As Kobe Bryant prepped to graduate from Lower Merion High School, in the Philadelphia suburb of Ardmore, he reportedly made a bit of “baller move” off the court.

Despite the fact that the "top-rated high school basketball player in the country had an upcoming NBA draft to think about and had just signed a $2 million Adidas contract, first things were first: Finals, graduation, who to take to the senior prom," E! News reporter Natalie Finn writes.

Finn adds, “Bryant had met singer and actress Brandy Norwood at the Essence Awards that April at Madison Square Garden, and was instantly smitten.”

E! News goes on to report that Kobe's mother, Pamela Bryant, told the Philadelphia Daily News that year, "He came home from the Essence Awards and said, 'I met such a nice, beautiful, intelligent, sweet person.'"

Bryant then reportedly asked someone to get in touch and see if Brandy would want to go with him to prom.

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