It has often been said that the Staples Center, home of the Los Angeles Lakers, was “the house that Kobe built.” It's hard to disagree with the statement when Bryant had a twenty-year-long career with the team along with winning them five NBA championships. Thus, if the Staples Center was the house built by Bryant’s skill and legacy, his locker was a brick in that foundation.
That very locker has gone on sale with Sotheby’s New York and sold on 2 August 2024 for an eye-watering US$ 2.88 million. It is currently the most expensive sports locker ever sold at auction. It also achieved the record of the third most expensive Kobe Bryant-related item sold at auction, coming behind two signed jerseys.
Kobe Bryant at his final NBA match
Lot 1⏐Kobe Bryant’s Staples Center Locker⏐Photmatched from 2004-2016⏐Custom Locker, Wood, Metal, Plastic
Circa: 2004-2016 (photo matched, possibly older)
Dimensions: 251.1 x 88.2 x 60.9 cm
Estimate: US$1,000,000 - 1,500,000
Hammer Price: US$2,400,000
Sold: US$2,880,000
Auction House: Sotheby’s New York
Sale: Altitude⏐Capsule Collection
Date: 22 July - 2 August 2024
Originally drafted to the Charlotte Hornets for the 1996-1997 season, Kobe Bryant would end up getting traded to the LA Lakers, where he would go on to have a dominant career from 1996-2016, with the team being the only one he played for in the NBA. Playing a total of 1,346 games, he helped bring the Lakers to win the NBA championship in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009, and 2010.
As for the locker itself, photo evidence shows that it had been in use by Bryant for at least 2004 till his retirement in 2016. It is unclear whether or not it had been in use before 2004, but regardless, it is a testament to the legend’s career. In addition to his 5 championships, he also won the Finals MVP Award twice, had 18 all-star game appearances, and won two Olympic gold medals.
The Staples Center or "the house that Kobe built"
In his final season in 2016, the Lakers failed to make the NBA playoffs, so Bryant’s final would see his Lakers go up against the Utah Jazz. In that final game, he scored 60 points, an amazing achievement given he was 37 at the time. Played at the Laker’s home court, the Staples Center, the home crowd cheered him on as Bryant put on a legendary performance.
After the game he gave a speech stating how fast 20 years seemed to go by and that growing up the Lakers were his favorite team, reflecting that "you can't write something better than this." Returning to the Laker’s locker room, Bryant’s teammates sprayed him with champagne as he sat by his locker celebrating and thinking back on on his 20-year career, the moment captured on photograph.
An image of Kobe Bryant sitting in front of his locker following his final game in the NBA
Kobe Bryant playing in his final game against the Utah Jazz
When the Staples Center, now known as Crypto.com Arena, was being renovated in 2018, someone as part of the project saved Bryant’s locker, where it then found its way into a private American collection. This auction is the first time the locker has been seen in public since its private acquisition.
The locker has officially been verified as Kobe Bryant’s through the external service provided by the MeiGray group, who routinely provide analysis to verify the authenticity of sports memorabilia. Through analyzing certain elements of the locker cross-referenced with past photos of the locker, it can be determined that this was Bryant’s locker at the Staples Center.
This evidence was further supported by certain other elements, such as the pattern in the wood grain across the locker and the fact that Kobe Bryant had the only locker fitted with a combination lock.
The photo evidence connecting the locker sold by Sotheby's and past photos with the same pattern in the wood grain
Evidence provided by MeiGray of the nameplate on the eve of Bryant’s final game in the NBA confirms it is the original
The locker had originally been estimated between US$1-1.5 million, with it nearly tripling its low estimate with its final price. Originally, the auction had been relatively muted. It was not until the last 20 minutes of the online auction that four bidders engaged in fierce competition, driving up the sold price to US$2.88 million.
Part of the earnings made from this sale will go to the Lakers Youth Foundation, although how much is as yet unknown. The sale itself makes this the third-most high-selling Kobe Bryant piece of memorabilia with the other two, signed jerseys, listed below.
Kobe Bryant ‘MVP’ 2007-2008 Los Angeles Lakers Game Worn & Signed Jersey | Sold for around US$5.84 million, by Sotheby's New York, February 2023
Kobe Bryant Rookie 1996-1997 Los Angeles Laker Game Work & Signed Jersey | Sold for US$3.69 million, by Goldin Auctions New Jersey, May 2021
In 2020, an infamous helicopter accident claimed the lives of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna Bryant. It sent shockwaves around the sporting world and created a frenzy for memorabilia of Bryant himself. Going beyond just sneakers and jerseys, but also copies of his Walk of Fame handprints and towels he used were being sold.
This locker is part of this trend of acquiring increasingly niche Bryant memorabilia, and it is unknown what might be offered next at auction.
A recreation of the Staples Center locker room created by Sotheby's as a display for the sale, prominently featuring Bryant's locker in the center