Jordan’s 1998 NBA Finals jersey sells for US$14m in private sale

A Chicago Bulls jersey worn by Michael Jordan during the 1998 NBA Finals has sold for US$14 million (RM59.22 million) in a private sale. Hunt Auctions described the price as a record for basketball memorabilia.

Jordan wore the red jersey in Game 2 against the Utah Jazz, scoring 37 points as the Bulls won to level the series at 1-1. Chicago went on to win the Finals in six games, securing Jordan’s sixth and final NBA championship.

A private sale of a Finals jersey

Hunt Auctions said the buyer was Miami real estate investor Ron Firman, according to The Guardian. The sale adds to a series of high-priced transactions involving jerseys Jordan wore during the same Finals.

A jersey from Game 1 sold for about US$10.1 million (RM42.72 million) in 2022. Another worn in Game 3 fetched about US$12.3 million (RM52.03 million) at auction last month. The Game 2 jersey’s US$14 million price exceeds both of those figures.

“Michael Jordan’s importance within the sports memorabilia marketplace has long been established,” Hunt Auctions president David Hunt said. He added that the market had developed into an “elite asset class” comparable with iconic works of art.

How the price compares

Despite setting the basketball memorabilia record cited by Hunt Auctions, the Game 2 jersey is not the most expensive known game-worn jersey across sports. Its US$14 million sale ranks second on that measure, behind a Babe Ruth jersey worn during the 1932 World Series.

The Ruth jersey sold for US$24.12 million (RM102.14 million) in 2024. That leaves a substantial gap between the two prices, while putting Jordan’s Game 2 jersey ahead of the other reported sales from his 1998 Finals appearances.

The 1997-98 season was chronicled in The Last Dance, a documentary series released on Netflix in 2020. With jerseys from Games 1, 2 and 3 of the 1998 Finals now carrying reported sale prices, the private deal provides a new benchmark for Jordan memorabilia from that series.