According to Goldin Auctions, a rare autographed LeBron James rookie card sold at auction early Sunday morning for $312,000. The six-figure selling price shatters the previous highest price paid for a single signed card, a 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth, which sold for $50,787.
"This shows the worldwide appeal of basketball, of basketball cards, and of LeBron James," Goldin said. "My office is going to be buried in emails and phone calls for the next two weeks with people wanting me to sell their LeBron card."
This particular card, which features an authentic patch from a jersey worn by LeBron during a photoshoot, was previously billed by GoldinAuctions.com as "the most valuable and coveted LeBron James card in the world" and that $312,000 price tag certainly confirms it. Originally, they had hoped to get $200,000 for it.
The autographed, jersey patch card was originally pulled from Upper Deck's Ultimate Collection set, which were sold for $125 a pack and contained only four cards.
ESPN's Darren Rovell reports that it is the third-highest price paid for a basketball card, behind only a 1969 Lew Alcindor Topps rookie card ($501,900) and a 1948 George Mikan rookie card ($403,664).
