Legendary sports executive Sonny Vaccaro crafted many bountiful relationships throughout his career, but He is most notably known for signing Michael Jordan to a deal with Nike. Although his ability to pull that off is his magnum opus, it is far from the only accolade on his resume. Vaccaro also spotted Kobe Bryant during his teenage years. He grew to love the eventual Los Angeles Lakers legend, with one moment standing out above all.
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Vaccaro wasn’t just a figure within the business side of sports. He wanted to provide young stars with a platform to showcase their skills. As a result, in 1984, he created the ABCD Camp. At the beginning of the camp’s creation, Vaccaro was still with Nike. In 1994, Vaccaro joined Adidas, and in turn, the camp’s main sponsor became the brand with three stripes.
That first year Adidas became the sponsor was also Bryant’s debut at the camp. He hadn’t played high school basketball in America, so many people weren’t familiar with his game. The ABCD Camp served as the battle grounds for Bryant to make a name for himself, which is exactly what he did.
Bryant earned a selection to the Junior All-Star team. Many young players would have been more than content with the accolade. Instead, Bryant showed a different emotion to Vaccaro.
“Kobe runs over to me and he says, ‘I want to thank you, Mr. Vaccaro, for inviting me to camp, but I want to apologize,” Vaccaro revealed in an interview with GrowthX.
“Oh, there’s nothing to apologize about, you made the All-Star team. Kobe Bryant said to me, ‘No, Mr. Vaccaro, I’m coming back next year and I’m going to be MVP of the whole camp.'”
Vaccaro immediately became a fan of Bryant from that display of confidence and hunger. Kobe participated in the ABCD Camp the following year and went on to become the MVP.
“He played like what he said on that day to me. ‘I’m gonna win the MVP, I’m going to be an All-Star, I’m going to win national championships. And he did,” Vaccaro proclaimed.
Kobe never missed an opportunity to work toward his craft. He would wake up at 4 in the morning to begin his practice routine, which shows just a shimmer of his dedication toward basketball.
Vaccaro understood that Bryant had the makings to be a superstar, which is why he didn’t hesitate to sign him to a sneaker deal while he was with Adidas. Vaccaro didn’t have a mere work relationship with Bryant. The two were incredibly close.
“Again, there was no one closer other than his mom and dad than me. He lived on the same street. My wife Pam and I were fond of his home in Pacific Palisades when he first moved there,” Vaccaro admitted.
It wasn’t easy on Vaccaro following Bryant’s passing. Although he continues to grieve, he holds onto these countless memories, which keep Bryant’s legacy alive for years and years to come.
