Done online and ending prior to the airing of the final 2 episodes of “The Last Dance”, 10 people with money gyrating inside their pockets tried to out-dance each other bidding on a pair of Air Jordan 1 Player Edition worn by Michael Jordan (MJ) during the 1985 season.
Auction house Sotheby’s said the individuals, who came from four continents, bid on the specially made sneakers 25 times. Pre-sale estimate of the game-worn white-red-and-black pair with MJ’s signature on the right shoe was at $150,000. But when the bidding was closed, the kicks sold for an obscene $560,000 – highest ever priced sneaker sold at an auction. The previous record was also a Nike, the Moon Shoe, bought for $437,500.
But it was not the only MJ memorabilia sold this month. A pair of Jordan 9 baseball cleats worn by MJ when he played in the minor leagues was purchased from Heritage Auctions two weeks ago. The all-black cleats signed with a white marker on the left shoe went to someone with a loose change of $93,000.
While in college playing for the University of North Carolina, MJ wore Converse and also used the same brand playing for Team USA during the 1984 Olympics. The pair was worn during the gold medal match against Spain where he scored 20 points and won the first of his two Olympic gold medals. The shoes, widely considered as the last pair he used as an amateur, sold for $190,373 three years ago. Likewise, a red game-worn #9 1984 Olympic jersey was sold on the same year for $273,904.
Originally purchased in September 1992 for $17,500 during a gala auction was a signed 1992 Dream Team Jordan white jersey. It was sold again for $53,325 in 2013. The Dream Team wore the white unis in four games, including the gold medal match against Croatia. The same jersey was sold by Robert Edwards Auctions for $216,000 just this April.
During Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals, MJ wore a black and red pair popularly known as the “Flu Game” shoe. With flu-like symptoms, Jordan scored 38 points in a victory over the Utah Jazz. In 2013, the signed Jordan 12s sold for $104,765, while MJ’s jersey in his final Chicago Bulls regular season game in 1998 sold for $173,240 in 2015. If ever you guys have sports memorabilia, do hold on to them. They could go for absolutely insane prices, especially the MJ ones. I do have regrets letting go of some of mine./PN
