Kobe Bryant

Playing his entire 20-year career for the Los Angeles Lakers, he won five NBA championships (2000, 2001 and 2002 with Shaquille O'Neal, then 2009 and 2010), two Finals MVP awards and the 2008 league MVP award, according to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and Olympedia.

On 22 January 2006 he scored 81 points against the Toronto Raptors, which NBA.com ranks among the best performances in league history, with 55 of them in the second half, the second-highest half total ever behind Wilt Chamberlain's 59; in his final game on 13 April 2016 he scored 60 points on 22-of-50 shooting in a comeback win over Utah.

He scored 33,643 career points, was an 18-time All-Star, made the All-NBA First Team eleven times and the All-Defensive First Team nine times, and won Olympic gold with the United States in 2008 and 2012, according to the Hall of Fame and Olympedia.

In summer 2009, at 31, he emailed Hakeem Olajuwon about working together and flew to Olajuwon's ranch in Texas, where for four hours he repeated the same post moves (the drop step, the fallaway and the Dream Shake) while Olajuwon broke each one down; Olajuwon says he was awkward at first but fluid by the end, and that he picked the moves up faster than others Olajuwon has taught, including Dwight Howard, Yao Ming and LeBron James.

This is consistent with a veteran who seeks out a specific master to improve a specific skill and drills it with unusual persistence, though the account comes mainly from one feature that relies on Bryant's and Olajuwon's recollections. Mastery Orientation

With the 2008 US Olympic team he set a tone, NBA.com says, by defending, diving for 50/50 balls and outworking everyone with 5 a.m. weight-room sessions; Mike Krzyzewski says Bryant knew he had to show the others he was all-in and chose defence to do it, and Jerry Colangelo recalls him diving head-first for loose balls in the first scrimmage.

This is consistent with leading by visible effort rather than by words, although the accounts are retrospective and partly drawn from a documentary. Leadership Drive

According to Phil Jackson's account, at a February 2000 team meeting Shaquille O'Neal said Bryant was playing too selfishly and no teammate defended him; Jackson then told him in front of the team that his play was hurting it, and answered his wish to be captain 'tomorrow' by saying a captain needs followers. Jackson says Bryant then began to fit himself into the triangle offence and to socialise with teammates, and the Lakers went 27-1 and finished 67-15; Olympedia lists 2000 as the first of his five titles.

This is consistent with a stubborn player who changed his approach after direct confrontation, although the account is the coach's own and gives Bryant's side only through Jackson. Adaptability