his own induction ceremony into the Naismith Basketball Memorial Hall of Fame remains surreal to sports fans across the globe, as many continue to grapple with the sports icon’s untimely and heartbreaking death.