Young Kobe Bryant had big plans for his future. Bryant was ambitious and determined to achieve all his goals. On the court, Bryant was a highlight machine and off the court, he continued to work on his craft.?

Playing from an early age of 6, all Kobe wanted to do was play basketball. Bryant would practice before and after school when he was young. Apart from being the best version of himself on the court, he had a few other goals planned off the court.

Kobe Bryant wanted to be bigger than Will Smith

While remembering Kobe Bryant, Shaquille O?Neal shared some of his memories with Kobe. Kobe had Shaq surprised when he shared his plans with him.

??So now when Kobe came, I kinda sat him down and said, what do you want to be? And at 17 he said, Imma be the best player in the world, and off the court, Imma be bigger than Will Smith.?

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?Most Kobe fans know Bryant was all about chasing the best players of all time and making a name for himself. Kobe shows how big Will Smith is as he says he wanted to be more popular than Will, who was at the time a TV sensation.

Will Smith first appeared in the TV sitcom, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, which aired from September 1990 to May 1996. This show made Will very popular. The show even invited some other popular actors for a few episodes.?

Shaq thought 17-year-old Kobe had dreams that would?ve been hard to achieve.

?Now you know me, I?m like okay, alright. Slow down, slow down. And, uh? you know it was? it was fun.?

Kobe went on to win an Oscar

If Bryant?s on-court achievements don?t add up to a popular icon?s criteria list, Kobe even won an Oscar for his short film in 2018. His short film, Dear Basketball was based on Kobe?s basketball journey.?

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The film shows young Kobe?s dreams and how he put all his heart into the game, which is another example of Bryant?s love for basketball. Dear Basketball, was released in 2017 and won 3 awards in the next few months.?

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