A game-worn, signed Michael Jordan jersey from Game 2 of the 1998 NBA Finals has sold for US$14 million, the highest price ever paid for a piece of basketball memorabilia.
Pennsylvania-based Hunt Auctions announced the private treaty sale on Monday (US time) and identified the buyer as Miami real estate investor Ron Firman, The Associated Press reported.
The red Chicago Bulls road jersey is the one Jordan wore on June 5, 1998, when he scored 37 points in a 93-88 win over the Utah Jazz that levelled the series at a game apiece, according to Hunt Auctions.
The Bulls went on to win the series in six games, with Jordan scoring 45 points in the deciding Game 6 on his way to Finals MVP and the franchise’s sixth championship of the decade.
Second only to Babe Ruth
The US$14 million price is the second-highest known amount paid for a game-worn jersey in any sport, behind the US$24.12 million paid in 2024 for the New York Yankees jersey Babe Ruth wore when he hit his “called shot” home run against the Chicago Cubs in Game 3 of the 1932 World Series, AP reported.
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It is at least the third time a Jordan jersey from the 1998 Finals, the series made famous by the documentary The Last Dance, has sold for more than US$10 million. A Game 1 jersey sold for about US$10.1 million in 2022, while Hunt Auctions said a Jordan home jersey from Game 3 of the same series sold for US$12.26 million at a September 29 auction.
‘An elite asset class’
“While Michael Jordan’s importance within the sports memorabilia marketplace has long been established it has now escalated to an elite asset class more typically reserved for iconic works of art,” Hunt Auctions president David Hunt said. “We are very pleased to have been able to facilitate this historic sale which serves as another benchmark for our industry.”
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According to Hunt Auctions, the jersey was bought directly from the Bulls by a private collector in 2003 and has changed hands only once since. It was photomatched to Game 2 by MeiGray Authentication and SIA Authentication, and Jordan’s signature was authenticated by Upper Deck.
The 2003 letter of provenance from long-time Bulls director of community relations Jeff Schultz described it as “one of the finest examples of any game worn jersey I have ever seen in my 15+ years of managing the Chicago Bulls memorabilia,” Hunt Auctions said. NBC Sports said the sale makes it the most ever paid for an NBA jersey.
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