Is LeBron James [Gold] #286 worth grading?

Basketball · Basketball Cards 2021 Panini Mosaic · full price guide →

Worth grading — even a PSA 9 beats raw

A Grade 9.5 LeBron James [Gold] #286 sells for $1,224 against $541 raw: a $683 spread, 2.3× the ungraded price. Even a PSA 9 ($1,113) 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): $541
Grade 9.5: $1,224
PSA 9: $1,113
Gem premium: 2.3×
As of: Sep 4, 2026

Break-even by outcome and fee

LeBron James [Gold] #286: 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	$1,224	+$658	+$633	+$533
PSA 9	$1,113	+$547	+$522	+$422

Net = sale price − $541 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 [Gold] #286: expected value of submitting by gem probability
Chance it gems	Expected sale	Expected net (standard fee)
25%	$1,141	+$550
50%	$1,169	+$578
75%	$1,196	+$605

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 [Gold] #286 graded prices by company and grade
Grade	Graded
9.5	$1,224
9	$1,113

Run your own numbers

Should I pay this?

Asking priceGrading fee

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