Kobe Bryant

Here's a time line of Kobe Bryant's life:

• 1978 - Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

• 1995 - Best player in high school basketball

• 1996 - Bryant decided to skip college and join the NBA

• 1997 - Bryant earned a reputation as a high-flyer and a fan favorite by winning the Slam Dunk Contest, and he was named an All-Star by his second season

• 2003 - Bryant was charged with sexual assault following an accusation by a young female hotel clerk.The criminal charges were dropped after the accuser refused to testify, and a civil suit was settled out of court. Bryant issued a public apology and admitted to a sexual encounter but denied the assault allegation and said it was consensual.

• 2004 - The Lakers lost the 2004 NBA Finals. After that Bryant's teemmate, Shaquille O'Neal, was traded and Bryant became the cornerstone of the Lakers.

• 2005, 2006 - Bryant led the NBA in scoring during the 2005–06 and 2006–07 seasons

• 2006 - Bryant scored a career-high 81 points; the second most points scored in a single game in league history, behind Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game in 1962.

• 2008 - NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP), and a two-time NBA Finals MVP

• 2008, 2012 - Bryant won two gold medals as a member of the U.S. national team at the Summer Olympics

• 2009, 2010 - Bryant led the team to two consecutive championships and was named NBA Finals MVP on both occasions

• 2013 - Bryant continued to be among the top players in the league, when he suffered a torn Achilles tendon at age 34. He subsequently suffered season-ending injuries to his knee and shoulder, respectively, in the following two seasons.

• 2015 - Citing physical decline, Bryant retired after the 2015–16 season

• 2018 - Bryant won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for his 2017 film "Dear Basketball"

• 2020 - Bryant died at age 41, along with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven others, in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California