October Legends Closing October 29
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 10/30/2016
Future Hall of Famer Kobe Bryant closed out his legendary career this past season with a storybook ending and a spectacular farewell tour. Shortly before the November 29, 2015 game against the Indiana Pacers, Bryant announced that the 2015-16 season would be his last and immediately the entire world’s attention turned to Kobe. Laker fans that attended the game at Staples Center, were shocked by a commemorative retirement letter written by Kobe that was left on their seat prior to the game.
Offered is the white Sunday uniform, worn by Kobe Bryant for six of the 10 games Kobe wore white this season, including the November 29, 2015 game against the Indiana Pacers.
The uniform was also worn by Kobe and photo matched to the following games:
November 1, 2015 vs Dallas
November 15, 2015 vs Detroit
November 22, 2015 vs Portland
December 6, 2015 @ Detroit - Final game in Detroit
January 17, 2016 vs Houston
It is likely that this is the heaviest worn jersey Kobe wore all season, as teammates, players from opposing teams and celebrities overwhelmed Kobe with requests for game used gear from his final season. The fact that this jersey saw six games of action in his final season is tremendous and makes this one of the finest Kobe Bryant uniforms to ever be offered.
This partial mesh jersey has the Adidas tag and NBA Authentics tag with the code “LLA03363” sewn on the bottom front tail. “LAKERS” and “BRYANT” are sewn on in purple and yellow tackle twill while his number 24 is sewn on the front and back in purple mesh with yellow embroidered outlines on a white tackle twill backing. The collar and open arms are edged with a thin purple band and each side has a thick yellow vertical stripe outlined in purple and yellow. The NBA logo is embroidered at the base of the neck above “BRYANT” and the back collar has a ribbed purple band with a 1 x 1 ½ inch gold patch sewn on the outside and inside that has the “16x” marking for the franchise’s 16 NBA titles. The matching white shorts have a stretch waist band with solid yellow mesh stripes down each side trimmed with purple and yellow and the Laker logo ball patch sewn on at the base of the striping. The purple and yellow border runs along the base of the shorts. The NBA logo is embroidered on the top of the right waist and the Adidas tag is sewn on the inside back waist with “24” handwritten in black marker.
Accompanying this full uniform is the original commemorative letter given to the attendees of the Lakers-Pacers game and the black envelope and gold seal. The heading in gold reads “WHEN WE FIRST MET I WAS JUST A KID.” while the letter reads: “Some of you took me in. Some of you didn’t. But all of you helped me become the player and man in front of you today. You gave me confidence to put my anger to good use. Your doubt gave me determination to prove you wrong. You witnessed my fears morph into strength. Your rejection taught me courage. Whether you view me as a hero or a villain, please know I poured every emotion, every bit of passion and my entire self into being a Laker. What you’ve done for me is far greater than anything I’ve done for you. I knew each minute of each game I wore purple and gold. I honor it as I play today and for the rest of the season. My love for this city, this team and for each of you will never fade. Thank you for this incredible journey.” This jersey has been photo-matched to all six games by game photo expert John Robinson of Resolution Photomatching. High resolution photos from each game will be made available to the winning bidder. The shorts have also been photo matched.