Is LeBron James [1st Edition] #23 worth grading?

Basketball · Basketball Cards 2007 Topps · full price guide →

Worth grading — even a PSA 9 beats raw

A Grade 9.5 LeBron James [1st Edition] #23 sells for $825 against $304 raw: a $521 spread, 2.7× the ungraded price. Even a PSA 9 ($750) clears the raw price after an economy-tier ~$25 fee, so a near-miss still comes out ahead. Centering is the usual reason a clean copy misses the 10 — measure it before you submit.

Raw (NM): $304
Grade 9.5: $825
PSA 9: $750
Gem premium: 2.7×
As of: Sep 4, 2026

Break-even by outcome and fee

LeBron James [1st Edition] #23: net result of grading versus selling raw, by outcome and fee tier
If it comes back…	Sells for	Economy / bulk (~$25.00)	Standard (~$50.00)	Express (~$150)
Gem — Grade 9.5	$825	+$496	+$471	+$371
PSA 9	$750	+$421	+$396	+$296
PSA 8	$345	+$15.50	−$9.50	−$110

Net = sale price − $304 raw value − fee. Fee tiers are illustrative; plug your grader's current price into the calculator below.

Expected value — how often does it need to gem?

LeBron James [1st Edition] #23: expected value of submitting by gem probability
Chance it gems	Expected sale	Expected net (standard fee)
25%	$769	+$415
50%	$788	+$434
75%	$806	+$452

Even a miss (a 9) beats selling raw after the standard fee — the gem rate only decides how much you win by.

Full grade ladder

Raw conditions & history →

LeBron James [1st Edition] #23 graded prices by company and grade
Grade	Graded
9.5	$825
9	$750
8	$345
7	$310

Run your own numbers

Should I pay this?

Asking priceGrading fee

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