Meet late NBA legend Kobe Bryant’s dual-sport nephew, Jett Washington: the teen is an elite high school athlete who applies the ‘Mamba mentality’ to basketball and American football

Aug 21 , 2024

Jett Washington is the nephew of NBA star Kobe Bryant, pictured in his Los Angeles Lakers uniform. Photos: @_.jett_/Instagram, AFP

Washington grew up taking advice from his famous uncle and shooting hoops with his cousin, Gianna Bryant – but it looks like he’s planning a career in American football, like his former NFL player dad

This year, he scored 33 points in a basketball game at the Crypto.com arena – ‘the house that Kobe built’; he’s also received offers to play for some of the best American football colleges in the US

In January 2020, the sporting world was shocked by the news that Kobe Bryant, the record-breaking former shooting guard for the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers, had died in a helicopter accident alongside his daughter, Gianna, and seven members and parents of Gianna’s basketball team.

Four years after the tragic demise of The Black Mamba though, his legacy lives on in his nephew, 16-year-old Jett Washington. All eyes are on him as he proves his mettle as an elite athlete in his own right, shaped by his late uncle’s philosophy.

Jett Washington poses in his American football uniform. Photo: @_.jett_/Instagram

Sport clearly runs deep in Washington’s veins. His father, Jerrod Washington, was a star college American football player who was drafted to the NFL’s New England Patriots in 1994; while his mother, Sharia Washington – Bryant’s oldest sister – played all-conference volleyball for Temple University. Now, national recruiting analyst Greg Biggins describes the couple’s 193cm, 91kg (6’4”, 200lbs) powerhouse son as “a high major prospect in football and basketball”. At the time of writing, 247 Sports ranks him the No 16 prospect nationally and No 1 in Nevada.

Here’s everything we know about the rising star who gets his name from John Travolta’s late son, per The New York Times.

Jett Washington plays both basketball and American football

Jett Washington leaves the basketball court. Photo: @_.jett_/Instagram

Jett Washington has shown that he has Bryant’s famous “Mamba mentality” and he applies it not only to basketball, like his late uncle, but also to football, like his father. He reportedly started playing both sports at around nine years old.

Right now, he’s a four-star safety and wide receiver for Las Vegas’ Bishop Gorman High School football team, and also plays on the school’s basketball team. On being a dual-sport athlete, Washington once said, “They’re both equal, because you put in so much work in both,” per Las Vegas Weekly.

However, when asked to choose, he told sports writer Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson that he had football on his mind, and takes inspiration from famous players like Odell Beckham Jr, Kyle Hamilton, Calen Bullock, Davante Adams and Justin Jefferson.

Recently, he was added to the 2025 Polynesian Bowl all-star game.

Meet late NBA legend Kobe Bryant’s dual-sport nephew, Jett Washington: the teen is an elite high school athlete who applies the ‘Mamba mentality’ to basketball and American football

Jett Washington plays both basketball and American football

He had his stand-out game at his late uncle Kobe Bryant’s home court