Matt Varga Re-emerging once again after being up for auction in 2021, a pair of Kobe-owned, LeBron-worn Kobe 2s from his high school days is up for grabs. The USA colorway only adds to the intrigue surrounding these, and is a physical representation of a legendary meeting between the two surefire Hall of Famers.
While every piece of LeBron memorabilia carries a certain amount of history, the significance of this pair is on another level entirely. First conceived by Bryant himself in conjunction with Peter Moore, this adidas Kobe 2 was intended as a tribute to 9/11 victims, a then just-days old event. Cut to February 2002, prior to the All-Star Game: In their first ever meeting, Kobe gifted the sneakers to the 17 year old James. A few days after that, the already storied pair would make their on-feet debut as LeBron’s St. Vincent-St. Mary squared off against Carmelo Anthony’s Oak Hill Academy.
Though James’ squad couldn’t secure the win that particular night, he wasn’t lacking in the box score. His line of 36/10/5 was a sign of his famously sky-high potential, and is a final exceptional bit of trivia for the Kobe 2s in question. In case it wasn’t abundantly clear, the Kobe 2 USA signify the starting point for two of LeBron’s formative professional relationships, reprised at the 2003 Draft, in countless free agency rumors and a dozen All Star games.
All those key factors add up correspondingly high asking price. The starting bid for this pair of The King’s high school kicks is $45,000, but there’s already some history as to why that surely won’t hold; these same shoes were listed in just under three years ago at a starting bid of $15,000 eventually selling for a whopping $156,000. Should you be inclined to bid yourself, the auction will be open on the Goldin website until March 2nd; you can find a full suite of official photos below.
