A movie about basketball legend Kobe Bryant is in development at Warner Bros

A movie about basketball legend Kobe Bryant is in development at Warner Bros.

With the 8th Pick will track the process of how the Los Angeles Lakers great - who was tragically killed in a plane crash in 2020 - was drafted into the NBA in 1996.

The project has a screenplay from Alex Sohn and Gavin Johanssen and was generating high levels of interest from other studios before Warner Bros. stepped in to grab the rights.

No director is attached to the movie as of yet.

With the 8th Pick will reportedly focus on the New Jersey Nets and their then-general manager John Nash, who held the eighth pick in the draft and contemplated taking Kobe out of high school.

The shooting guard was eventually taken by the Charlotte Hornets with the 13th pick before being traded to the Lakers - where he would go on to win five NBA championships.

The film is thought to have elements of Moneyball - in which Brad Pitt played baseball revolutionary Billy Beane - and Air, the 2023 movie starring Ben Affleck and Matt Damon which told the story of how Michael Jordan's legendary partnership with sports brand Nike started.

With the 8th Pick will detail the important processes that could have had a dramatic impact on the history of the NBA.

Kobe perished aged 41 in the plane crash - which also claimed the life of his 13-year-old daughter Gianna - and his widow Vanessa unveiled a statue of the basketball icon outside the Los Angeles Lakers' home ground last year.