In honor of Wilt Chamberlain's rookie card becoming the most expensive vintage basketball card ever sold, cllct lists the top 10 players with the most expensive basketball card sales of all time.
No player can appear more than once on the list (sorry, LeBron). If a player appears alongside another player already on the list, the card will not be counted.
1. LeBron James
2003-04 Upper Deck Exquisite Gold Rookie Parallels /23 LeBron James BGS 9/Auto 10
Brokered privately by PWCC in April 2021 for $5.2 million, this sale occurred during the peak pandemic bubble, just as mainstream outlets had begun to catch on to the ludicrous sales totals.
Just eight months prior, another one of the LeBron RPAs numbered to 23, though graded a half-point lower, sold for $540,000.
The sale tied the record for the most expensive sports card ever sold at the time, which was held by a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle PSA 9 from earlier in the year.
2. Luka Dončić
2018-19 Panini National Treasures Rookie Patch Autograph (RPA) Logoman 1/1 Luka Doncic
For a modern card, this one certainly has some notable provenance. Its life began in a box of 2018-2019 Panini National Treasures Basketball. In May 2019, it was plucked from its pack at Layton Sports Cards in Florida, where it was later sold to another collector for a sum believed to be in excess of $400,000. Then, it was purchased privately by collector Nick Fiorello for $4.6 million in March 2021 — good enough for the second most expensive basketball card ever sold.
However, in November 2022, after receiving a BGS 9 grade, the card sold once again for $3.12 million.
3. Michael Jordan
2003-04 Upper Deck Ultimate Collection Ultimate Logos Signature #MJ-L Michael Jordan Signed Game-Used Logoman Patch Card (#1/1) - PSA Authentic, PSA/DNA GEM MT 10
For years, the Jordan Logoman from the legendary Ultimate Collection set had never been seen publicly. Then, in 2022, it surfaced at PSA headquarters and was brought to light for the first time.
A rare post-pandemic entrant on this list, the card sold for $2.928 million in June 2024 at Goldin Auctions.
4. Kobe Bryant
1997 Metal Universe Kobe Bryant Precious Metal Gems (PMG) Green /10 #81 BGS 8.5
Kobe makes his appearance with an appropriately iconic ‘90s card beloved for its design and coveted for its rarity — green PMGs were only produced to 10.
The condition sensitivity of the PMGs have always made high-grade copies nearly impossible to find, resulting in this $2 million sale via PWCC for one of Bryant’s most iconic non-rookie cards.
There are no other known sales of graded copies, though a raw example fetched more than $145,600 in March 2020.
5. Giannis Antetokounmpo
2013-14 National Treasures Horizontal (RPA) #130 Giannis Antetokounmpo Signed NBA Logoman Patch Rookie Card (#1/1) – BGS MINT 9/BGS 10
When the Giannis Logoman sold for $1.85 million at Goldin in September 2020, before the market had truly gone bananas, it became the most expensive basketball card ever sold.
Full of raw potential and yet to win a championship at the time of the sale, though owner of back-to-back MVPs, Giannis’ top rookie card briefly surpassed prices for LeBron and Jordan.
6. Wilt Chamberlain
1961-62 Fleer #8 Wilt Chamberlain SGC 10 Gem Mint
After sitting in a closet for more than 60 years, this card was submitted for grading in 2024 when it became the only example from the 1961 set to receive an SGC 10 grade (there are three PSA 10s, none of which have sold publicly).
Shortly thereafter, the card sold privately for $1.7 million, a record for any Chamberlain card as well as any vintage basketball card.
7. Steph Curry
2009-10 Panini National Treasures Autograph Jersey Century Platinum #206 Stephen Curry Signed Patch Rookie Card (#4/5) – PSA MINT 9, PSA/DNA 10 – Pop 1
Narrowly clearing $1 million, a copy of Steph’s RPA serial numbered to just five sold at Goldin in August 2022.
The same card (pop: 1) sold around a year later, in March 2023, for a third of the price: $312,000.
8. Anthony Davis
2012-13 National Treasures (RPA) #151 Anthony Davis Signed NBA Logoman Patch Rookie Card (#1/1) – BGS MINT 9/BGS 10
Anthony Davis’ top rookie card nabbed $1.02 million, joining Curry just across the seven-figure line, when it sold at Goldin in February 2021.
The card has not sold publicly before or since, and the next most expensive Davis sale on record is just $181,200.
9. Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Julius Irving
1980-81 Topps Scoring Leader Larry Bird/Magic Johnson Rookie Card – PSA GEM MT 10
One of the most fortuitous combinations in the history of cardboard: Bird and Magic sharing a rookie card, divided by the legendary Julius Erving, the 1980 Topps Scoring Leader card has been graded 16,173 times by PSA and only 24 have received GEM MINT 10 grades.
Two of these copies sold for $840,000 in August 2021 (each within seven days of each other).
10. George Mikan
1948 Bowman Basketball #69 George Mikan Lakers RC Rookie HOF PSA 9 MINT
The oldest card on this list by over a decade, Mikan’s rookie card is one of the most recognizable of the era.
Rare in every grade — PSA has graded just 424 — a PSA 9 example sold for $800,000 in March 2022.
Will Stern is a reporter and editor for cllct.