Kobe Bryant's jersey from 1996 sold for $7 million at auction

Kobe Bryant's debut jeresey, which he wore in his first season with Los Angeles Lakers, has been sold for $7 million at auction house Sotheby's in New York last Thursday. While not exactly the record amount for a sports jersey seen at an auction (the record is from baseball player Babe Ruth, $24 million, while Michael Jordan's 1998 NBA Finals jersey was sold for $10.1 million and Maradona's Argentina shirt from the 1986 World Cup was sold $9.3 million) it still shows the love and respect the cherished player gets, who played for 20 years at Los Angeles Lakers.

Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash five years ago, alongside eight other people including his daughter Gianna, debuted with Lakers in 1996. That jeresey is the authentic that Bryant wore that year, photo-matched to seven games and his media day, reported by Reuters.

It breaks the record for the highest amount paid for a Bryant collectible, surpassing a signed jeresey he wore in 2008, sold for $5.85 million.