LeBron James' Los Angeles Lakers jersey most popular for second straight year

The NBA has announced that LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers have secured the top spots on the most popular jersey and team merchandise lists in the UK and across Europe for the second consecutive year.

The King is alive, long live the King. It's no surprise to see LeBron once again topping the most popular jerseys list, nor the Lakers as the most popular franchise for merch. They are reigning champions, after all.

That being said, there were a couple of notable changes compared to last year's list. Perhaps the most startling is Charlotte's flashy-passing rookie point guard LaMelo Ball gatecrashing the top 10, even jumping ahead of Luka Doncic - who was fifth in Europe last season.

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Beyond that, Zach LaVine and Jimmy Butler have also both entered the top 10 having missed out last year. Butler off the back of last season's Herculean finals performances and LaVine due to his play through the regular season - the Chicago Bulls shooting guard is averaging 29 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists, all career-highs, as well as earning his first All-Star selection.

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Perhaps least surprising is the entirety of the Brooklyn Nets 'Big Three' dominating the top five positions on the list, with Kevin Durant and James Harden both leapfrogging Kyrie Irving, who was second last year.

Top 10 Most Popular NBA Jerseys

1. LeBron James, Los Angeles Lakers
2. Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets
3. James Harden, Brooklyn Nets
4. Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors
5. Kyrie Irving, Brooklyn Nets
6. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Milwaukee Bucks
7. Zach Lavine, Chicago Bulls
8. LaMelo Ball, Charlotte Hornets
9. Luka Doncic, Dallas Mavericks
10. Jimmy Butler, Miami Heat

As for the teams, the Lakers remain unimpeachable at the top, with the Chicago Bulls and Brooklyn Nets both moving up into the top five compared to last year. Both the Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks re-enter the top 10 thanks to impressive starts in the East, while the Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets drop out completely after poor starts to the season - and in Houston's case, Harden's trade.

Top 10 Most Popular Team Merchandise

1. Los Angeles Lakers
2. Chicago Bulls
3. Brooklyn Nets
4. Boston Celtics
5. Golden State Warriors
6. Toronto Raptors
7. Miami Heat
8. Milwaukee Bucks
9. Philadelphia 76ers
10. New York Knicks

Results are based on sales from NBAStore.eu, the official online NBA Store in Europe operated by Fanatics since the beginning of the 2020-21 NBA season.

The UK is ranked No. 2 in Europe for merchandising based on sales of NBA-branded product this season.