For most New Yorkers looking to savor the Knicks’ first NBA championship in 53 years, a commemorative T-shirt—perhaps purchased bootleg outside Madison Square Garden—will have to do. But for the lucky few superfans with a few million to spare, a far more rarefied piece of Knicks history is about to hit the auction block.
Starting June 30, Sotheby’s will offer the game-winning basketball from the Knicks’ improbable Game 4 comeback against the San Antonio Spurs, in which the team erased an unprecedented 29-point deficit at MSG. The ball was used on the game’s second-to-last play, when star forward OG Anunoby tipped in point guard Jalen Brunson’s missed three-pointer, securing a 107–106 victory. The tip-in sealed the largest comeback in NBA Finals history and set up the team’s clinching Game 5 in San Antonio two days later.
Sotheby’s has not announced an estimate, though sports business analyst Darren Rovell has predicted the ball will sell for $3 million. The auction house has dubbed it “The Hand of OG,” and it is being offered via online auction by the NBA, alongside 35 other Finals-related lots. Among them: game-used jerseys from several Finals games, the net from Games 1 and 5, and a piece of the court.
That sale is one of several basketball-themed auctions slated for the coming weeks under an official NBA partnership, with 109 items on offer—mostly game-used jerseys from this year’s playoffs.
While art remains the primary business for Sotheby’s and its competitors, sports memorabilia and other collectibles have quickly become important categories as the major houses work to broaden their collector bases. As George Nelson reported for ARTnews in February, 38 percent of new buyers at Christie’s last year came through its luxury categories, which include handbags, jewelry, fine wine and spirits, classic cars, and memorabilia. (Sotheby’s did not release comparable figures in its 2025 report, though it noted that 35 percent of bidders last year were first-timers.)
The strategic logic is clear, Tad Smith, Sotheby’s former president and CEO, told ARTnews at the time: “Art collectors are luxury consumers, but most luxury consumers aren’t significant art collectors. Focusing on luxury expands the client base, makes the house more marketing-driven than sales-driven, and changes the culture.”
Guillaume Cerutti, former Christie’s CEO, made a similar case, arguing that luxury sales have become the primary driver of new clients at the auction house. “The objective isn’t just to attract them, but to encourage exploration of other categories, particularly fine art,” he said. “Many luxury sales take place online, which demystifies auctions and introduces buyers to exhibitions and live sales they might otherwise find intimidating.”
As for who might purchase “The Hand of OG”: tickets for Game 4 ran $3,000 for nosebleeds and nearly $100,000 for courtside seats—not that those on celebrity row were paying. Even so, if you can afford tens of thousands for a ticket, it stands to reason your pockets run deep enough for a legendary ball.
If forced to bet, though, I would put money on Knicks die-hard Spike Lee. His collection already includes more than a few iconic pieces of American pop-culture history—and this one would fit right in.
