A jersey worn by LeBron James for a famous high school photoshoot has realised $1.3 million at auction in Hong Kong. This is a world record for a high school basketball jersey.
James wore the vest – from St Vincent-St Mary high school in Akron, Ohio – for a 2002 cover shoot by Sports Illustrated magazine.
They called James The Chosen One in the headline. The chosen one left the shoot and wore the same shirt to play in a game against a rival school side.
James is now one of the most recognised and awarded stars in basketball history.
His Olympic gold medal with Team USA in Paris in summer 2024 was just the latest award in a hugely successful career that includes playing in the NBA finals in 10 of 11 consecutive seasons for three different teams. He won four NBA team titles and is the league’s record points scorer.
The label of LeBron James’ high school shirt. Image courtesy of Julien’s Auctions.
The talent and potential to go to the top was already evident when James was starring for his school side, whose games were televised.
Auction house Julien’s called the sale, “the marquee highlight” of their event, stating it was a new world record for a high school basketball jersey sold at auction.
It went into the sale, their first in Hong Kong, with an estimate of $1 million to $3 million.
The jersey had previously been sold for $187,500 in 2019 and was auctioned for $512,200 in 2021.
A Michael Jordan jersey from the 1998 NBA finals sold in 2022 for over $10 million. Kobe Bryant’s LA Lakers 2007-8 jersey made $5.8 million in 2023.
The art of photo-matching is rising to new heights.
LeBron’s shirt was sold with two photo-matching reports that prove the jersey was the one worn for the photoshoot.
Last month, a Babe Ruth shirt sold for $24.1 million to become the most valuable item of sports memorabilia in history. That sale came after photo-matching conclusively linked the grey NY Yankees outfit to the “called shot”, one of the most celebrated moments in baseball history.
