Wilt Chamberlain rookie card sells for record $1.7 million at auction after sitting in closet

A 1961-62 Fleer Wilt Chamberlain rookie card recently sold for $1.7 million in a private deal brokered by Goldin Auctions. It’s the most money ever paid for a vintage (pre-1980) basketball card.

The previous record was a 1980-81 Topps Larry Bird/Magic Johnson rookie card, which sold in August 2021 for $840,000, also with Goldin.

The Chamberlain card sat in a grocery store closet in Crosby, Minnesota, for “more than 60 years,” according to a press release, where a family member of the store’s owners found it.

Sent to grading just weeks ago, it received a perfect “10” from card grader SGC, the only 10 ever given to a 1961-62 Fleer card.

While notably the hobby debut of Chamberlain, Jerry West and Oscar Robertson, the 1961-62 Fleer set is historically known for factory and printing defects — making the grade all the more impressive considering it sat untouched for six decades.

“As soon as I saw the card in person, I knew this would be life-changing,” Caleb Baker, the card’s consignor, said in a statement. “[I’m] still in a state of shock that I was the one who got to send for grading and put this monumental and historic card on the market with Goldin.”

Chamberlain’s 1959-60 photo-matched, rookie-season-home-white jersey also set the record for most expensive vintage basketball item in June 2023 when it sold for, ironically, $1.792 million at SCP Auctions.