His Original Number Was Taken
When Kobe played high school basketball, he finished with number 33. When he was drafted by the NBA, he wanted to keep his number, but unfortunately for him, 33 was already reserved for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and was retired with him. Therefore, Kobe chose the number 8. Kobe and Abdul-Jabbar would go on to become good friends and Kobe always said Kareem was one of his role models.
His Original Number Was Taken
A Talented Young Player
In addition to becoming the youngest guard to be drafted to the NBA, Kobe was also the youngest player in the whole league at the time. He was just 18 years, 2 months, and 11 days old when he began his NBA career. His first game took place on November 3rd, 1996 when his team played against the Minnesota Timberwolves. He played a total of 6 minutes and managed one foul, one rebound, and one block.
A Talented Young Player
