The jersey was photo-matched to seven games of his 1996-97 rookie season including his October 16 pre-season debut and November 3 regular season debut in 1996, as well as his National Basketball Association (NBA) media day.

At $7 million, the item is the fourth-most expensive game-worn sports jersey behind Babe Ruth "called shot" jersey, which sold for $24 million, after Michael Jordan's 1998 NBA Finals jersey for $10.1 million, and Diego Maradona's Argentina shirt from the 1986 World Cup $9.3 million.

"Debut games are truly one-of-a-kind moments in an athlete's career," Sotheby's Head of Modern Collectibles, Brahm Wachter said in a statement to American international basic cable sports channel, ESPN.

"They mark the nascence of an extraordinary journey, and for iconic athletes like Kobe Bryant, these milestones hold even more significance as they represent a singular moment in time that can never be replicated," Wachter said.

The sale was a record for a Bryant collectible, surpassing the $5.85 million paid for his signed, game-worn 2007-08 Most Valuable Player (MVP) season jersey.

Five-time NBA champion, Bryant died at the age of 41 in a January 2020 helicopter crash, which also killed his daughter Gianna and seven others.

--Reuters--