Kobe Bryant movie to detail dramatic draft-night saga
Look away, Nets fans.
The dramatic manner in which Kobe Bryant spurned the Nets in the 1996 NBA Draft and ended up with the Lakers is set to hit the big screen.
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The movie, tentatively titled “With the 8th Pick?” was acquired by Warner Bros. and comes from screenwriters Alex Sohn and Gavin Johannsen.
The eighth pick represents the Nets and their failed pursuit of Bryant, as detailed by Deadline.
Then-coach John Calipari has long said he was heavily interested in drafting Bryant.
He even had dinner with Bryant’s parents the night before the draft.
But Bryant’s agent, Arn Tellem, called then-general manager John Nash and told him that Bryant would rather play in Italy than for the Nets.
The Nets then decided to take Kerry Kittles with the No. 8 pick.
Kittle spent seven of his eight seasons — he missed one due to injury — with the Nets from 1996-2004 before finishing his career with the Clippers.
He averaged 14.3 points during his time with New jersey.
Bryant went to the Hornets with the No. 13 pick, but they subsequently traded him to the Lakers for Vlade Divac.
The rest is history.
He played 20 seasons with the Lakers, winning five championships — including a three-peat from 2000-02. Bryant also claimed back-to-back titles in 2009 and 2010.
He was an 18-time All-Star and won MVP for the 2007-08 season, retiring in 2016.
Bryant would have turned 47 on Saturday.
He died in 2020 in a helicopter crash along with eight other passengers, including his daughter Gianna.
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