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The idea, drive, and value behind collecting sports related memorabilia is nothing new. The popularity of baseball cards, for example, has been a prime target for collectors for decades.

With our world slowly becoming more digital, and our familiarity with the metaverse becoming more commonplace every day, it is no surprise that sports fans and collectors have found a place for themselves on the digital landscape.

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That place is called Top Shot. NBA Top Shot has already generated over $280 million in transactions and has solidified itself as one of the top NFT platforms for sports-related content.

NFTs or Non Fungible Tokens have been gaining popularity lately in the world of art, music, and now sports. Often featuring iconic sports moments transformed into digital gifs and images, several star athletes like LeBron James and Kobe Bryant have seen themselves immortalized online. Top Shot has now forged a way for collectors to own, trade, and share those iconic moments from history.

Several early investors have already made tens of millions off of their NFT investments on Top Shot, and with a steady increase in the popularity of NFTs, their sales seem to be setting new records every day.

This list focuses on some of those those iconic sales that have driven the value of sports-related NFTs through the roof.

Here are the top 8 largest sales on the NFT platform NBA Top Shot.

Kyrie Irving "Holo MMXX" Handles $79,999

Just shy of the $80k threshold, this Irving NFT comes from his time playing with the Brooklyn Nets.

Given the first serial number of the deck, this moment is the one of the top handles from NFT sales. It is second only to Steph Curry's fellow number one serial number from the "Deck the Hoops" series.

LeBron James "From the Top" Dunk, $80,000

King James is the only player to appear on this multiple times. His skills and iconic moments have carried on throughout his career and made him a significant player on several different teams.

This moment comes from his time with the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2019 season.

With most of his cards selling in the $80,000 to $100,000 range, drawing one of his NFTs from a pack has quickly become synonymous with winning the lottery.

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Giannis Antetokounmpo "Holo MMXX" Dunk, $85,000

While playing for the Milwaukee Bucks, Antetokounmpo executed this textbook dunk in 2019.

The original owner "Pranked" drew the NFT from a virtual deck. They went on to later flip the piece for an astonishing $85,000 in February of 2021.

Steph Curry "Deck the Hoops" Handles, $85,000

With such a legendary three-pointer moment, this card was given the first serial number from the "Deck the Hoops" series.

Originally drawn from a deck by a user under the name of "Alex", it was later sold to the appropriately-named user "DeepThreePointer" on February 22, 2021.

The NFT reflects a key moment from Curry's career with the Golden State Warriors.

Ja Morant "Holo MMXX" Dunk, $100,000

This iconic dunk from Morant's career with the Memphis Grizzlies was one of the first NFTs to cross the $100,000 threshold.

Several of his pother iconic moments have also sold for a significant value, including a Dapper Labs NFT that sold for $35,000.

Zion Williamson "Cosmic" Block, $150,000

This NFT highlights one of the incredible rookie moments of Zion Williams while playing for the New Orleans Pelicans.

The iconic block comes from a game against the Denver Nuggets in January of 2020.

While this NFT originally sold for $150,000, it has already accrued in value with the new above betting line set at over $250,000.

LeBron James "Cosmic" Dunk, $208,000

This NFT highlights the moment that King James executed a perfect one-handed slam dunk in a game against the Sacramento Kings in 2019.

As part of the first series of the Cosmic collection, this NFT has already made headlines for its astonishing value.

RELATED: LeBron James Is NBA's Highest-Paid Player Of 2021, On Cusp Of $1 Billion In Career Earnings

Derrick Rose "From the Top" Layup, $240,000

This memorable moment from one of the best backcourt players in NBA history is valued at $240,000.

With an original sale value of just $9,999 in early 2021 from a purchaser known as "Carlini8", this NFT has already increased its value by a significant margin.

The iconic layup featured in the image is from a February 2020 game against the Phoenix Suns.

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Sources: CNBC, Wall Street Journal, ActionNetwork, The Irrelevant Investor, Golf Digest, SportsKeeda, Wolfgang Sport, MarketWatch, SportsBetting