Nearly three decades after a teenage Kobe Bryant first pulled on a Lakers jersey for his debut, that very piece of NBA history has now become one of the most prized artifacts in the world of sports memorabilia. On Thursday, Sotheby’s confirmed the sale of Bryant’s debut jersey—worn during both his preseason and regular season introductions in 1996—for a staggering $7 million in New York City.
The purple and gold number, photo-matched to seven games from the 1996-97 season, includes Kobe’s October 16 preseason debut and his first official NBA appearance on November 3. The jersey was also worn during the Lakers’ media day that fall, marking it as a rare relic from the very inception of what would become one of the most iconic careers in basketball history.
The sale of Kobe Bryant’s debut jersey now stands as the fourth most expensive game-worn uniform ever, trailing only Babe Ruth’s fabled “called shot” Yankees jersey ($24 million), Michael Jordan’s 1998 NBA Finals Game 1 jersey ($10.1 million), and Diego Maradona’s 1986 “Hand of God” World Cup shirt ($9.3 million).
This jersey’s sale price eclipses the previous record for a Kobe collectible—$5.85 million for a signed, game-worn jersey from his 2007-08 MVP season—and adds another layer to Bryant’s enduring mystique.
Kobe was just 18 years old when he strode onto an NBA court in that No. 8 jersey. By the time his storied career ended in 2016, he was a five-time NBA champion, two-time Finals MVP, 18-time All-Star, and an icon whose influence went far beyond basketball.
Bryant’s life was tragically cut short in January 2020, when he, his daughter Gianna, and seven others perished in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California, but his impact on the game will be felt forever.
