It was a trip to the mountains of Colorado in 2005 that ruined Kobe Bryant's entire life. Companies were dropping him from endorsement contracts and Nike, who had just signed the Laker to an agreement, put him on the shelf.
But now in 2008 Kobe has regained his "marketing mojo", as our friend Darren Rovell of CNBC put it.
He's having a stellar season on the court and getting named the MVP made his market value shoot up.
The resurgence started last year Kobe Bean appeared on the cover of the Sony video game, NBA '07. Then this year he signed with Coca-Cola to endorse Vitaminwater alongside Tracy McGrady, Dwight Howard and LeBron James. Their first ad together appears in last week's issue of Sports Illustrated. Plus Nike took him off the shelf to promote his new shoe, plus the Hyperdunks he was sporting when he "jumped" over an Aston Martin and will later wear during the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
And according to Rovell, Wheaties is possibly considering putting Bryant on the front of the cereal box in the near future. He still has deals with Upper Deck and Gameloft (cell phone games), but we're expecting more deals to come Kobe's way.
Comments: (18)
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By: AB on 5/12/2008 3:52PM
Good for him. And he should charge they asses a grip for abandoning him.
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By: Deborah Moore on 5/16/2008 9:18PM
Kobe Bryant never raped that lying young woman in the first place! Here was a promiscuous young woman who willingly performed oral sex on him. Even her friends talked about how crazy and promiscuous she was. How in the world was her attorney going to explain why another man's sperm was found within her vaginal walls around the same time that she claimed Kobe Bryant "raped" her, then to top that off, she then pops up pregnant by another man? Give me a break!! I know Kobe regrets tipping out on his wife, and I hope he and the rest of his brothers in the NBA have learned a hard lesson when it comes to these young women who will do anything to say that they slept with an NBA player. They will lie and slanderize an athelete's name in order to acquire some fast money. Leave these fast, lying tramps alone and count your blessings Kobe! Vanessa is a beautiful young woman who loves you dearly and had two children with you. She stood by you when you were at your lowest. Remember that always Kobe. You are one of the few, who was able to avoid a prison sentence based on this young woman's mental instability and past behavior. Count your blessings Kobe.
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By: Cecil Jones on 5/12/2008 9:36PM
Trouble is an opportunity to show us "You get it!" MVP speaks for itself on the court. Winning another championship is the stuff that legends are made of. Can Kobe win another one yet? That's a miracle if they must depend on Luke Walton.
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By: Roger Williamson on 5/12/2008 11:35PM
I am a Spurs fan , but when the Lakers are not playing San Antonio , I root for Kobe and the Lakers . He's the only player that reminds me of MJ , I was rooting for him to be named MVP also , hoping his back is ok . Wishing him all the best for the rest of his career .I see where all the endorsements are coming back . Praying for all the young people of professional sports . and God Bless America .
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By: ESLEYHA on 5/13/2008 12:52AM
KOBE BRYANT
PROUD
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By: Vedia on 5/13/2008 11:19AM
I am so glad that things have turned around for Kobe,he as grown so much and changed for the better,I am also glad he won MVP for this year. Keep up the good work. GOOD THINGS COMES TO THOSE WHO WAIT.You have waited and they came, God bless you. Take care of that back,you got to get that other ring. Vedia, Baltimore, Md,
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By: Keisha on 5/14/2008 2:24AM
I'm glad that the public is finally realizing that you can't believe evrything you read. They had sentenced Kobe back in 2005 before he was even found guilty on anything. The only thing he did wrong, was cheat on his wife. That is something he has to answer to God and Vanessa about; no one else. Hell, our ex president got his groove on in the White House! And he was representing our whole damn country. Kobe is a great player and can't no one take that away from him. He gives 110% all the time. I'm happy to have Kobe in Los Angeles, and on the Lakers. And, it's about time they gave him that MVP award. Many blessings to him and his family.
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By: Johnny_G on 5/14/2008 7:41PM
I'm happy for Kobe. Things couldn't be better for him right now. But I hope he understand the hell he went through to get back to where he is now. And I hope he understands that endorsers dropped him because they were just covering their asses and didn't want his image to ruin their brand. It's strictly business. Corporations want to make money and right now Kobe is 'money'.
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By: Rev. James P. Allen III on 5/17/2008 6:45AM
Kobe is the greatest basketball player on the planet and is every bit as good as Jordan was. www.tni.com/2480905
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By: stacy on 5/17/2008 8:57AM
kobe deserves to shin he is the best player in the world today. what happend in Colorado in 2005 was blown out of content. remember she went to his room, he did 'nt drag the girl there. she now what she was doing, trying to ruing a great player. america has to relize all black people with money are targets. people want to bring them down. we should have laws to protect the these people from protection. if i was kobe i would turn all off them down or get in their pockets, charge them double the price. the man was set up no ? about it. u the man k-b do yo thing brother.
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