Kobe Bryant Memorabilia Floods eBay In The Wake Of His Death
In the wake of Kobe Bryant’s death, multiple pieces of memorabilia connected to the NBA icon have been listed on the popular bidding site eBay.
News broke on Sunday, January 26, that Bryant had passed away after a helicopter crash at the age of 41. The former Lakers star was one of nine fatalities incurred in the crash. One of the victims was Bryant’s second daughter Gianna “Gigi” Bryant. The 13-year-old basketball player had been accompanying her father on the helicopter ride. The two were headed to Gigi’s basketball game when the crash occurred.
There are 50,614 pieces of Bryant memorabilia available on eBay as of this writing. One item up for bid is an autographed basketball card from Bryant himself. The card appears to be in mint condition and is covered in plastic by the seller. The card is from Bryant’s 2002-2003 season and its current price sits at $4,000.
In another listing, an eBay user put up a basketball card from Bryant’s appearance in the 1998 NBA playoffs. The picture depicts Bryant in an action pose during a game against the Portland Trailblazers. The back of the card explains that during the playoff game, Bryant scored 22 points in a game that the Lakers took by a score of 110-99. The card is covered in plastic for the potential buyer and doesn’t appear to have any tears or scratches on its surface. The eBay seller priced the item at $999.
One eBay seller also listed a card which they placed on a plaque. The photo on the card illustrated a period during the 1997-1998 season, which was when Bryant was starting out with the Lakers. The image shows the athlete shooting a basket while clad in a purple-and-yellow uniform. This Skybox Z-force card is priced at $899 online.
Several collectors had the athlete’s jerseys for sale, including a city edition Lakers jersey. The jersey is purple with black stripes, with one of Bryant’s numbers, 24, evident in yellow lettering. That jersey is currently offered up for the price of $799. Yet another eBay vendor is selling an autographed image of Bryant alongside Lakers executive Jerry West. During his run with the Lakers, Bryant and West were very close, both on and off the court. The image shows Bryant’s picture in the top left of the paper, with his signature underneath. West’s picture is on the bottom right, and his signature is present as well. The current price of this two-autograph piece rests at $7,999.99.
In his passing, Bryant leaves behind his wife of 20 years, Vanessa, and their three surviving children — Natalia, Bianka, and Capri. He was also beloved and cherished by a plethora of sports fans during his legendary basketball career.
