Kobe Bryant 1996 Topps Chrome #138 Rookie

The 1996 Topps Chrome #138 is the defining rookie card of Kobe Bryant, issued in the season that began one of the most decorated runs in the history of the NBA. Drafted thirteenth overall and then traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, Bryant went on to five championships, two Finals MVP awards and a place in the Hall of Fame, and the card has followed that trajectory to become one of the most sought-after basketball rookies of its generation.

Encapsulated by PSA as 10 GEM MT, the maximum grade awarded, this example presents the centering, corners and surface that separate a top-tier copy from the many that fall short of it. For collectors the appeal is structural rather than cyclical: a debut-season card of a career-defining player, in the highest grade available, sits at the intersection of sporting history and durable demand, and remains one of the reference points against which modern basketball rookies are measured.