Kobe Bryant’s Rookie Jersey Sells for a Shocking $7 Million at Auction

It’s not every day you see a piece of basketball history change hands for the price of a mansion, but that’s exactly what happened this week. The jersey that a teenage Kobe Bryant wore during his NBA debut just sold at Sotheby’s auction house for a jaw-dropping $7 million. That number smashed the previous record for Kobe memorabilia, which was already an impressive $5.85 million set by one of his MVP season jerseys from 2007-08.

The jersey isn’t just any old piece of Lakers gear either. It’s been photo-matched to several moments from Kobe’s first season in 1996-97, including his first media day, preseason debut, regular season debut, and even a few early games where he first wore that iconic No. 8 in Lakers gold.

It’s wild to think back to that regular season debut on November 3, 1996, against the Minnesota Timberwolves. An 18-year-old Kobe stepped onto the NBA court for the first time, played just six minutes, and didn’t even score, missing his only shot attempt. It didn’t matter. The world was getting its first real glimpse of a player who would go on to transform the sport forever.

Sotheby’s called the jersey "a bridge between the raw potential of a teenage prodigy and the refined greatness that would follow," and honestly, it’s hard to argue. It’s crazy to think that the same jersey, which sold for around $115,000 back in 2012, is now worth millions just a little more than a decade later.

Kobe’s rookie season stats were humble—he averaged just 7.6 points per game—but it was clear even then that he had something special. Fast forward a couple of decades, and he retired as a five-time NBA champion, an 18-time All-Star, and one of the greatest players the league has ever seen.

Brahm Wachter, Sotheby’s head of modern collectibles, put it best: rookie jerseys like this are like a snapshot of a moment in time that only happens once in a player’s life. It’s that magical transition when the hype becomes real under the bright lights.

In the grand scheme of sports memorabilia, Kobe’s jersey now ranks as the fourth most expensive game-worn piece ever sold. It sits behind Babe Ruth’s “called shot” jersey at $24 million, Michael Jordan’s 1998 NBA Finals jersey at $10.1 million, and Diego Maradona’s legendary Argentina jersey from the 1986 World Cup, which sold for $9.3 million.

Even crazier? This sale easily outpaced Michael Jordan’s own rookie preseason jersey, which fetched just over $4 million last year. Kobe’s legacy continues to grow—and clearly, the value of anything tied to his journey is doing the same.