Jordan-Kobe $20M Logoman Card Stuns Actor Awards Carpet

The 2026 Actor Awards red carpet had its share of designer suits and jewels. Then Kevin O’Leary walked in wearing a basketball card.

Not just any card. The Shark Tank investor arrived at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles wearing a rare, one-of-one basketball card signed by Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan, framed in white gold and covered in diamonds. The piece, he told reporters, is now worth $20 million.

O’Leary was among the nominees for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture for his role as Milton Rockwell in Marty Supreme. But nobody was talking about the film. All eyes were on his neck.

“We brought Kobe back to L.A. That’s a one of one dual logo, man, signed with Jordan as well. It’s a $20 million card in 2.2 pounds of Tiffany white gold and 100 karats of Tiffany diamonds. I mean, we’re rockin’ it tonight, baby, that’s it,” O’Leary told TSN Sports on the red carpet.

He wore a black sequined suit and made sure to point out the card to photographers, calling it “one of one, baby.”

The card in question is a 2007-08 Upper Deck Exquisite Collection Dual Logoman Autograph, numbered 1-of-1, featuring patches from both players’ game-worn jerseys and their signatures. It is the only one of its kind in existence. When it sold for $12.932 million through Heritage Auctions in August 2025, it became the most expensive sports card ever sold at auction, surpassing the famous 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card, which had sold for $12.6 million in 2022.

O’Leary purchased the card alongside partners Matt Allen and Paul Warshaw, forming a three-person syndicate to avoid bidding against each other. Since then, the value has climbed sharply. During a Fox Business broadcast in February, O’Leary said the card was worth “over $17.2 million.” By the time he hit the red carpet in Los Angeles, he was putting the number at $20 million flat.

He did not come to the event without a comparison ready. “I’m looking at this card the same way as if you could have bought a Picasso in 1962,” he said, noting the piece has “done better than crypto.”

Hours before the ceremony, O’Leary had posted a social media video giving people a preview. “The weight of this thing is, like, two pounds of solid gold and diamonds,” he said in the clip. Then he paused. “But it’s all for Kobe.”

O’Leary explained that wearing the card in Los Angeles had special meaning. Bryant, who played for the Los Angeles Lakers, died in a helicopter crash in January 2020 along with his daughter Gianna and seven others. O’Leary said the necklace was his way of honoring the late basketball star. “I brought this back because I want to bring Kobe back to LA on such a big night in the city,” he said. “It’s the first time we brought it out; I thought it would be great for the red carpet.”

The card itself has drawn expert praise despite one complication. It carries a PSA grade of 6 out of 10, but Heritage Auctions director of sports auctions Chris Ivy said the lower grade carried little consequence. “Grades matter as far as pricing goes for standard-issue cards,” Ivy said, “but this is a 1-of-1, so the grade is less important overall to how the card performed.”

Not everyone has been at peace with how the card has been used publicly. Some fans felt the auction exploited Bryant’s memory, particularly because the Heritage sale took place on what would have been his 47th birthday. O’Leary has pushed back on that framing at every turn, insisting the card is a tribute, full stop.

“It’s going to be a part of an index that I’m going to continue to grow along with my partners,” O’Leary said. “We look at it no different than our bitcoin holdings, our Ethereum holdings, our gold holdings. It’s so rare that the prices continue to appreciate, and they seem to defy recessions.”

O’Leary has stated he has no intention of selling the card, considering it a long-term investment and a tribute to Bryant. On a night built around celebrating performances, he managed to make the red carpet entirely his own stage. The card stayed around his neck all night.