Iconic Kobe Bryant’s Jersey Fetches Nearly $6 Million at Auction

• Kobe Bryant's jersey he wore during the 2007/2008 season has been auctioned
• He wore the jersey for 25 games and won his only MVP trophy in that period
• The Los Angeles Lakers icon died in a tragic helicopter crash in January 2020

The jersey worn by the late Kobe Bryant in the 2007/08 season, the same season in which he was the NBA MVP, has been sold for $5,849,700 at an auction.

The jersey becomes the second-most expensive piece of basketball memorabilia ever sold after Michael Jordan's 'Last Dance' jersey, which was sold for almost $10.1-million.

Bryant, who tragically passed away three years ago, won his only MVP award in 2008. He wore the jersey when he received the award at the Staples Center on May 7 that year.

The late great wore the jersey for 25 of his 82 games that season, including six playoff games and that season's Western Conference Finals.

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Bryant's jersey worn during his rookie season was briefly the highest-selling basketball jersey of all-time in 2021, before it was overtaken by Jordan's jersey worn in Game 1 of the 1998 'Last Dance' NBA Finals.

Jordan's memorabilia fetched its record price in September last year.

Bryant's jersey auctioned

According to Sotheby, the jersey sold for $5,8-million - a record for any Bryant item.

Brahm Wachter, Sotheby's head of streetwear and modern collectables, said the jersey is iconic in way not often seen in sports artefacts.

"The image of Kobe wearing this particular jersey during the NBA Playoffs has permeated in popular culture, reprinted on murals, books, newspapers [and] has become a symbol of his fierce determination and passion that has resonated with audiences across the world," he said via ESPN.

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There are a few items that have surpassed the $5-mil mark. Babe Ruth's jersey circa 1928-1930 was the first piece of sports memorabilia to pass that number, selling for $5.64-mil in 2019.

Since then, several pieces of sports memorabilia have sold for $5-mil or more.

Muhammad Ali's Rumble in the Jungle championship belt sold for $6.18-mil in July 2022; the 1892 Olympic Games manifesto was auctioned for $8.8-mil in 2019; and Diego Maradona's 'Hand of God' jersey sold for $9.28-mil in 2022, per Bleacher Report.

Bryant's murals continues to inspire

On January 26, the basketball world celebrated the third anniversary of Bryant's untimely demise. He died with his daughter, Gianna and seven others in a helicopter crash in 2020.

Since his tragic death, the basketball icon has been honoured worldwide. Murals of Bryant and Gianna were painted on streets and courts to eternalise them both.

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Even in death, his influence still endures. From LA to the Philippines, artists worldwide have painted murals of Bryant and Gianna to honour them.

How Bryant inspired DeRozan

Sports Brief also reported on how Bryant inspired Chicago Bulls star, DeMar DeRozan who said without the late great, he wouldn't be playing basketball.

The guard said the late Laker star laid the foundation for him and everything DeRozan did in the sport was because of Bryant paving the way.

“My imagination and my foundation started from Kobe. Just watching him give me that imagination as a kid to want to shoot a fadeaway. To want to learn to pull up. To want to rock a ’fro. It started from that."