Kobe Bryant-Michael Jordan basketball card sells for a record $12.9 million at auction

A basketball card autographed by Hall of Famers Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant has sold for nearly $13 million at auction, a record for any sports card. Heritage Auctions said there were 82 bids for the 2007-08 Upper Deck Logoman collection card before it sold Sunday for $12,932,000. That surpassed the $12.6 million paid for a 1952 Topps rookie card of baseball Hall of Famer Mickey Mantle at a Heritage auction in 2022.

It was purchased by a group that included famed “Shark Tank” investor Kevin O’Leary, according to the memorabilia company.

The only card of its type, the Jordan-Bryant card features certified autographs of both players along with NBA patches from their game-worn uniforms.


The previous record for a basketball card was the private sale of a Stephen Curry 2009 Panini card for $5.9 million. The top mark at auction was a little more than $3.1 million for Luka Doncic's 2018 Panini rookie card.

Earlier in July, Spanish soccer club Barcelona paid tribute to NBA legend Kobe Bryant with its second uniform launched. The five-time European champion said its new jersey will replace the usual Nike swoosh logo “with the ‘Kobe Sheath’ — the sword in the sheath logo that identifies the Kobe Bryant brand.”

Barcelona said the club had a special relationship with Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash in Southern California in 2020. He made appearances alongside club members and first-team players during his visits to Barcelona and when the club visited the United States.

Earlier in June, a autographed Michael Jordan rookie card sold for $2.5 million in an auction. The 1986-87 Fleer card sold through Joopiter — the auction platform founded by Grammy-winning artist and producer Pharrell Williams three years ago — shows Jordan soaring toward the rim with his right arm extended and tongue dangling. It was one of nine trading cards signed in a blue sharpie at his private golf course in Florida last year.

According to ESPN, the $2.5 million is the most paid for a Jordan rookie card — signed or unsigned — and the third-highest price in a public sale for any Jordan card. That record is $2.928 million.

In March, an autographed Bulls jersey that Jordan wore in a preseason game during his rookie year sold for $4.215 million at an auction through Sotheby's.

FAQs

Q1. What did Barcelona do to Kobe Bryant?
A1. Earlier in July, Spanish soccer club Barcelona paid tribute to NBA legend Kobe Bryant with its second uniform launched. The five-time European champion said its new jersey will replace the usual Nike swoosh logo “with the ‘Kobe Sheath’ — the sword in the sheath logo that identifies the Kobe Bryant brand.”

Q2. What did Michael Jordan do?
A2. Earlier in June, a autographed Michael Jordan rookie card sold for $2.5 million in an auction.