Kobe Bryant memorabilia auctions higher than expected, but it's a Mike Trout card that ties record
A piece in the first set of a large Kobe Bryant memorabilia auction fetched more than double the expected price point, but it was Los Angeles Angels center fielder Mike Trout who won the session.
Pieces from Michael Jordan and LeBron James were also big sellers as part of Goldin Auctions Spring 2020 Premium Auction. A portion of the proceeds will go to the Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks formerly known as the Mamba Sports Academy.
Bryant pieces sell for $200K
At least four of the Los Angeles Lakers legend’s pieces sold in the first portion of the auction. Via Darren Rovell of The Action Network:
A Lakers championship ring Kobe gave to his mother was sold for $201,250, while one of Bryant’s rookie cards sold for $110,400. Shoes worn by Bryant in the clinching game of the 2001 Finals sold for $70,000. A scorer’s sheet from Kobe’s career high of 81 points signed by Bryant sold for $23,750.
Ken Goldin of Goldin Auctions told ESPN he expected the price points for items to be anywhere from $500 to $100,000 when the collection first opened. The championship ring Bryant gave to his mother, who placed it in a 2013 auction with Goldin, went for nearly double the $110,000 it went for then.
The Adidas sneakers from the 2001 Finals were in high demand in the early days of the auction, going as high as $28,000 at the time. Many items went for more than 10 times the minimum bid.
Mike Trout rookie card ties auction record
The highest item in the first session of items belongs to a baseball player, the Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout. A signed rookie chrome refractor card from 2009 sold for $900,000. There are only five copies of the card, per Beckett, and it sold for $400,000 a full year ago.
The card has a gem mint rating of 9.5 and a signature rating of 10, per Beckett Grading.
The new price places it in a tie for most expensive modern sports trading card ever. A Jordan-James card sold for the same price in February.
Collection part of Hall of Fame celebration
The collection included 86 Bryant pieces that Goldin began collecting in December to hold an auction in conjunction with the legend’s inclusion in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. It is believed to be the largest collection of Bryant memorabilia at auction.
According to Rovell, the auction had issues over the weekend and was divided into three parts. The second and third portions end Thursday and Friday night, per Rovell.
Rare pieces by James, Sabrina Ionescu
The Bryant collection included two rare items involving James and WNBA No. 1 pick Sabrina Ionescu of the New York Liberty.
The young star and Bryant protege signed an Oregon Ducks jersey meant to be given to him through agents. It never made it to him and sold for more than $6,000, per the auction site.
The nets from the Lakers game in which James passed Bryant for third on the all-time NBA scoring list were up for auction. The game was from the night before Bryant died in a helicopter crash on Jan. 26. They sold for more than $11,000, per the auction site.
Jordan, James pieces sell at auction
A Jordan 1986-87 Fleer card sold for $97,200. It is a record for a gem mint 10 card graded by PSA, Rovell said. Having “The Last Dance” air over the past five weeks certainly helped visibility for the card. Two other Jordan cards from the Exquisite Collection sold for $181,200 and $146,400.
A rookie James jersey sold for $362,500 and a card from the Exquisite Collection sold for $146,400.
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