USA Basketball Selling Pre-Olympic Jerseys

Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and the rest of Team USA brought the Olympic basketball championship back home this summer in Beijing. Now, collectors will have the chance to own game jerseys from the team's pre-Olympic exhibitions. It's the first time game-worn jerseys from USA Basketball have been sold at auction.

Two sets of jerseys from the USA Basketball Men’s team will be up for auction. The jerseys are from the team’s games in the USA Basketball International Challenge against Russia which took place Aug. 3 and the contest with Australia on Aug. 5.

“This is the first time we are giving fans the opportunity to own a piece of USA Basketball history,” said Jim Tooley, USA Basketball Executive Director. “The demand for game-worn jerseys has increased and owning the jerseys worn by their favorite players is a special opportunity for our fans.”

Fans will also be able to bid on each jersey worn by the USA Basketball Women’s National Team in their victories over China on Aug. 11, and Spain on Aug. 15. Candace Parker and Lisa Leslie were among the stars on the American team which also won gold in Beijing.

The auctions will include the white “home” jerseys for both the men's and women's teams, as well as the red “away” jerseys for the women’s team and the blue “away” jerseys for the men’s team. The auctions got underway Monday night and will end at 9:00 pm EST on Sept. 30. Fans can visit USABasketball.com or auctions.nba.com to bid.

MeiGray, the official game-worn source of USA Basketball, will oversee the auction online, and has authenticated the jerseys with a security system which includes a special code, tag, and security number placed on the jersey before players actually wear them on court. USA basketball says the jerseys have been securely stored since the games and will "remain secure until they are delivered to the winners."