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Kobe Bryant appeared 'lonely' at his prom, according to one of his high school classmates.

The budding basketball legend, who had just signed with the Charlotte Hornets straight out of high school before being traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, attended the 1996 dance with Brandy, a rising R&B singer and sitcom starlet.

'Our prom was a pretty big deal,' the source, who requested anonymity, told DailyMailTV. 'Kobe was already so famous for signing with the Lakers that both he and Brandy had a ton of security. She was also very famous at the time.

'I remember they basically sectioned off half of the dance floor for Kobe and Brandy and the rest of the kids were on the other side spending equal parts celebrating and gawking at the incredible scene.

'Honestly, I remember thinking he looked kind of lonely all by himself out there without his friends.'  

A classmate of Kobe Bryant's, who does not wish to be named, shared memories from their high school days with DailyMailTV and said Kobe and his prom date, singer and actress Brandy, seemed lonely during the senior dance in 1996

'I remember they basically sectioned off half of the dance floor for Kobe and Brandy and the rest of the kids were on the other side spending equal parts celebrating and gawking at the incredible scene,' he said

 The source called Kobe a 'good guy,' adding: 'I knew him pretty well back then. I had two classes with him and his sister was my lab partner in physics'

The classmate is now auctioning off their 1996 yearbook that the basketball legend signed in his teen years

The NBA legend died at age 41 in a helicopter crash last Sunday along with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven other people, including two other teenage girls

The school prom was held in May 1996 at the nearby Bellevue Hotel. 

Bryant's classmate shared memories from their 1996 yearbook with DailyMailTV. 

He is now auctioning some rare photos of the evening on eBay.

The images are glued inside his battered yearbook from the class of '96.

'I knew him pretty well back then. I had two classes with him and his sister was my lab partner in physics,' said the source. 'He was a good guy.'

'I remember one time Kobe's best friend Matt had said something negative about me, and I was so mad at him.

'So I'd said I was going to kick his a** after school.

'But in the last class of the day I was sitting behind Kobe and he politely asked me to let Matt off the hook.

'He said: ''Matt's my best friend, he's sorry for what he said, so can you just give him a pass please?''

'He was super polite about it, so I gave Matt a pass. Even though I really didn't like Matt.'

Kobe Bryant attended Lower Merion High School in Pennsylvania, where he was crowned Most Likely to Succeed, at the dawn of his all-star career

Bids can be made for the yearbook on eBay until Friday, February 7, 2020. The listing reads: 'It is a snapshot in time of a brilliant young Kobe on the brink of fame, his dreams, his optimism and the impact he had on all of us who got to watch him do the impossible'

This is the 1996 yearbook from Lower Merion High School in Pennsylvania where Kobe Bryant attended 

'Another time in 10th grade, when the O. J. Simpson thing had just started, I remember I asked Kobe: ''What do you think about all this O.J. Simpson stuff, do you think he did it?''

'And he said ''Man, 'O.J. is guilty as sh*t.''

'I don't know if he changed his opinion about it later, but that's what he said at the time.'

The seller estimates that yearbooks from the era are 'rare' and claims that Bryant signed his copy personally.

'He signed it for me in pink ink on a big picture of him in the middle of the yearbook,' he said

The NBA legend died at age 41 in a helicopter crash last Sunday along with his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven other people, including two other teenage girls.

On Friday, his prom date Brandy, 40, posted an image of Bryant hugging Gianna with the caption: 'Never will I understand. My condolences to @vanessabryant, the entire family, and all in pain during this tragic time. Love ♥️ #Mamba #Mambacita.'

The source shared a story of how once in the 10th grade he asked Kobe what he thought about the O.J. Simpson trial as it was going on and Kobe said: 'Man, 'O.J. is guilty as sh*t'

The basketball legend signed with the Charlotte Hornets straight out of high school before being traded to the Los Angeles Lakers where he played for the rest of his career 

The seller estimates that yearbooks from the era are 'rare' and claims that Bryant signed his copy personally. 'He signed it for me in pink ink on a big picture of him in the middle of the yearbook,' he said

Basketballs, flowers, letters, and jerseys were left at a memorial for Bryant at his high school Lower Merion

Both Bryant and Brandy were 17-years-old at the time of the prom.

'He asked me to go to the prom with him, and since he was a nice guy I asked my mom, and she said yes,' Brandy told the New York Daily News at the time.

The pair dated a few times after the prom but ultimately decided to become friends.

Bids can be made for the yearbook on eBay until Friday, February 7, 2020.

The listing reads: 'It is a snapshot in time of a brilliant young Kobe on the brink of fame, his dreams, his optimism and the impact he had on all of us who got to watch him do the impossible.

'I hope the winner of this auction is a true fan.'