Michael Jordan’s $10 Million Jersey Costlier Than Kobe Bryant and LeBron James’ Combined

Buying little treasures for a collection is one of the great joys of being a fan of anything. For some, it’s cards and the art they contain. For others, it’s stuffed creatures sitting on a shelf. Sporting memorabilia can often be the jewel for many collectors, obtaining items that once belonged to some of the world’s most famous individuals and biggest sporting heroes.

In 2022, a game-worn shirt belonging to the late-great Diego Maradona made history. It had fetched a cool $9.28 million when it was auctioned off, as it was the jersey he had worn during the game with England in which he scored the infamous “hand of God” goal. However, that number has since been eclipsed…

For a group of eagle-eyed bidders at a special auction at Sotheby’s INVICTUS, it was a 1998 Finals Michael Jordan jersey that sold for $10.1 million, which created the new record, becoming the most expensive piece of game-worn memorabilia to have ever been sold. Indeed, that’s a lot more expensive than most people’s entire collections.

Part of the reason this auction price got so high is the legendary nature of the jersey. The 1998 season, or the Last Dance, were the last games of Jordan’s career where he was still the world-class player that people remember and romanticize. After the Finals ended, Jordan would retire for the second time before returning in 2001, a shell of his former self.

While the conversation across sports is much closer, this sale continues the trend of Jordan’s dominance at the top of the basketball jersey auctions. In the same way it was on the court, this jersey is the second one of MJ’s to reach the top five in final sale value.

In fact, at $10.1 million, Jordan’s jersey is more expensive than Kobe Bryant’s and LeBron James’… combined! Kobe’s 2007-08 MVP jersey sold for $5.8 million, while James’ game-worn shirt from game seven of the 2013 finals follows nearby at $3.6 million.

Jordan is also the shoe king, holding the record with a pair of shoes from his rookie season. The pre-Jordan brand sneakers sold for $1.5 million in 2021.

Unfortunately for Jordan, he isn’t close to the top of the sports memorabilia list, as a Mickey Mantle rookie card completely blows out him, Maradona, and any other athlete at a staggering $12.6 million. That is more than the net worth of 94% of people, with it estimated that around 6% have a net worth greater than $10 million.

Once the GOAT, Always the GOAT

Jordan has long been the king of not just single auction items, but for collections as well. According to Forbes, a collection of six game-worn Jordan shoes sold for just over $8 million in 2024. The collection also included a set of signed limited photographs from Bill Smith of the sneakers in use during MJ’s playing days.

What made them so expensive? Well, the six pairs of shoes were each from one of Jordan’s championship-winning years. In fact, each of them was from a Finals game.

Nicknamed the Dynasty collection, the lot included the sneakers Jordan had worn in each of the closeout games of his titles. That is sure to be the centerpiece of any collection.

In the words of the head of Sotheby’s sports division, Brahm Wachter, “Today’s record-breaking price is a testament to the GOAT.”