Nikes worn by Michael Jordan during his legendary “Flu Game” sold for record $104,765 at auction. A pair of autographed black and red Air Jordan 12s which Jordan wore during Game 5 of the 1997 Finals sold to an unidentified client after a bidding war erupted in the telephone and online auction. Although starting price was $5,000, the amount reached whopping $104,765 and thus blow paid a previous record for a pair of game-used shoes ($31,070 also paid for Jordan’s sneakers he wore in his rookie season).
Jordan scored 38 points in Chicago’s Game 5 victory over the Utah Jazz in 1997. The game was dubbed the “flu game” because Jordan was suffering from nausea and fatigue and nearly didn’t play. After the game, he gave shoes to Preston Truman, who was a Utah Jazz ballboy who befriended Jordan in ’97. Truman kept the shoes in a safe deposit box for 16 years before putting them up for auction. He plans to use the money to pay off his college loans.
“I have looked at the shoes maybe four times since putting them in a safety deposit box 16 years ago,” Truman said. “I would go years without even thinking about it. … I just didn’t see the point to something so cool and a part of NBA history sitting at my bank anymore.”
