Kobe Bryant Game-Worn Playoff Jersey From Rookie Year Sells For $2.73 Million

 

 

An auction this weekend sold a Kobe Bryant jersey from the Los Angeles Lakers’ 1997 playoff run for seven figures.

 

According to TMZ, Kobe’s game-worn jersey, which he wore twice during the Lakers’ conference semifinals series against the Utah Jazz when he was a rookie, sold for $2.74 million at SCP Auctions. It’s the second-highest offer for any game-worn basketball jersey, according to the Orange County Register.

 

“The overall auction brought extremely strong numbers and many record sales. The auction total went over $8 million, which is the second biggest auction in company history,” SCP President David Kohler told the outlet. “This incredible sale happened amidst stock market volatility and war overseas, too.”

 

Bryant, who was just 18 years old at the time, averaged a dismal 8.2 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 1.2 assists per game during the 1997 NBA Playoffs. However, in Round 1, the then-rookie scored 22 points against the Portland Trail Blazers, followed by a 19-point performance against the Utah Jazz in the second round.

In 1997, the Lakers were defeated by the Jazz in five games. Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal led the Lakers to their first of three consecutive championships three years later. Bryant would go on to win five rings in his career, including the Finals MVP title in two of them (2009 and 2010).