{"id":1856272,"date":"2026-03-30T21:17:13","date_gmt":"2026-03-30T18:17:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1856272"},"modified":"2026-03-30T21:17:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T18:17:13","slug":"lebron-james-adds-a-crown-to-his-signature-in-latest-autograph-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1856272","title":{"rendered":"LeBron James adds a crown to his signature in latest autograph change"},"content":{"rendered":"
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LeBron James is adding a visual representation of his \u201cKing James\u201d nickname with a major rework for one of the most prominent autographs in modern collecting.<\/p>\n

Trading card manufacturer Topps announced Monday that James has updated his signature to include a crown illustration above his \u201cLJ\u201d initials. A preview image for James\u2019 new autograph featured a one-of-a-kind Superfractor of the Masters insert from 2025-26 Topps Finest Basketball<\/a>, which was released in February. James\u2019 autographs from that set were redemptions<\/a>, meaning there were placeholder cards inserted into packs with a redemption code on them, with the actual autographed cards sent out at a later date.<\/p>\n

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EXCLUSIVE: LeBron James has officially changed his autograph \ud83d\udc51\ud83d\udc40 pic.twitter.com\/TjfjnNYnhB<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Topps (@Topps) March 30, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

This new signature is at least the third notable change to James\u2019 autograph<\/a> since agreeing to his first major exclusive autograph deal<\/a> with Upper Deck in 2002. James\u2019 rookie autographs with Upper Deck were built around his No. 23 jersey number followed by his initials. That signature is featured on many of his most expensive cards, including the 2003-04 Exquisite Collection Rookie Patch Autograph, limited to just 23 copies, one of which sold for a record $5.2 million in a 2021 private sale. James later changed his signature in 2010 to feature his \u201cLJ\u201d initials followed by \u201c#6\u201d when he joined the Miami Heat and changed his jersey number.<\/p>\n

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James\u2019 autograph got another rework in 2014 when he rejoined the Cleveland Cavaliers and switched his jersey back to No. 23. That design has been slightly refined and used since James joined Fanatics Collectibles<\/a>, Topps\u2019 parent company, as an exclusive autograph signer in 2024.<\/p>\n

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James now joins a small club of NBA players who show off their artistic side with their autographs. The other member of that club is Victor Wembanyama, who sometimes adds alien doodles<\/a> to his signature in a nod to his own nickname.<\/p>\n

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{“endpoint”:”https:\/\/api-prd-nyt.theathletic.com\/graphql”}<\/p>\n

Fanatics didn\u2019t immediately respond when asked by The Athletic<\/em> whether James\u2019 new crown signature will be for all of his autographs or just some, as with Wembanyama\u2019s aliens.<\/p>\n

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\"2003-04<\/p>\n
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\n An example of James\u2019 autograph from early in his career. (Photo courtesy of eBay)<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Significant changes to athletes\u2019 autographs can happen over the years, or even over the course of a single lengthy signing session. Topps announced in February 2025 that Shohei Ohtani, another Fanatics Collectibles exclusive athlete, had signed select cards with a new alternative autograph<\/a>. Like James, Ohtani\u2019s signature has changed several times<\/a> over the years. Tom Brady is another top athlete who changed his autograph over the course of his career, as he explained<\/a> to a card dealer at Fanatics Fest last year. His most recent change uses his jersey number (12) to make the B in his last name.<\/p>\n

San Diego Padres All-Star outfielder Jackson Merrill has also notably experimented with his autograph, which resulted in a number of variations and a fair amount of confusion for collectors. According to Merrill, the reasoning wasn\u2019t complicated.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, when you\u2019re signing a box of 3,000 cards from Topps, you don\u2019t want to sit there and have a long autograph,\u201d Merrill told The Athletic<\/em> last April<\/a>. \u201cIn the beginning, I was just doing a \u2018J,\u2019 and then it evolved a little bit. I kind of just wanted to change it on certain things, like certain more important items. Like, one-of-one stuff. If I was feeling nice one day, maybe I do a couple (more time-intensive autographs).\u201d<\/p>\n

const eBayApiUrl=”https:\/\/api.theathletic.com”; <\/p>\n

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LeBron James autographs<\/div>\n

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The Athletic maintains full editorial independence in all our coverage. When you click or make purchases through our links, we may earn a commission.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

LeBron James is adding a visual representation of his \u201cKing James\u201d nickname with a major rework for one of the most prominent autographs in modern collecting. Trading card manufacturer Topps announced Monday that James has updated his signature to include a crown illustration above his \u201cLJ\u201d initials. A preview image for James\u2019 new autograph featured […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,241],"class_list":["post-1856272","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-nytimes-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1856272","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1856272"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1856272\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1856272"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1856272"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1856272"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}