Tom Brady, LeBron James Rare Cards Sell For $1.72 Million Each!!!

G.O.A.T. players fetch G.O.A.T. numbers .. and that's why LeBron James and Tom Brady's trading cards just sold for a combined $3.44 million at auction!!

A King James '03-'04 Upper Deck "Exquisite Collection" Rookie Patch Autograph card -- 1 of only 99 ever made -- sold for $1.72 million ... a record for the super coveted card.

The card -- rated a mint 9 -- comes complete with an LBJ autograph ... and a rookie patch from one of James' rookie Cleveland Cavaliers uniforms.

As for the 7x Super Bowl champ, the Brady 2000 Playoff Contenders #144 Signed Championship Ticket Rookie card -- graded a near mint 8.5 by Beckett -- it also sold for $1.72 million.

Both cards closed Saturday night on the Goldin Auctions website ... after weeks of fierce bidding.

The scary part ... GA founder Ken Goldin says he expects prices to continue to rise.

"Prices for cards across sports like golf, soccer and hockey, and for trading card games like Pokémon, have absolutely taken off and we’re just scratching the surface!”