The first jersey Michael Jordan ever wore on an NBA court in 1984.
The jersey Kobe Bryant was wearing when he played his first NBA regular-season game in 1996.
Both remarkable pieces of game-worn history will sell for the first time in more than a decade at Sotheby’s this spring, with the two jerseys expected to fetch a combined $20 million in arguably the most significant auction of NBA game-worn memorabilia in recent memory.
Jordan’s 1984 NBA preseason debut jersey with the Chicago Bulls — the only photo-matched Jordan jersey from his rookie season known to exist — is among the first Bulls jerseys ever issued to Jordan.
At age 21, Jordan made his pro debut in a preseason game against the Indiana Pacers on Oct. 5, 1984, scoring 18 points on 7-for-16 shooting. The game was played in Peoria, Ill., in front of a crowd of about 2,000 people. The jersey is additionally photo-matched to Jordan's second and third games of the NBA preseason.
The only jersey to sell publicly from earlier in Jordan’s Bulls career is the one he held up for cameras during his introductory press conference, which, while not photo-matched, sold most recently for more than $500,000 via collectible investment platform Rally in 2024.
It has been nearly 15 years since Jordan's preseason debut jersey sold at public auction, last selling for $66,000 at Grey Flannel in 2009. At the time of the sale, the jersey, which exhibits faint markings of another number and name on the back — indicating it had been reused by the Bulls organization — was accompanied by a 1985 letter from the Bulls authenticating the jersey as worn by Jordan.
In the lot description, former Bulls Director of public relations Tim Hallam is quoted as telling the original consignor, “If that jersey has a number and name change, sounds like you have the very first jersey this organization issued Michael Jordan.”
With an estimate of $10 million, the jersey could rival the record sale of Jordan’s "Last Dance" jersey from Game 1 of the 1998 Finals ($10.1 million), which is currently the second-most expensive piece of sports memorabilia ever sold, behind only Babe Ruth’s “Called Shot” jersey ($24.12 million).
The jersey from Jordan's first preseason home game in a Washington Wizards uniform sold for $87,000 last May at Heritage.
Bryant’s NBA debut jersey, from the Lakers' Nov. 3, 1996, game against Minnesota, also carries a $10 million estimate. The jersey last sold at public auction for $115,242 at Grey Flannel in 2013.
Bryant, who did not play in the Lakers' 1996-97 season opener, came off the bench in the second game of the year, playing six minutes with one block and one rebound in the Lakers' 91-85 victory over the Timberwolves.
The current record for a Bryant jersey is $5.85 million for a jersey worn by Bryant in at least 25 games during his 2007-08 MVP season.
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Bryant’s sneakers from his famous “Achilles Game” recently set a record for any Bryant sneakers at auction, selling for $660,000 last month at Sotheby’s.
Even Shaquille O’Neal’s jersey from Bryant’s NBA debut has attracted sizable sums at auction, selling for more than $260,000 in 2024.
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct.