American professional basketball player, producer, philanthropist, and entrepreneur Kobe Bryant passed away in February of this year. Kobe Bryan had a net worth of $600 million at the time of his death. On January 26, 2020, a helicopter carrying Kobe Bryant went down in the mountains outside of Los Angeles, killing him instantly. Kobe Bryant was a two-time NBA Finals MVP and an 18-time NBA All-Star.
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Kobe Bryant
| Net Worth: | $600 Million |
| Salary: | $25 Million |
| Date of Birth: | Aug 23, 1978 – Jan 26, 2020 (41 years old) |
| Gender: | Male |
| Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.98 m) |
| Profession: | Basketball player, Athlete |
| Nationality: | United States of America |
Even in retirement, Kobe was one of the highest-paid athletes in sports. Throughout his career, Kobe earned millions of dollars in salary and endorsements. The business investments he made were extremely wise. At the time of his death, he had a $200 million stake in the beverage body armor. Six years ago, he paid $6 million for the stake. Coca-Cola paid $5.6 billion in October 2021 to acquire the entire body armor business.
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What Would Kobe Bryant’s Net Worth Be Today?
As previously mentioned, Kobe Bryant was worth $600 million at the time of his death. The pre-tax value of his investment in BodyArmour was included in that total.
The Bryant family’s stake in BodyArmor had been whittled down to 5% by the time Coca-Cola bought it outright for $8 billion in October 2021. This transaction netted his estate $400 million before taxes. That worked out to about $270 million after taxes. This deal would have increased Kobe’s fortune from $600 million to $670 million if he were still alive at the time. body armor has increased its valuation by $200 million and lost about $130 million due to taxes, so this does not appear to be much of an increase. Kobe Bryant would have started 2022 with a net worth of $700 million if other deals and transactions had taken place.
- Made $328 million in NBA salary
- Made $350 million from endorsements
- Invested $6m in BodyArmour in 2014
- By August 2018 that stake was worth $200 million
- In October 2021, Kobe’s estate sold the BodyArmour stake for $400 million
Kobe Bryant’s estate has now officially reached $1 billion net worth, putting it second all-time among NBA players 🐐💰 pic.twitter.com/MWsWf9HYah
— NBA SKITS (@NBA_Skits) November 3, 2021
Early Life
Kobe Bryant was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on August 23, 1978. Joe Bryant, his father, was a former Philadelphia 76ers player. When his parents saw a picture of Kobe beef on a menu, they knew they had to name him after it. Kobe was six years old when Joe retired from the NBA and relocated the family to Italy, where he continued his professional career in a European league. Kobe has mastered the Italian language. As a preteen, Kobe would visit the United States to play in summer basketball leagues. He attended Lower Merion High School in Philadelphia following Joe’s retirement from the sport.
In high school, Kobe led his team to their first state championship in 53 years through his basketball prowess. Gatorade’s Men’s National Basketball Player of the Year and USA Today’s All-American First Team quickly recognized him as the best player in the country. Many colleges were willing to accept him because of his high SAT score, but Kobe chose to skip college and instead focus on his career in basketball. Kobe is the NBA’s youngest player ever drafted.
NBA
After being drafted by the New Orleans Hornets, Kobe was immediately traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in a pre-arranged deal. To sign his rookie contract, Kobe’s parents had to co-sign because he was only 17 years old. He signed a three-year, $3.5 million contract with the NBA in his first season.
At the age of 18, Kobe Bryant became the NBA’s youngest ever starter. At the end of his third season with the team, he started to shine. There were comparisons to Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson being made about him at this point.
A $70 million, a six-year contract extension was also part of his third year. The Los Angeles Lakers hired Phil Jackson as head coach in 1999. The Lakers, led by Jackson and Kobe, would go on to win five NBA championships during Jackson’s tenure. Including the years 2000-2002, which were all three consecutive.
Kobe Bryant’s Salary And Career Earnings
Kobe Bryant made over $328 million in salary alone during his time with the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA. Additionally, in 2010, the Lakers agreed to a three-year, $90 million contract extension. A two-year $48.5 million contract extension was signed by him in 2013. Kobe earned $25 million in salary in his final NBA season.
He made an estimated $350 million from endorsements during his career. That tallied up to a total of $680 million for his career.
Nike, Sprite, McDonald’s, Turkish Airlines, Lenovo, Hublot, and Panini are just a few of the brands he’s worked with throughout his career as a spokesperson. Because of Kobe’s enduring appeal in China, he was able to secure lucrative endorsement deals with Chinese-specific brands like Alibaba, Sina.com, and Mercedes Benz.
While he was just starting, he was signed to Adidas as a player. The six-year, $48 million contract he signed with Adidas before the 1996 season was one of the most lucrative ever signed by an athlete.
Following his sexual assault allegations in 2003, many of Kobe’s endorsement contracts were terminated. That year, Nike signed him to a four-year contract worth $10 million per year. For two years, Nike did not sponsor Kobe Bryant in any way.
It was only a matter of time before endorsement deals came back in full force.
Body Armour Investment
In March 2014, Kobe paid $6 million for a 10% stake in body armor, a sports drink.
When Coca-Cola bought a 15% stake in BodyArmor, the company’s total value was estimated to be around $2 billion. For Kobe’s investment to be worth $200 million before taxes, he had to put $6 million into the company. Coca-Cola eventually earned an additional 15 percent equity stake after taking over bottling and distribution.
Coca-Cola paid $5.6 billion for the remaining 70% of BodyArmor in October 2021, valuing the company at $8 billion. At the time of the acquisition, Kobe’s stake had been reduced to 5 percent, so his estate earned a $400 million windfall from the transaction.
“Dear Basketball” won the Best Animated Short Film Oscar in 2018 for Kobe.
Bryant Stibel
Byrant-Stibel was founded in August 2016 by Kobe and his business partner Jeff Stibel with $100 million in finance. Technology, media, and information industries were the primary targets of the fund’s initial investments. Among the dozens of companies, Jeff and Kobe have invested in include sports media website The Players Tribune, legal services provider LegalZoom, juice delivery service Juicero, and video game developer Scopely.
Personal Life
Kobe married Vanessa Laine, a 17-year-old high school student, in November 1999. During her work as a background dancer in a music video, they became acquainted. At the same time, he was in the studio working on his debut album of musical compositions. Within six months of their initial encounters, they were engaged. She was a high school senior at the time.
On April 18, 2001, Kobe and Vanessa tied the knot in Dana Point, California. Bryant’s parents reportedly refused to attend the wedding because they disapproved of their son’s and daughter’s union.
Gianna Maria-Onore Bryant was born on May 1st, 2006. Their first child, Natalia Diamante Bryant, was born on January 19th, 2003. They had a total of four daughters, all of whom were born in the same year. Bianka and Capri are the names of their other daughters.
Vanessa Bryant filed for divorce on December 16th, 2011, after a decade of marriage. For Vanessa, the divorce settlement may have cost him as much as $100-150 million without a prenup. Both of them came around in the end.
Death
Kobe Bryan, 41, perished in a helicopter crash on January 26th, 2020, startling the world. Another eight persons were killed in the collision. Gianna, Kobe’s 13-year-old daughter, was also killed in the attack.
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