Michael Jordan's Signed, Game-Worn Shoes from 1998 NBA Finals Sell for Record $2.2M

Michael Jordan's signed and game-worn sneakers from the 1998 NBA Finals have sold at auction for $2,238,000, the highest-ever price for a pair of sneakers, per Sotheby's:

Per ESPN's Dan Hajducky, Jordan wore these Air Jordan XIII Breds in Game 2 of the Finals, which featured MJ scoring a game-high 37 points to lead the Bulls to a 93-88 win over the Utah Jazz.

There's a story behind this particular pair of sneakers, as Hajducky noted.

"Sotheby's said Jordan gifted these sneakers to a Jazz ball boy who'd found Jordan's previously lost jacket," Hajducky wrote. "They are the only complete pair of sneakers worn by Jordan in an NBA Finals game that have been photo-matched and authenticated by the MeiGray Group, the official authenticator of the NBA."

Jordan's Game 1 jersey previously fetched $10.091 million, per Hajducky, marking the second-most expensive piece of sports memorabilia sold at the time. A 9.5-graded 1952 Topps card of former New York Yankees superstar Mickey Mantle sold for $12.6 million in August 2022.

Jordan ended up leading the Bulls to a six-game series win and the team's sixth NBA championship in eight years, capping Chicago's dynasty in the process.

Jordan retired after the season, and most everyone else on the team found new homes the next year as the Bulls' core was dismantled.