Wembanyama card goes for $5.11 million: These are the most expensive NBA trading cards ever sold

The modern sports card boom has produced another landmark momen, this time centered on the NBA’s most anticipated young star. A one-of-one 2023 Prizm Black rookie card of Victor Wembanyama, graded PSA 10, has sold for $5.11 million in a private transaction brokered by Fanatics Collect. The sale doesn’t just reset the market for Wembanyama...it reshapes the hierarchy of basketball cards altogether.

The figure eclipses the previous high for any Wembanyama card ($860,100) and now stands as the fourth-highest NBA card sale ever recorded. Even more notably, it is the most expensive non-autographed basketball card in history, showing just how much weight collectors are placing on Wembanyama’s long-term potential.

Below is where that sale lands among the biggest transactions ever recorded.

The most expensive NBA trading cards ever sold

1. Kobe Bryant / Michael Jordan - $12.93 million

• Card: 2007–08 Upper Deck Exquisite Dual Logoman Autographs (1/1)
• A true “grail” piece combining two icons, still holding the all-time record

2. Stephen Curry - $5.9 million

• Card: 2009–10 National Treasures Rookie Logoman Autograph (1/1)
• The gold standard for modern-era superstar rookie cards

3. LeBron James - $5.2 million

• Card: 2003–04 Upper Deck Exquisite Rookie Patch Autograph (/23)
• One of the most iconic and repeatedly transacted cards in the hobby

4. Victor Wembanyama - $5.11 million

• Card: 2023–24 Panini Prizm Black (1/1), PSA 10
• The most expensive non-autographed NBA card ever sold

5. Luka Doncic - $4.6 million

• Card: 2018 National Treasures Logoman Autograph (1/1)
• A benchmark sale for the next generation before Wembanyama arrived

6. Kobe Bryant - $3.15 million

• Card: 1997 Metal Universe Precious Metal Gems Green (/100)
• One of the most coveted inserts from the 1990s

7. Michael Jordan - $2.93 million

• Card: Upper Deck Ultimate Collection Signed Logoman (1/1)
• Late-career Jordan still commands historic value

8. Michael Jordan - $2.7 million

• Card: 1997 Upper Deck Game Jersey Autograph (/23)

9. LeBron James - $2.4 million

• Card: 2003–04 Exquisite Rookie Patch Autograph (/99)

10. LeBron James - $2.4 million

• Card: 2020 Panini Flawless Triple Logoman (1/1)

New name, same rare air

For years, the ultra-high-end basketball card market has been dominated by a tight circle - Michael Jordan, LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, and Stephen Curry. Even emerging stars like Luka Doncic and Giannis Antetokounmpo have typically needed years and MVP-level seasons to crack this tier. Wembanyama has done it almost instantly.

Now in his third NBA season, the French phenom has already translated on-court dominance and global hype into record-setting demand off it. And unlike most cards at this level, his $5.11 million sale didn’t rely on a signature or memorabilia patch. Instead, it relied on scarcity, condition, and belief in what he could become.

The next record may not belong to a legend of the past, but to a superstar whose story is still being written.

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