The basketball shoe worn by basketball legend Michael Jordan in his last game is up for auction at Sotheby’s. But you have to be a millionaire.
He is the best and his sneakers are the most expensive: Michael “Air” JordanZUMA/i,ago
He is considered the best basketball player of all time. For almost twenty years, Michael Jordan played in the NBA, the largest basketball league in the world. He has been named NBA Most Valuable Player five times, won two gold medals at the Olympics, and has six NBA championship titles with the Chicago Bulls.
His last NBA final in 1998 in Salt Lake City is particularly legendary. Jordan scored 37 points and won with the Chicago Bulls 93-88 against the Utah Jazz. To date, it is the most-watched game in NBA history.
An important relic of the sport
Not only sporty, but also fashionable, Jordan is an icon. His black and red Air Jordan 13 sneakers, which he wore to this NBA Finals, are scheduled to be auctioned online at Sotheby’s in New York from April 3rd to 11th – for an estimated around four million dollars. “The historic Air Jordans are the most valuable sneakers ever to hit the auction market and will eclipse the current auction record for a pair of sneakers,” it said.
The campaign house announced that these were the last black and red Air Jordan 13 that Jordan ever wore at an NBA game. The shoes are an “important relic from the heyday of Jordan’s career” and are among the “most famous sports memorabilia in existence”.
The trainers are in pristine condition and were personally signed with a silver pen by Michael Jordan after the game. He gave them to a ball boy as a thank you for his help. He had probably given his shoes to the same boy before. Jordan’s jersey from the final sold for a record $10.1 million last year.
Die Air Jordan XIIISotherby’s
Revolutionizing the world of sneakers
In 2021, two sneakers sold for the first time for over a million dollars: Kanye West’s Nike Air Yeezy 1s for $1.8 million and Michal Jordan’s Nike Air Ships, which he wore during his first season with the Chicago Bulls in 1984, for almost 1.5 million.
The Air Jordans are black and red based on the team colors of the Chicago Bulls. The shoes are also called “Breds”, a fusion of the words “black” and “red”. Originally, they violated the NBA’s dress code because of the colors. The sporting goods manufacturer Nike, which has been cooperating with Jordan since the beginning of his career, therefore marketed the Air Jordans as “rebellious sneakers” banned by the NBA.
The Air Jordans are part of Sotheby’s ‘Victoriam’ sale, which features garments from other sports legends such as Tom Brady, Kobe Bryant and Roger Federer. A public exhibition of the pieces begins April 5 at Sotheby’s New York Galleries.
The Netflix film The Last Dance, which documents Jordan’s last season with the Chicago Bulls with the NBA Finals, further increases the value of the sneakers. In addition, on April 6, 2023, the film “Air – The Big Throw” about the partnership between Jordan and Nike will be released. The 60-year-old is the first athlete to become a real brand. His famous silhouette is emblazoned on various Nike products, most notably the Air Jordans, which revolutionized the entire sneaker world.