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Television presenter Steve Harvey spotted wearing Rolex

Courtside at the Abu Dhabi NBA game, television presenter Steve Harvey made the watch as much a talking point as the basketball. On his wrist: the Rolex Day-Date 40 in 18-karat yellow gold, reference 228238, configured with an onyx dial, ten baguette-cut diamond hour markers, and a diamond-set bezel — one of the most jewellery-intensive iterations Rolex produces within its core catalogue.

The Day-Date 40 ref. 228238 houses the calibre 3255, Rolex's in-house movement introduced in 2015 and representing a significant engineering leap over its predecessor. The 3255 offers a 70-hour power reserve, a Chronergy escapement with roughly 15 percent greater energy efficiency, and a Syloxi silicon hairspring. The case measures 40mm in Rolex's proprietary 18-karat Everose or yellow gold depending on configuration — here yellow gold — and rides on a President bracelet, itself a hallmark of the Day-Date lineage since 1956. The onyx dial is not lacquered or printed; it is a hard stone dial, hand-finished to a deep, light-absorbing black that gives the baguette diamond indices genuine visual contrast.

The Day-Date has carried the informal title of 'The President's Watch' since Dwight D. Eisenhower received an early reference in the 1950s. The 228238 with a diamond bezel and baguette markers sits at the upper register of what Rolex offers without venturing into full Pearlmaster territory. Collectors regard heavily dialled Day-Date 40 references with growing seriousness — stone dials in particular have appreciated meaningfully as the new-old-stock supply of earlier references tightens.

Harvey's courtside appearance at an NBA game held outside the United States speaks to the globalised celebrity circuit that now surrounds the league. His watch selection — bold, yellow gold, diamond-set — is consistent with a personal style philosophy he has discussed openly: dress as a signal of intent. The Day-Date 40 in this configuration communicates exactly that.

At retail, this reference lists north of $75,000 depending on exact dial and bezel specification. On the grey market, demand for factory diamond-set Day-Date 40 references has pushed values considerably higher, with examples in this precise configuration trading around $122,000 at current rates — a premium that reflects both the complexity of the factory gem-setting and the enduring status weight the Day-Date carries.