Some of you guys may know Kobe Bryant as the legendary shooting guard for the Lakers, or maybe you call him the best basketball players of all time in the league of NBA, Kobe Bryant has been grinding his butt to get to where he is today, so let me explain to you Kobe Bryant worth toward the game and how he built up a net worth of 365 Million.
Kobe Bryant, started playing basketball when he was only 3 years old. His dad Joe Bryant, was a professional basketball player, so he grew up around the sport. His freshman year in high school, his team went 4-20. Determined to win, Kobe helped turn the team around over the next 3 years winning 77 of the 97 games, he also won a state championship, and was named Pennsylvania Basketball Player of the year. The wins and title brought a lot of attention to Kobe Bryant, especially by college recruiters. Kobe, knew he wanted to play basketball and he knew he was good so he hired an agent while he was in high school and tried to get a spot in the NBA. The Charlotte Hornets first drafted Kobe, but Kobe Bryant wasn’t happy, so He had his agent tell them that it is “an impossibility” for Kobe Bryant to play for them. Imagine that, a high school kid turning down potentially millions to play in the N.B.A. because he didn’t believe in the team.
The Lakers worked out a deal with the Hornets and Kobe Bryant, so Kobe Bryant was traded over to the team he wanted. But he was only 17, so he had bring his parents along to sign the contract with the Los Angeles Lakers since he was a minor.
Kobe Bryant has quickly became one of the best players on the team. He worked so hard day in and day out to get to this stage. When he was in high school, he would often show up to practice at 5 am before the rest of his team, and he would leave at 7pm after everyone else left. Even if he didn’t have a ball, his teammates would come into the court seeing Kobe practicing dribbling and shooting with nothing. He wouldn’t leave practice unless he made 400 shots. He iced his knees 3 times a day, 20 minutes each, and used acupuncture to avoid getting hurt. And this is all during practice season. When it’s the off season, he amplified it all. His hard work and success earned him a salary of over 25 million/year, giving him the 2nd largest annual NBA salary in history, trailing behind Michael Jordan. His 20 seasons have earned him a total of 328 million from playing basketball alone.
But that much money comes with a heavy cost. About 55% of his total salary will goes towards taxes because he is in the highest Federal Tax bracket of 39.5%, California has a state income tax of 13.3%, then on top of that he has to pay for Social Security and Medicaid earnings.
Now that Kobe Bryant is retiring, he has to come up with another way to make money since he is only 37. But he has a strategic plan, he set up an investment firm Kobe Inc. He has already bought a 4.6 million dollar 10% stake in the new sports drink brand, Body Armor.
And if that’s not enough, he also has endorsement deals from Nike, Coca-cola, Hublot watches, and Panini authentic. Earning him a total of about $34 million a year, which is more than what he makes form playing basketball.
So what can we learn from Kobe Bryant, be so good that you make what you do look easy. And if you want to be the best, you have to be willing to work like the best.
