The two former NBA stars continue to have popular merchandise.
When it comes to NBA merchandise and player popularity, everything from jerseys to training cards to shoes play a big role in fan consumption. Two of the NBA’s most popular players of all-time are Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, so it stands to reason that their merchandise will fetch top dollar on the market. Such is the expected case for a pair of jerseys from Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant that are expected to do well at auction, as per Will Stern of cllct.com, a source for collectibles news.
Sotheby’s, a collectibles broker who sells items at auction, is set to auction off a pair of game-worn jerseys from Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. Jordan’s jersey is the first jersey he ever wore for his preseason debut with the Chicago Bulls. Bryant’s jersey is the jersey he wore for his first regular season game for the Los Angeles Lakers in 1996.
Both jerseys are expected to sell for around $10 million each. In Jordan’s first preseason game against the Indiana Pacers, he finished with 18 points in the Bulls 102-98 win. Bryant’s first NBA regular season game came on November 3, 1996 against the Minnesota Timberwolves. He finished with only one rebound, one blocked shot and one turnover while going scoreless in a little over six minutes.
NBA jerseys have long been popular collectibles among fans, with the game-worn jerseys from LeBron James and Bronny James’ debut together starting at $70,000 at auction. Those jerseys ended up selling for over $100K.
Bryant had another piece of memorabilia that went up for auction, his game-worn sneakers that he sank two free-throws in when he tore his Achilles.
The NBA collectible world can also have its downsides though as the family of a child who swapped jerseys with San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama, recently tried to have the jersey removed from auction.
The young fan swapped jerseys with Wembanyama earlier this season during a Spurs road game against the Brooklyn Nets. The family initially consented to the sale of the jersey, and the subsequent auction, but later attempted to renege on the agreement.
But with the expected sale price of the Jordan and Bryant jerseys, it doesn’t appear as if the NBA collectible world is going to shrink anytime soon.