Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction: Only the lonely -- Part I: Gotta be Jelly 'cause jam don't shake. The bust ; Fatherhood ; Pimps of joytime ; Pam and Jelly ; The bomb squad -- Part II: Prodigy. Kobe Bean ; The funny guy ; Italia ; The red bicycle ; Lower Merion ; The vibe -- Part III: The chosen one. Summer love ; The rising ; The bad, bad boy ; Come together ; Team Bryant ; Off to the stars -- Part IV: California stars. Pacific Palisades ; On with the fable ; Chaos theory ; California stars ; Wedding-bell and other blues ; Broken ankles, shattered hearts -- Part V: Mamba. Rocky Mountains ; The damage ; Rise up ; Legacy ; The man.

Seventeen-time all-star; scorer of 81 points in a game; MVP and a shooting guard second only to Jordan in league history: Kobe Bryant is one of basketball's absolute greatest players, a fascinating and complicated character who knew when he was a mere boy that he would be better than Jordan on the court. The debate about whether he achieved that is a furious one--but Kobe has surpassed Jordan on the all-time scoring list and has only one less championship than Jordan (5 to Jordan's 6). He is set to retire after the 2015/16 season, just in time for Roland Lazenby's definitive biography of the player and the man. The Lakers are the flashiest team in all of sports, and the context in which Bryant played is salacious and exciting. Provocative stories--on his childhood with a domineering dad; his complicated personal life; and his explosive relationships on the court--mixed with good old fashioned basketball reporting make for a riveting and essential read for any hoops fan.