Michael Jordan’s Secretly Signed Rookie Card Stuns Auction House with $2.5 Million Sale

Any official memorabilia featuring the name or likeness of Chicago Bulls great Michael Jordan usually fetches absurd amounts of money.

Michael Jordan’s Secretly Signed Rookie Card Stuns Auction House with $2.5 Million Sale

Michael Jordan's 19865 Fleer rookie card sold for $2.5 million (Image via FirstSportz)

Michael Jordan is worth more than $3.5 billion. He amassed most of that wealth from payouts from Nike for attaching his name to the Jordan brand, and when he sold the Charlotte Hornets for $3 billion back in 2023.

Now he is set to further increase his wealth after agreeing to become a special contributor for NBC as they return next season as one of the NBA’s prime broadcasters. Even though it is not confirmed, rumors peg him to earn in the eight figures.

It seems anything that the 6-time champion touches swells in value. For instance, memorabilia bearing his name or likeness tend to be the most sought-after collectibles in the world. Since he has fans across the globe, collectors pour in to get their hands on anything that screams, ‘Michael Jordan’.

The latest happens to be a rookie card that came out of a 1986 Fleer box. Rapper Drake owns one of them, but it is an unsigned card and is probably worth $1 million due to its condition. Condition matters when valuing cards, and this latest specimen scored 9 out of 10 for its condition.

It was estimated to sell for $1 million. However, an undisclosed buyer won after placing a $2 million bid. Along with the auction site’s 25% buyer’s premium, the total outlay was $2.5 million. The reason this particular card went for that much is because it sported Michael Jordan’s signature.

Michael Jordan’s secret signing session boosted value of rookie cards

Drake’s card from the same Fleer set does not feature any signature from the 5-time league MVP. However, this particular $2.5 million card featured Michael Jordan‘s signature. That is because the North Carolina native signed it at a separate time from when Drake received his card.

Michael Jordan secretly signed Fleer cards, raising their value
Michael Jordan secretly signed Fleer cards, raising their value (Image via Bleacher Report/X)

As per the sports memorabilia site Cllct, a collector holding 10 such Fleer rookie cards collaborated with PSA to fly to Florida in April last year and get Michael Jordan to sign them. It was a delicate task, as each of those cards was enclosed in a case.

PSA’s staff had to carefully break the cases to get His Airness to properly sign them. Losing even a single grading point could have slashed their value by 90%. Again, they had to carefully recase them to preserve their basic grading.

Cllct’s sources confirm that the autograph helps boost the values of PSA 10 graded Fleer rookie cards. It seems Jordan helped boost the values of those cards he signed by millions in total. If one could go for $2.5 million, it is possible that other similar impeccably preserved cards can go higher.

Michael Jordan rookie Fleer cards could sell for more than $3 million

Cllct confirmed that in the signing process in Florida, PSA and Michael Jordan, along with the collector, decided to add inscriptions on a few of those cards. Three cards featured the 62-year-old’s signature, as well as an inscription.

As per Cllct’s estimates, those three cards could be valued at a minimum of $2 million each. If a $1 million card could go for double that money, it is possible that these inscribed and autographed cards could fetch at least $3 million at an auction.

Collectors for Michael Jordan’s rarest of rare memorabilia have spent absurd amounts of money. For instance, his game-worn Nike Air Ships sold for $1.47 million. Unused ticket stubs command hundreds of thousands, and so do non-official items.

If his rookie preseason game-worn jersey could go for $4.21 million in March this year, these rare Fleer cards could end up commanding a good amount of money. His Airness’ fans want to hold on to that rare memorabilia, and the prices of it are steep.

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