Kobe Bryant once revealed that his grandmother studied with Wilt Chamberlain and even turned him down for prom.
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Wilt Chamberlain and Kobe Bryant are more interconnected than expected by most NBA fans. What is well known about the two is that both hold the records for the most points scored and the 2nd most points scored in a game with 100 and 81, respectively. What they don’t know is that Wilt was a part of Kobe’s life even before he was born.
Having been a Philadelphia Warrior, he was bound to bump into people from the Philly area. Kobe Bryant famously attended Lower Merion High School and lived in Philly after having stayed in Italy with his mom and dad as his father ‘Jellybean’ continued his basketball journey in Europe.
Wilt Chamberlain attended Overbrook High School before becoming a superstar at Kansas. Overbrook was in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and saw Chamberlain grow into a dominant center.
Unbeknownst to him, he would meet someone who would eventually become a part of a family tree that leads to Kobe Bryant himself.
Kobe Bryant talked about his grandmother rejecting Wilt Chamberlain for prom.
Kobe’s family has roots in Philly and so it led one of the most interesting events in NBA history. Bryant’s grandmother actually attended Overbrook high school along with Wilt Chamberlain.
What is even more intriguing is that Wilt actually asked her out to prom and she turned down the near 7-footer as she was with the man who would turn out to be Bryant’s grandfather.
This story came to light in 2013 when Kobe Bryant passed Wilt for 4th on the all-time regular season scoring list and revealed in that game against the Sacramento Kings that his grandmother essentially rejected Wilt’s romantic advances towards her.
It’s unclear on whether or not this is the same grandmother who attended his 81 point game in 2006 against Toronto. If it is, that would be quite the pseudo-full circle moment, watching her son score almost as many points as Wilt in the only game she ever saw her grandson play live.
