The Los Angeles Lakers' home locker used by NBA Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant at Staples Center from 2003-04 through his final season in 2015-16 has sold for a record $2.9 million, an auction said Friday.
According to Suthu, this is the most valuable sport that has ever been auctioned. It's also the third most expensive piece of Bryant memorabilia of all time, just behind the game-used jersey, which is automatically tagged with Bryant's season-matched photo.
Bryant's rookie season jersey was sold for $3.69 million in 2021. His home locker also failed to find Bryant's signed, game-used and photo-matched jersey from his lone MVP season in 2007-08, which sold for $5.6 million. It was the second most valuable basketball jersey ever sold.
According to ESPN's Dan Hajducky, the locker was worth $750,000, but in the last twenty minutes of the auction, four bidders pushed the sale to less than $3 million.
“Kobe Bryant's locker is more than just a memory,” said Brahm Wachter, Suthu's head of contemporary collections, in a statement. “But it's a deep dive from one of basketball's greatest stars. Today's price highlights not only Kobe's enduring legacy but also the unique nature of this unique item.”
The dimensions of the custom locker are L 34 3/4″ x W 24″ x H 98 7/8,” according to the lot details. If the Staples Center was “The House that Kobe Built,” then this was his room inside that house.
Kobe Bryant's Staples Center locker was the setting for championship celebrations with champagne, autograph signings
Additionally, Bryant's locker has a wood grain pattern on the top of the cabinet door. It also has black markings on the bottom kick plate and the locking combination on the top drawer. His closet is reportedly the only one with a combination lock.
Bryant's locker was in the back of the locker room near the showers. After he retired in 2016, the lock was handed over to Brandon Ingram for the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons.
During the 2018 Staples Center renovation, an unnamed maintenance worker saved Bryant's locker from demolition, then sold it to a private collector, who reattached the locker and Bryant's nameplate.
The back row of lockers was changed from four lockers to three, and LeBron James replaced Bryant.
According to Suthu, this item was registered in The MeiGrade System to track special memorabilia. Personally reviewed by MeiGray in August 2023.
Sotheby's announced that a portion of the proceeds from the sale will “directly benefit” the Los Angeles Lakers Youth Foundation. However, the auction did not disclose the dollar amount.
The Lakers Youth Foundation sponsors STEM Lab Projects, Reading, and Learning Centers. It pays for the construction of basketball courts throughout Los Angeles County and Hawaii as well.
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