Wilt Chamberlain Lakers Jacket Found at Goodwill Sells for $89,600

A Wilt Chamberlain warmup jacket purchased at a Portland, Oregon, Goodwill for $3.07 has sold at Sotheby's for $89,600 including buyer's premium. The Lakers-era piece was authenticated through photo-matching and linked to Chamberlain's playing days.

The jacket was found in January by Quinn Brown, 19, who had been buying vintage clothing for resale. It carries “Chamberlain” on the back, and after Brown shared a photo publicly, Sotheby's modern collectibles head Brahm Wachter contacted him about consigning it.

Sotheby's used SIA Photo Match to assess the item. According to the reported authentication, the jacket was definitively matched to the 1972 NBA Finals and also matched to the 1972-73 season, while its use across the 1971-72 season was described as likely rather than certain.

That context is what turned a thrift-store find into a major memorabilia sale. Chamberlain's 1972 Finals run brought him Finals MVP honors and helped deliver the Lakers' first championship in Los Angeles, while the following season was his last and included a 72.7% field-goal mark that stood for decades.