[Full Name] Kobe Bean Bryant Cox
The origin of the name Kobe is this: Kobe's father used to eat a kind of steak in a restaurant when he was playing in the Italian Basketball League, which we are very familiar with Kobe steak, and since Kobe's father liked to eat this kind of steak of a different flavor very much, he named his son
[Nationality] United States
[Chinese translation] Kobe? Kobe Bryant. Bryant Cox, Kobe Bryant, Kobe Bryant, Kobe Bryant. Cox, Kirby? Byrne (Hong Kong and Macau), Kirby? Bryan (Taiwan)
[Nickname] Peter Pan, the Black Mamba, show-be (pronounced like Kobe, meaning miracle), Mr.81, frog (nickname given to him by his sister because of his high jump), the Eagle of Strength (a title he received in Colorado in '03)
[ Number] #8, #24 (NBA), #10 (Olympics), #33 (high school)
Height: 2.013M (actual)
Weight: 220 lbs/100 kg
Bounce: 98 cm
[Team] Wore #33 on the Lower Merion varsity team in high school and has been in Los Angeles since the 96-97 season until now. 97 season until now are in the Los Angeles Lakers; NBA number -8, because before in the Adidas ABCD training camp number is 143, add up the sum of 8; 06-07 season began to wear No. 24; Olympic Games to wear No. 10
[Position] Point guard / point guard / small forward
[Features] Now the NBA's best scorer, breakthrough The best scorer in the NBA right now, breakthrough, shooting, free throws, three-point are all familiar. The number of means of scoring, the number of shots, the scoring area of the wide, almost no offensive blind spot.
[Current Residence] Newport Beach, California
[Languages] Speaks fluent English and Italian, recently learning Spanish, and a little bit of French
[Birthday] August 23, 1978 (actual time of birth)
[Zodiac Sign] Virgo
[Wife] Vanessa Bryant ( Vanessa Bryant) (Mexican)
[Daughter] Natalia? Diamond Bryant ( Natalia Diamond) (Mexican)
Gina? Maria? Gianna Diamond Bryant. Bryant ( Gianna Maria-Onore Bryant )
[Education] Graduated from Lower Merion High School in Philadelphia/UCLA International Trade Dropout
[Place of Birth] Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
[Other Family Members] Father: Joe? Bryant / Mother: Pam? Bryant / Oldest sister: Sarah? Bryant / Second Sister: Shaya? Bryant
[Previous Residence] Milan, Italy
[Draft] Selected by the Charlotte Hornets in the first round of the 1996 draft, 13th overall, and traded to the Lakers on July 11 of the same year, where the Hornets received Divac
[NBA Championships] 3
[NBA Playing Years] 13 Years
[Years of Salary] 3 Years of Salary as a Rookie 3.5 million
Extended to the Lakers in 1999 for 6 years and $70.9 million
Extended to the Lakers in 2004 for 7 years and $103.6 million 2010 player option Expires 2011
[Injuries] In February 2008, he tore ligaments in his pinkie finger and suffered an avulsion fracture. He postponed surgery to play through the 2007-08 NBA season and the 2008 Beijing Olympics; he then postponed surgery again due to a recovery period of up to 12 weeks, and had knee surgery in October 2006 and a sprained right ankle in December. in October 2007, he suffered a sprained right wrist.
88 things to know about Kobe
Childhood phase
1: Born Aug. 23, 1978
2: Birthplace is Philadelphia
3: First name came from the name of a steak that his parents saw on the menu of a restaurant in Japan
4: Middle name (the name between the first name and the last name) is called Bean (Bean)
5: His father, Joe, who played eight years in the NBA, married his mother, Pam
6: Has two sisters named Sharira and Shaya
7: His father, Joe, was drafted by the Golden State Warriors in the 1975 draft and traded to Philadelphia when the Warriors rejected his contract demands. From there, Joe was displaced from team to team,**** playing 606 games for the Philadelphia 76ers, San Diego Clippers, and Houston Rockets, averaging 8.7 points per game. He also played professionally in Europe. First, he played seven years in the Italian league, then moved to the French league for one year in the 91-92 season before Joe retired and his family returned to the United States.
8: Played English soccer in Italy in addition to basketball.
High School Years
9: Joined Rovomenion High School in Rovomenion, Pennsylvania
10: Once wore No. 33
11: Highest scoring by a high school senior in Southeastern Pennsylvania history: 2,883
12: Highest point total in a single game, 50 points
13: Sneaked into the 76ers training camp experience NBA experience
14: Played in and won the McDonald's All-America Game
15: Took home the Player of the Year award before graduating
16: Took future rap starlet Brandi (ex-girlfriend of 3-point king Richardson) to prom
17: Kobe. Bryant scored 2,883 points while representing his school in high school***. (This broke the mark of 2,539 points set by Wilt Chamberlain. Wilt Chamberlain's record of 2,539 points, which stood for 38 years)
NBA
17: Became the seventh player to be promoted to the NBA directly from high school
18: Drafted by the Charlotte Hornets in the first round of the '96 draft with the 13th overall pick
19: Swapped with Divac for the Lakers in July the same year
20: Chose the No. 8 jersey, citing the number 143 (1+4+3=8) at Adidas' ABCD camp
21: Broke the record for the youngest player in the NBA at the time, at 18 years, 5 months and 5 days.
22: Second team of the 96-97 season's best rookie class.
23: Secretly came to China in '97 to steal and learn the Taoist art of Maoshan, and then won the slam dunk contest , because of the high-profile hair slam dunk contest was called off by Stern.
24: In '98 at the age of 19, he became the NBA's youngest All-Star player at the time
25: Philadelphia All-Star Game in '02 scored 31 points and was elected MVP
26: In '03 when the nine consecutive games more than 40 points to become the third person in history to reach this record
27: January 7, '03 to the Supersonics put in a record twelve 3-pointers for NBA record
28: Hit eight 3-pointers in a half against the Wizards on 3/28/03, first all-time
29: Has 21 career shutouts (game-winning shots)
30: Has 15 career triple-doubles
31: Nine-time first-team selection to the NBA's best lineup
32: Eight times selected to the first team of the best defensive lineup
33: In the 2006-2007 season, because of the high-profile worship, was warned by the Ba Shen, Kobe changed his jersey number to 24. 24 is exactly one more than the number 23, the number 23 is the most famous figure than Jordan the Great, there are some good people think that Kobe is to use this to prove that he is greater than Jordan, so he chose the number 24. Kobe himself explained that the reason why he chose 24, because there are 24 hours in a day, meaning that every hour he is working hard; and the time limit for every offense in basketball is 24 seconds, which is also to remind himself to cherish every second of offense on the court.
Highest Record
33: Averaged 24 points in 29 meetings with the Rockets
34: Scored 27 points in a 12-minute, 47-second span of the third through fourth quarters against the Rockets on Dec. 12, 1997
35: Played a career-best 54 minutes and scored 52 points on Feb. 18, '03
36: Scored 50 points in a playoff game against the Suns on May 5, 2006, the most Kobe has ever scored in the postseason
37: Averaged 33.3 points in a four-game sweep of the Spurs in the '01 Western Conference Finals
38: Scored a career-high 56 points against the Grizzlies on Jan. 14, '02, a season ago
39: Averaged 30 points in the 02-03 season, a current high
39: Averaged 30 points in the 02- 03 seasons averaged 30 points, current high
40: 42 points at halftime against the Wizards on 3/28/03
41: Top-six in NBA scoring in each of the previous five seasons
42: Averaged 23.3 points, tied for 17th all-time in NBA history
43: Averaged 22.6 points in the playoffs
44: 2,694 points ranks 23rd on the postseason scoring list
45: 20.1 points per game average ranks fourth in All-Star Game history
46: Career-high in assists with 15
47: Career-high in rebounds with 15
48: Career-high in steals with six
49: Career-high in caps of 5
50: Back-to-back NBA first-team selections from '00-'02
51: Record 43 consecutive made free throws in March '05
52: 23 consecutive made free throws in a single game against the Cavaliers on Jan. 30, '01
Core status
53: Team scoring leader the past three seasons
54: Team leader in steals in five of the last six seasons
55: Team leader in assists in five of the last six seasons
56: 1,086 3-pointers made ranks second in Lakers history
57: 15,641 points ranks sixth in Lakers history
58: 977 steals ranks Sixth in Lakers history
59: 2,981 assists ranked seventh in Lakers history
60: 420 caps ranked ninth in Lakers history
Life of a player
61: Wife's name is Vanessa Bryant
62: Wedding ring given to his wife is a whopping $100,000
63: Daughter Natalia Diamond Bryant just celebrated her 6th birthday in January '09
64: Gave birth to her second child, still a daughter, in May, and Kobe currently does not have a son
65: Currently resides in Newport Beach, California
66: Favorite song is Brian? McKnight's HOLD ME REMIX (Reinvent Yourself)
67: Favorite movie is Star Wars
68: Favorite actor: Will? Smith; Favorite actress: Jennifer? Hewitt
69: Favorite cartoon: 'Road runner'
70: Hobbies: reading, swimming, video games, modifying cars
71: This season is the seventh year of a seven-year, $103.6 million contract
Keeping track
73: Started the Western Conference All-Star Game for the 10th straight year
74: 35.7 points per game in the 05-06 season, the highest single-season scoring average for an active NBA player, and the second-highest single-season scoring average in the NBA in the last 20 years, the first being Jordan's 37.1 points per game in the 86-84 season.
75: Became the youngest player in NBA history to score more than 20,000 points
76: 92 times scored more than 40, ranking third in history, the first and second were Chamberlain, Jordan.
77: Became the 2nd player in history to score over 50 points in 4 consecutive games
78: Became the 2nd player in history to average over 40 points in a month more than twice (40.6 ppg in Feb '03, 43.4 ppg in Jan '05)
79: Scored 62 points in 3 quarters vs. the Mavs, which became the all-time high for now
80: 30 points in one quarter against the Mavericks on the same day, a personal and team record
81: 14 free throws in one quarter against the Mavericks on the same day
82: 50 points against the Clippers on Jan. 7
83: 51 points against the Kings on Jan. 19
84: 55 points in one half against the Raptors on Jan. 22
84: 55 points in one half against the Raptors on Jan. 22
85: 62 points in three quarters against the Mavs, a temporary all-time high.85: 81 points against the Raptors on Jan. 22, the second-highest single-game scoring output in the NBA
86: 4 consecutive games of 50-plus points
87: MVP of the '07-'08 regular season
88: 5 consecutive 30-point, 6-rebound, 6-assist postseason games
88: 5 consecutive 30-point, 6-rebound, 6-assist postseason games
88: 5 consecutive 30-point, 6-rebound, 6-assist playoff games
88 +6 assists recordBeijing time on April 11, the Los Angeles Lakers visited the Rose Garden Arena to face the old enemy Portland Trail Blazers, the game began just 29 seconds after the start, Kobe through the breakthrough to get a free throw opportunity, two free throws after two points, so that his career total reached 23758 points, to achieve the Charles Barkley (23,757 points), the total number of points. Barkley (23,757 points)
First high school guard in NBA history youngest to reach 20,000 points second youngest to reach 11,000 points (behind LeBron James) 21,000 points. James) 21,000 points (behind Wilt Chamberlain) Youngest to be named to Best Defensive Team (2000) Youngest to be named to All-Star Game starting lineup (1998) Youngest to be named to Rookie of the Year lineup (1997) Eleventh in NBA history in scoring average (25.0 points, tied with Karl Malone). NBA's 20th all-time scoring average (22,590 points) NBA's 9th all-time single-season scoring average (2006, 35.4) NBA's 7th all-time single-season scoring average (2006, 2,832) NBA's 2nd all-time single-game scoring average (2006, 81) NBA's 1st all-time three-point field goals made in a game (2003, 12) One of three players in NBA history to score 60 or more points in four games (Jordan and Chamberlain are the other two) One of three players in NBA history to score 50 or more points in two consecutive days
Second player in NBA history to score 50 or more points in four or more consecutive games (65 points vs. Portland Trail Blazers on March 16, 2007, 65 points vs. March 18, 2007 against the Minnesota Timberwolves, 60 points on March 22, 2007 against the Memphis Grizzlies, and 50 points on March 23, 2007 against the Hornets, surpassing Jordan and former Laker Elgin Baylor. The second player in NBA history to score 50 or more points 10 times in a season (behind Chamberlain's 45 in 1961-62 and 30 in 1962-63)
The 31st player in NBA history to score 20 or more points in a season (behind Chamberlain's 45 in 1961-62 and 30 in 1962-63)
The 31st player in NBA history to score 20 or more points in a season (behind Chamberlain's 45 in 1961-62 and 30 in 1962-63). Thirty-first player in NBA history to score 20,000 points, and third in history to do so before turning 30 (29 years, 122 days; Chamberlain (29 years, 134 days; Jordan (29 years, 326 days))
Forty-fourth player in NBA history to make 1,000 three-pointers
Third most 40 or more points in NBA history (behind Chamberlain's 45 in 1961-62 and 30 in 1962-63)
Third most 40 or 50-plus points in NBA history (behind Chamberlain's 45 in 1962-62 and 30 in 1962-63) Third-most players in NBA history to score 40 or more points (93 games, as of Dec. 31, 2008, behind Chamberlain's 271 and Jordan's 173)
Third-most players in NBA history to score 50 or more points (24 games, as of Dec. 31, 2008, behind Chamberlain's 118 and Jordan's 31)
NBA history The 16th player in NBA history to score 21,000 points and 4,000 assists
Kobe and Jordan
After Jordan, the God of Basketball, left the NBA for good, the question of who would be Jordan's successor has been a major concern for fans.
From the earliest known as Jordan's successor Grant Hill, to the younger generation of players such as Iverson, Kobe, Carter, Maddie and so on ...... each of them have openly expressed their own do not want to surpass Jordan, and do not want to be used with the myth of the God of Basketball the most comparative, they only want to leave their own in the history of the NBA! The only thing they want to do is to leave their own style and record in the history of the NBA, so that people can remember their own names, rather than "Jordan successor" such a code name.
But the crazy NBA fans still can't help but talk about this topic again and again, and Kobe has become the most often used by fans to compare the most with Jordan's players, which is not in the wishful thinking of the fans, but because Kobe is really in many ways very much like Jordan ......
Kobe's career scoring totals exceeded more than 20 points. With a career total of more than 19,000 points, it's important to note that he became the youngest player in NBA history to reach that plateau, and the previous holder of that record happened to be Jordan.
January 26, 2006, Kobe cut 81 points in a single game, surpassing Jordan's personal single-game high of 69 points created in 1990; March 24, 2007, Kobe scored more than 50 points in four consecutive games, surpassing Jordan's performance of three consecutive games of 50 + 20 years ago; April 4, 2007, Kobe completed another surpassing, which three surpassing occurred in 430 days The three overtures occurred within 430 days of each other.
At least statistically, KB24 has mounted a strong challenge to MJ23. Does Kobe surpass Jordan? Not in terms of the current Lakers, at least.
"Kobe surpasses Jordan, but surpasses only in numbers." --- An NBA fan analyzed Kobe's crazy performance this way
His brilliance witnessed the Lakers' historic low
With six minutes left in the third quarter of the Lakers-Nuggets game, Woo hit 1 free throw from the free throw line, not realizing that at that moment a new record was being Until he walked into the lounge after the game, many people to him to celebrate, Kobe only reacted to the original he once again surpassed Jordan.
With 19,000 points, Kobe was only 28 years and 223 days old, and the previous record holder was Jordan, who was 29 years and 62 days old when he scored 19,000 points. Many people celebrated, but those celebrations belonged to Kobe alone, not the Lakers.
Kobe's record streak can be described as an outburst under heavy pressure, even a kind of helplessness. Last season's 81 points appeared, when the Lakers were on the brink of the Western Conference top eight; four consecutive 50 +, the Lakers are experiencing a seven-game losing streak, and many in the league questioned Kobe's character; and this time, 19,000 points, Kobe, although younger than Jordan to reach this height, but Jordan entered the league at the age of 22 years old, Kobe 18 years of age into the league.
Jordan got 3 championships in his first 10 seasons, Kobe did the same, but Jordan has had 3 more championships in hand since then, and that's what Kobe has surpassed Jordan's goal. Kobe has great individual ability and a good coach, but he still needs great teammates and the leadership ability and temperament that Jordan had, not one personal record after another.
What made Jordan great was that Jordan's brilliance created the Bulls' brilliance, and the two were unified. Kobe is the opposite, when he was infinitely brilliant, the Lakers were struggling, and when the Lakers were brilliant, Kobe was suppressed.
At least half of the people think that the core of the Lakers' three consecutive titles is O'Neal. Many others believe that the reason the Lakers' F4 fell apart that year was because of Kobe. The fact that the apex of Kobe's career wasn't the height of his team's glory makes Kobe's greatness seem a bit otherworldly, or at least not mainstream enough.
The NBA has a set of stereotypes for evaluating a player, such as Chamberlain, who was almost unbeatable and was recognized as the strongest player in history. However, when it comes to the NBA's greatest players, people will mention Russell and Jordan because they built their own team's dynasty, because basketball is not boxing.
Different choices
Kobe's career was born out of a trade. The league's attitude toward high school players was completely different than it is now. He was drafted 13th overall by the Hornets, who then traded for the Lakers' Divac, and how do the Hornets, who felt they made a profit at the time, feel about it today?
Kobe averaged less than 16 minutes of playing time in his rookie season, increasing to 26 minutes in his second year, when O'Neal was the Lakers' absolute top dog, and Kobe was not even close to being as good as Eddie? Jones, who is often associated with the "future".
11 years of career, Kobe suffered zipper door, some people called him "rapist", the businessman had seen him as a flood beast to avoid; Kobe was called the Lakers of the unstable factors, the source of internal conflict; now there are even more skeptical about Kobe's character and even character.... ...
No one has ever questioned or even blasted Jordan, because he is a positive example of the NBA, while Kobe is a complex character, and it's not even clear whether he's a positive or negative character. Jordan is from a height to climb to another height, while Kobe is a few times sinking and floating. Different destinies have created two different superstars, different worldviews are directed by different destinies, Jordan and Kobe walk a completely different road. To make an analogy, Jordan started from the 1st floor, and finally walked to the 10th floor, while Kobe started from the 4th floor, and now climbed to the 9th floor, and his road is not flat, he once fell down the stairs heavily, but Kobe paid the effort is absolutely no less than Jordan.
Kobe's new season
After a summer of transfer fiasco, Garnett went away to Boston, O'Neal Jr. stayed in Indiana - Kobe repeatedly threatened the team's management with a transfer and hoped that the management could bring in the two players ultimately failed to come to L.A., and only the hapless Kobe remained with the Lakers.
Kobe's series of eye-popping high scoring records in the 06-07 season proved himself to be the best scorer in the league on the one hand, while on the other hand it also reflected the Lakers' embarrassing situation. After a summer of trade fiasco, Kobe wanted to be traded himself, hope that the team to bring in strong support ultimately did not materialize. But that's not to say there's no hope for the Lakers in the new season. Players who didn't give Kobe a lot of help from the Lakers in the last season also said in front of the media that they'll work harder in the new season.......
Hopefully, both Kobe and the Lakers will have a better performance in the new season!
On January 15, 2008, in the Lakers and Supersonics showdown, Kobe scored 48 points, including three consecutive shots in the last few minutes, hitting a wave of 6:0 high tide, leading the Lakers to beat the Supersonics 123-121, and achieved seven consecutive victories, surpassing the Phoenix Suns, the Dallas Mavericks, the San Antonio Spurs and other powerhouse teams on the top of the Western Conference.
08 in February of the Grizzlies' number one Spanish star Gasol transferred and joined the Lakers, which is a timely remedy for the pursuit of victory for the Lakers, the media said: "Kobe finally has a companion". In the end when Kobe led the Lakers can ask the NBA championship, let Kobe to his fourth ring step and go.
07--08 season of Kobe
For Kobe, the 07-08 season was a great season and a special season. There were so many stories that happened during the season, stories that made the front page of the media's basketball section time and time again, from summer to winter.
06 - 07 NBA playoffs, Kobe led the Lakers to 1:4 lost to the Phoenix Suns under the iron horse, after the game issued a trade call, at first the Lakers general manager Kupchak did not seriously respond. Kobe could not stand it anymore, and asked the management to either kick out Parker, whom he called "extreme trash", or trade him to another team. So, around the witch Xiaodi's transfer news became last summer the whole NBA hot topic, when the most likely to get the Chicago Bulls, in order to get Kobe, the Bulls are not afraid to trade to the Lakers Luol? Deng, Hinrich, Gordon and other young players, while Kobe has asked the Lakers management to exchange for Garnett and Kidd, O'Neal and others. But Kupchak is not willing to take out Bynum as a bargaining chip, Kobe thus cursed the Lakers boss Bass "stupid", scolded Kupchak "waste". Under Kobe's pressure, Kupchak kept talking to the rest of the NBA's twenty-nine teams about trading matters, and the Lakers' unwillingness to give up Bynum was the reason why the deal fell through.
Of course, in this summer, the Dream 7, with Kobe as the centerpiece, won the U.S. Championships and successfully entered the Beijing Olympics.
October 30, 2007, the first game of the new season, the Lakers against the Rockets, Kobe scored 45 points, still can not help the Lakers to win, Battier's three-point shootout so that the Lakers 93-95 lost to the Rockets, people once again witnessed the helplessness and frustration of Kobe. But Kobe still did not give up, abide by the work ethic, led the team force over the sun, jazz, and achieved 10 wins and 9 negative record. And then with the rise of Bynum, the Lakers even grams Spurs, Mavericks, Pistons, Hornets and other teams, playing 16 wins and 3 losses, 26 wins and 12 losses of good results. This is the first phase of the Lakers' record.
January 17, 2008, Bynum in the face of the grizzly bears, knee injury, absent the rest of the season. Kobe led the Lakers to a 100:99 victory over the Grizzlies and a 123:121 win over the Supersonics, finally taking the top spot in the Western Conference after a four-year absence. But in the next game, 3 wins and 5 losses, fell to the tenth in the West, this is the second phase of the Lakers results.
February 2, 2008, the Lakers with watered-down first-round pick Kwame? Brown, Crittenden and two draft picks in 2010 and 2012 from the Grizzlies to trade for Gasol, thus giving the Lakers back their top interior. Due to Gasol's high basketball IQ, quickly comprehended the essence of the triangle offense, not only well into the Lakers' overall offense, so that the Lakers' results steadily upward, but also reproduced the last century 80s Lakers show time time. Gasol's arrival, not only share the pressure of Kobe, but also liberated Odom, live the whole team offense, after Gasol's arrival, the Lakers played 33 wins and 8 losses. The final 57 wins and 25 losses ranked first in the West. This is the third stage of the Lakers' results.
In the playoffs, Kobe led the Lakers to a 4:0 sweep of the Nuggets, a 4:2 win over the Jazz, and a 4:1 win over the defending champions, the Spurs, and managed to make it to the finals. Especially in the series against the Spurs, the Lakers first reversed the Spurs in the first game 20 points to win, and then in the fifth game reversed 17 points to win. Of course, there is also the second game of the Spurs 30-point victory, all let the outside world have favored the Lakers to win the championship. Although in the end have 3 big Celtics with a score of 4:2 took the championship, but the responsibility is not all in the Kobe, the Lakers 2 big linemen in the KG suppression of the slump is the main reason for the failure. All in all, the 07-08 season was great and brilliant for Kobe, we witnessed Kobe's miracle.
NBA player's son Kobe's father, Joe Bryant (nicknamed "Black Bean") had played 8 years of NBA, ****606 NBA games, an average of 8.7 points per game has played 76 people, the Clippers and the Rockets, but his NBA career is not a success. Excessive pursuit of "fancy" is Joe Bryant's Achilles heel. Bryant's Achilles heel. Kobe's father, Joe Bryant, was a very talented player. Kobe's father, Joe Bryant, was a highly talented basketball player. A native of Philadelphia, Joe helped lead the Philadelphia John Bartram High School team to the championship game in 1972. Bartram High School team win the Philadelphia Area High School League Championship in 1972 and then went on to attend local La Salle University. During his high school years, Joe befriended Pam? Cox, a young girl Joe fell in love with at first sight. Amazingly, their first date was on the side of the basketball court when Pam's brother was playing for another college team in Philadelphia, and Joe courted Pam while playing against La Salle University. Joe married Pam shortly after entering college, and he showed great skill in the NCAA tournament, with his 2.06 meter height giving him the physical condition to play in the professional league. After only three years of college, Joe entered the NBA draft. In the NBA of the 1970s, very few players entered the draft before graduating from college, and participants were required not only to have superior skills, but also to have proof of financial hardship. With Joe and Pam's first child on the way, he met both criteria. Joe was picked by the Golden State Warriors as a first-round rookie in the 1975 draft, but he didn't want to play in the far west and the Warriors offered a modest salary. Joe negotiated very forcefully with the Warriors, asking them to move him back to Philadelphia. His efforts paid off, and before the season began, Joe signed a five-year, nearly $1 million contract with his hometown 76ers, which was astronomical at the time.
Joe was a rare basketball talent at the time, but he was not initially successful. He was a cool performer with a penchant for dribbling and shooting, while he was built to play power forward in the restricted area where he should have been. Del Harris, Kobe's first coach with the Lakers, who coached his father in the early '80s, thought Joe's style was out of his time: "Joe could make any play, and his passing skills were second only to the 'Magic' in the league, but he was born to make a living in the restricted area, not to play point guard. But he was born to feed in the box score, not to play point guard." Off the court, Joe loved to express himself just as much. It was a crazy disco era, and Joe often appeared on the sidelines in dance costumes, wearing big sunglasses and giving interviews with a cigar smoke in his mouth. Jerry? West, the Lakers' vice president, said of Joe: "He didn't like to do the dirty work, didn't pay attention to technical details, and couldn't take his talent any further. He was born to perform, not to win." Joe played eight years in the NBA, with the 76ers, Swift Boats, and Rockets, and in 1977, he and the 76ers, led by "Dr. J," made it to the Finals, but lost to the Walton Blazers. Joe's best season was 1980-81, when he averaged 11.6 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. By the spring of 1984, Joe's NBA career was over, and although he was only 30 years old and healthy, no team was willing to accept his purely performative style of basketball. Joe didn't want to retire, he loved basketball and he had three children to raise. The agent told him that he could make money playing in Europe, so Joe and Pam embarked on a long-distance trip to Europe with their 3 children, 8-year-old Shalia, 7-year-old Saya, and 6-year-old Colby.