A brand new pair of Michael Jordan shoes can be pricey, but sneakers worn by the basketball great can be college-tuition expensive.
The SCP “Mid-Summer Classic” auction features five of Jordan’s game-worn shoes that could fetch anywhere from $10,000 to $50,000-plus a pair. MJ’s rookie sneakers recently sold for $71,000. The auction runs through Aug. 22
Here are the Jordan classics up for auction, as described by SCP:
1981-82 DUAL SIGNED & INSCRIBED PAIR OF UNC TAR HEELS GAME WORN SHOES FROM FRESHMAN NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP SEASON
These groundbreaking Converse All-Star shoes were game-worn by Michael Jordan during the regular season of the Tar Heels’ 1981-82 NCAA Championship season. They are style-matched to games leading up to the 1982 NCAA Tournament, and their provenance ties them to the local community surrounding Chapel Hill that Jordan frequented as a student-athlete. In addition, Jordan has uniquely signed and inscribed them as being from that special season. The rarity of a pair of Michael Jordan UNC game-worn sneakers to hit the hobby cannot be understated. By all accounts, these are the earliest pair of MJ’s game-worn shoes ever to surface. Estimate: $30,000+.
MICHAEL JORDAN 1992 BARCELONA SUMMER OLYMPICS GAME WORN NIKE “DREAM TEAM” AIR JORDAN (SPECIAL EDITION) SHOES
During the summer of 1992, a group of 12 American basketball players set off to win an Olympic gold medal in Barcelona, Spain. Only this particular group was special. Competing as the 1992 United States Men’s Olympic basketball team, they were dubbed the “Dream Team” and represented the first American Olympic squad to feature active professional NBA players. MJ was the only member of the Dream Team to start in all eight games of the tournament. He averaged 14.9 points, 4.8 assists and a ridiculous 4.6 steals in limited minutes. Nike made a special Air Jordan VII pair for Jordan to wear during the Olympics. Most significant was MJ’s iconic No. 23 on the outside rubber heal section of his shoes changing to the No. 9 he wore in Barcelona. The size 13 shoes exhibit solid game use inside and out, and can be easily style-matched to game photos from the tournament. Estimate: $20,000+.
MICHAEL JORDAN DUAL-SIGNED PAIR OF GAME WORN AIR JORDAN XVIII SHOES – HIGHEST SCORING GAME (45) FROM HIS FAREWELL SEASON
On Feb. 1, 2003 when the Washington Wizards hosted the New Orleans Hornets, MJ went off for 45 points on 18-33 from the floor (9-10 at the line) to go along with six assists. Not bad for a guy who would turn 40-years-old two weeks later. MJ’s game-worn Nike Air Jordan XVIII shoes from that monster performance are sourced directly from former Hornets’ forward Stacey Augmon, who drew the honorable but less-then-desirable assignment of guarding Jordan for much of the night. Jordan gifted the pair to Augmon after the game, perhaps to help him remember getting schooled. Estimate: $12,000+.
1992 MICHAEL JORDAN DUAL-SIGNED PAIR OF GAME WORN AIR JORDAN VII SHOES GIVEN TO DETROIT PISTONS BALL BOY
During the 1991-92 NBA season, Jordan was back at it again, leading his team to their second of three straight titles. Playing in 80 regular-season games, Jordan led the Bulls to a first-place finish in the Eastern Conference’s Central Division standings with a 67-15 record. He also led the league in scoring by averaging 31.1 points per game. This particular pair was obtained directly from Jordan following a January 19, 1992 meeting between the Bulls and the host Detroit Pistons at The Palace in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The new owner of the shoes just happened to be the 15-year-old ball boy of the Pistons, who was awarded the pair – complete with full Michael Jordan autographs in black ballpoint ink on both shoes – after a hard-fought, 87-85 win by the Bulls. Estimate: $10,000+.
1986-87 MICHAEL JORDAN DUAL-SIGNED CHICAGO BULLS GAME WORN ‘AIR JORDAN II’ SHOES
In just his third year of professional basketball, the man who would become “His Airness” was busy bouncing back from a foot injury that caused him to miss 64 games the previous season. In this third season, MJ recorded his highest points-per-game average (37.1) ever as he played in all 82 regular-season games and led the Bulls into the playoffs once again before being bounced by the Boston Celtics. The likely size 13 shoes (no size is listed) show solid game use; the soles on both shoes have started to disintegrate over time. They can be style-matched to a Spurs game on Nov. 4, 1986, as well as the 1987 NBA All-Star Game. Estimate: $8,000+.
