On Tuesday, while Orange County and Los Angeles celebrate "Kobe Bryant Day," a collection of photo-NFTs (non-fungible tokens) showing the NBA legend early in his career will begin auctioning on the Cryptograph platform. 

Shot by photographer Davis Factor, the collection of eight black-and-white photos shows a young Bryant posing, jumping, and blowing kisses as he kicked off his historic career. 

This is the first time the public has laid eyes on the photos. 

Factor, who has photographed dozens of celebrities and is behind several iconic magazine covers and spreads, hoped to capture the "everydayness of him," because he sensed that Bryant, like many famous athletes, would become less candid as his career evolved. 

Cryptograph, meanwhile, has touted its model of connecting NFTs with charitable causes. Proceeds from the sale of its NFTs are handed over to select nonprofit organizations. 

Founded a year ago on the Ethereum blockchain, the platform has already featured NFTs from the likes of celebrity and entrepreneur Paris Hilton, actor Jason Momoa, and Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin and has reported that it raised upwards of six figures for organizations such as Meals on Wheels and Save the Children. 

Courtesy of Davis Factor

“We are very excited to bring our next generation of Cryptographs into the world over the coming year; it's going to be a truly iconic and historic series that we think collectors are going to love,” said Cryptograph co-founder Tommy Alastra in a press release last week.

For this collection, 100 percent of proceeds will benefit the Mamba & Mambacita Sports Foundation. The nonprofit was founded to honor Kobe and his daughter Gianna Bryant, who both died in a helicopter crash in 2020, and continue their legacy in supporting underserved athletes and young women in sports. 

Notably, similar to how other NFTs will contractually pay the artist a percentage of all future sales, the foundation will receive a donation whenever one of the photos is transacted.  

In other words, the photo collection and the foundation are connected forever, or at least as long as the photos are being bought and sold. 

Share:
More In Business
Starbucks’ Change Flushes Out a Debate Over Public Restroom Access
Starbucks’ decision to restrict its restrooms to paying customers has flushed out a wider problem: a patchwork of restroom use policies that varies by state and city. Starbucks announced last week a new code of conduct that says people need to make a purchase if they want to hang out or use the restroom. The coffee chain's policy change for bathroom privileges has left Americans confused and divided over who gets to go and when. The American Restroom Association, a public toilet advocacy group, was among the critics. Rules about restroom access in restaurants vary by state, city and county. The National Retail Federation says private businesses have a right to limit restroom use.
Trump Highlights Partnership Investing $500 Billion in AI
President Donald Trump is talking up a joint venture investing up to $500 billion for infrastructure tied to artificial intelligence by a new partnership formed by OpenAI, Oracle and SoftBank. The new entity, Stargate, will start building out data centers and the electricity generation needed for the further development of the fast-evolving AI in Texas, according to the White House. The initial investment is expected to be $100 billion and could reach five times that sum. While Trump has seized on similar announcements to show that his presidency is boosting the economy, there were already expectations of a massive buildout of data centers and electricity plants needed for the development of AI.
Load More