Bryant, the Los Angeles Lakers' All-Star guard, moved ahead of last year's leader, Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat, the league said in a news release. Bryant changed his uniform number this season to No. 24 from No. 8.

The list is based on sales at the NBA's store in New York and Internet purchases since the start of the 2006-07 season. No sales figures were released by the league.

James, whose team trails the San Antonio Spurs two games to none in the best-of-seven NBA Finals, was No. 2 a year ago, with Bryant No. 4 behind Allen Iverson, then playing for the Philadelphia 76ers.

Iverson, traded at mid-season to the Denver Nuggets, was fourth in sales this year.

Tim Duncan, the former Most Valuable Player who led the Spurs into the finals for the third time in five years, is 15th on this year's sales list, the NBA said.

Bryant, a nine-time All-Star selection who led the league in scoring this season with 31.6 points a game, last held the top sales spot during the 2002-03 season. That was a year after his last of three titles with the Lakers and before he was charged with sexual assault by a Colorado woman. The charges were later dropped.

Bryant and the Lakers lost to the Phoenix Suns in the first round of the NBA playoffs this season. Wade, the MVP of the 2006 finals, missed 31 games with injuries this season. He averaged 27.4 points for Miami, which lost to the Chicago Bulls in the first round of the playoffs.

Bryant's jersey sales helped make the Lakers' jerseys the best-selling leaguewide, according to the list. The Heat ranked second, with the New York Knicks third.