Every year, the National Basketball Association holds a Slam Dunk Competition during All-Star weekend in February. In 1997, Kobe was just 19 years old when he was named a competitor in the Slam Dunk Contest of that year. In my opinion, this was the start to his legendary career.
Kobe Bryant, along with Ray Allen, Chris Carr, Michael Finley, Darvin Ham, and Bob Sura, were part of the announced roster for the 1997 NBA Dunk Contest. In the first round, he broke the rookie record for most points in a single round (each round consists of 2 dunks per player and the player with the highest average score advances).[NBA.com]
Here’s one of his dunks from the first round. (https://www.nba.com/lakers/news/180823-lakers-history-rookie-kobe-soars-dunk-contest-title
The second round, or championship round, Kobe Bryant decided to go first. His first dunk was a thing of beauty. He put the ball in between his legs and rocked the rim with one hand. (NBA.com). For you non-basketball lovers who don’t know what that is, here’s something to help.
(https://www.nba.com/lakers/news/180823-lakers-history-rookie-kobe-soars-dunk-contest-title)
The 1997 slam dunk contest was the beginning to Kobe Bryant’s illustrious career. This trophy was just a sneak peek of what was to come.
The Black Mamba 