April 24, 2024 3 AM PT
Philadelphia, PA —
I arrived in the City of Brotherly Love on a recent Friday evening tired, hungry and with places to go.
The Liberty Bell wasn’t on my mind, or even Independence Hall. I was looking for Kobe Bryant’s Philadelphia.
The late Los Angeles Lakers superstar spent the majority of his life in Southern California — but he never forgot his hometown. It’s where his father, Joe “Jellybean” Bryant, starred at La Salle University and played for the 76ers. Where Kobe first achieved national prominence as a prep superstar at Lower Merion High School in the suburb of Ardmore before skipping college to go pro.