Oh, how far LeBron's Cleveland Cavaliers jersey has come in the past few years.
"The lasting memory of tonight will be this shot — his burning jersey in Lakewood."
Those were images from just four years ago when LeBron James announced he'd be heading from Cleveland to Miami via free agency. (Video via ESPN)
But now he's back in his home state, playing for the Cavs and smoothing things over. Here he is decked out in his 23 jersey on opening night.
And now, here's that jersey posted up for auction.
The NBA is auctioning off the jersey from LeBron's first game back in Cleveland Oct. 30. That game resulted in a five-point loss to the Knicks, but LeBron did finish with 17 points, four assists and five rebounds. And some of the "special" features of the jersey?
"LeBron James was 'mic'd up' for this game. His jersey has a black pouch on the inside where the microphone resides. There is also 'sticky tape' residue on the inside of the jersey to help secure the microphone."
I mean, you don't want to wash that thing and lose the magical value of it, right? Maybe LeBron's sweat is still on it!
Which is why one Bleacher Report writer says, "You want LeBresidue? You’ll get LeBresidue — but it will cost you."
And that cost will likely be more than $8,000. As it is, the highest bidder is offering $7,960, but the auction doesn't close until Nov. 20, so that number has plenty of time to go up.
But it's got a WHOLE lot of room to make up before it comes close to an article from another NBA great. Yes — we're talking about Jordan.
Michael Jordan's "flu game" shoes sold for a hefty price tag of $100,000 last December. Jordan wore those in the 1997 NBA Finals in a pivotal Game 5 against the Utah Jazz. The Bulls went on to win that game and eventually the championship.
LeBron's jersey likely won't fit the average person though. The 6-foot 8-inch, 250-pound forward supposedly wears a 2-XL and an additional two inches in length.
The NBA has not indicated where proceeds for the jersey will go once it's sold.
