Kobe Bryant met the love of his life, at the age of 20, when he bumped into her during a music video. The couple has endured a lot in their marriage and stuck together through thick and thin. However, Kobe and Vanessa attracted a lot of media spotlight. Vanessa was a senior in high school and Kobe was a Los Angeles Lakers star.
It was huge at the time to be dating a superstar athlete, especially for Vanessa, who had to endure the publicity. Kobe proposed to Vanessa when she was just 18 and bought her a 7-carat diamond ring. The ring at the time cost $100,000, that said, Kobe in his rookie contract was earning $11 million before taxes.
Kobe didn’t spare any expense in getting his fiancé a costly ring. However, when the news broke out about their engagement, the attention of the media started rising. Things started getting difficult, after all, Vanessa was just 18 years old and in her senior year in high school. Vanessa opted to study from home to study for her exams and avoid the media.
After Kobe proposed to Vanessa, she was expelled from the school at the end of her senior year. The couple tied the knot on April 18, 2001. Despite all the riches, the pair decided to have their marriage at St. Edward the Confessor Catholic Church in Dana Point, California. Bryant’s parents skipped his marriage, as they disapproved of this union.
How old was Vanessa Bryant when she started dating Kobe Bryant?
Kobe and Vanessa started dating at an early age. At the time when Kobe and Vanessa started dating they were 21 and 17 years of age respectively. Kobe met his soon-to-be wife during a music video shoot. Bryant at the time was playing for the Lakers and is considered the most eligible bachelor in California.
The Mamba already gathered millions of fans across the globe and went from a “rookie marvel” to a starter for the Lakers. Vanessa at the time was a senior in high school, studying at Marina High School. Kobe often made grand gestures of flooding the school with roses and picking her up from school. However, Kobe made sure Vanessa was home before curfew.