NEW YORK — Kobe Bryant again is atop the list of the NBA's most popular jerseys.

Bryant remained No. 1 on the list released Wednesday by the league. The Lakers star has topped the ranking since the start of the 2008-09 season and also leads sales in Europe and China.

He will likely be challenged next season if Cleveland's LeBron James goes ahead with plans to switch from No. 23 to No. 6, or changes teams. James remained second on the new list.

The list is based on sales at the NBA Store and nbastore.com since the start of the season. Sales were up a combined 20 percent over last season.

Kevin Garnett was third, Derrick Rose moved up to fourth and Dwight Howard was No. 5.

The Lakers remained tops in team merchandise sales.