Andy Devaney
If there was ever a stage built for Kobe Bryant, it was NBA All-Star Weekend: bright lights, bigger egos, and a scoreboard begging to be bullied. On Sunday, Feb. 16, at the conclusion of the 2020 NBA All-Star Game in Chicago, the league will present the Kia NBA All-Star Game Kobe Bryant MVP Award—an honour wrapped in celebration and heartbreak as the NBA also remembers Bryant, his daughter Gianna, and seven other people who tragically passed away in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26.
Commissioner Adam Silver put it plainly, and you can almost hear the arena nodding along: “Kobe Bryant is synonymous with NBA All-Star and embodies the spirit of this global celebration of our game,” said Silver. “He always relished the opportunity to compete with the best of the best and perform at the highest level for millions of fans around the world.”
The night Kobe Bryant arrived early—and stayed late
Bryant didn’t ease into the All-Star Game. He kicked the door in.
His debut came in 1998 at just 19 years old, making him the youngest player to ever appear in an NBA All-Star Game. Not a bad way to introduce yourself to a league full of grown men who already owned the room. Then he did what Kobe always did: he kept showing up, relentlessly, year after year, as if the calendar owed him a seat at the table.
That first selection turned into 18 All-Star nods—second-most in NBA history behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (19). And in a record that speaks to both greatness and durability, Bryant holds the NBA mark for consecutive All-Star selections: 18 straight times from 1998 through 2016.
The MVPs: four times the same message
All-Star MVP awards can sometimes feel like party favours—nice to have, easy to forget. Kobe Bryant treated them like receipts.
He was named NBA All-Star Game MVP in 2002, 2007, 2009 (co-winner with Shaquille O’Neal) and 2011. That’s four, a number matched only by Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Bob Pettit.
And this is the part that matters for anyone trying to understand the spirit of the Kobe Bryant MVP Award: he didn’t collect those trophies by coasting. He collected them by competing—properly competing—on a night when plenty of stars are tempted to treat defence as an optional extra.
The full résumé: rings, records, and one franchise
For all the highlights and mythology, the core story remains wonderfully traditional: one player, one team, one long career spent building a legacy the old-fashioned way.
A five-time NBA champion, Kobe Bryant played his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers. He earned the 2007-08 Kia NBA MVP Award, two Bill Russell Finals MVP awards and 15 All-NBA Team selections. And if you prefer your greatness in hard numbers, Bryant ranks fourth on the NBA’s all-time scoring list with 33,643 points.
How the Kobe Bryant MVP Award will be decided
The 2020 Kia NBA All-Star Game Kobe Bryant MVP Award winner will be determined through a blended vote:
- NBA fans: 25% of the vote
- Media panel: 75% of the vote
It’s also the 10th straight year Kia will serve as the title partner of the NBA All-Star Game MVP Award—continuity meeting a moment that feels anything but ordinary.
A fitting tribute, and a challenge to whoever wins it
Awards can’t replace people. They can’t fix grief. They can’t tidy up tragedy into something comfortable. But they can set a standard—and the standard attached to Kobe Bryant is brutally clear: compete, show up, and deliver when everyone’s watching.
So when that MVP is handed over in Chicago, it won’t just be a trophy. It’ll be a dare.
