Michael Jordan’s ‘Last Dance’ jersey from 1998 NBA Finals headed to auction

A game-used jersey worn by basketball legend Michael Jordan during the 1998 NBA Finals could fetch up to $5 million in an auction next month.

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In a news release, Sotheby’s said that the jersey, worn during by the Chicago Bulls Hall of Famer during Game 1 of the ’98 Finals against the Utah Jazz, is one of only two Jordan jerseys from a final to ever appear in an auction. The auction house stated that the road jersey could have a final sale price between $3 million and $5 million.

Jordan and the Bulls won their last of six NBA titles during their “Last Dance” season of 1997-98, a year immortalized in an ESPN miniseries that aired in 2020. The jersey was frequently shown in Episode 10 of the series, according to Sports Collectors Daily.

Bidding begins on Sept. 6 and ends on Sept. 14, according to CBS News.

“The 1997-1998 season is perhaps one of the most popular among Jordan fans, as Michael was reaching the height of his abilities while simultaneously pursuing what he understood would be his last chance at an NBA championship with the Chicago Bulls,” Brahm Wachter, Sotheby’s head of streetwear and modern collectables, said in a statement on Wednesday. “The season itself is his ‘magnum opus’ as an athlete, and a testament to him as a champion and competitor. Finals jerseys from Jordan are remarkably scant, and the 1997-1998 Finals are arguably the most coveted of them all.”

Jordan played more than 45 minutes in the June 3, 1998, game at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, according to Basketball-Reference.com. He scored 33 points in the Bulls’ 88-85 loss. Chicago would win the NBA crown after a grueling six-game series that was clinched in June 14 in Salt Lake City.

The jersey is accompanied by a photo matching certificate from The MeiGray Group, which certified the jersey’s authenticity. The auction lot also comes with a graded copy of a June 1998 Sports Illustrated issue that features this jersey on the cover, according to the Sotheby’s news release.

In October 2021, a pair of Nike Air Ships sneakers worn by Jordan sold for a record $1.47 million at auction, also by Sotheby’s.

Sotheby’s recently sold Diego Maradona’s 1986 World Cup “Hand of God” jersey for $9.3 million, which is the highest amount paid for any sports jersey, according to Sports Collectors Daily.

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