In 1983, the United States men’s basketball team won the gold medal at the Pan American Games with an astonishing record of 8-0. The 20-year-old Michael Jordan led the team in scoring, averaging 17.3 points per game en route to attaining his first international medal. Four decades later, his game-worn Converse All Stars are looking for a new home.
Before Nike signed Jordan, MJ was regularly sporting All Stars at Chapel Hill and in international play, although his heart belonged to adidas. His Airness made his Olympic debut in the summer of 1984, where he continued to play in Converse basketball shoes, winning his second gold medal for Team USA.
Grey Flannel Auction, a world-renowned sports memorabilia auction house, listed the MJ-worn Converse All Stars for $10,000 two days ago, and the price has nearly doubled since then. The shoes previously belonged to the 1983 Team USA graduate assistant men’s basketball coach and have been photo-matched to confirm authenticity.
Currently, the bid is at $17,717, with over four days left on the clock. A piece like this doesn’t come often, so we expect the offers to snowball as the clock expires. For reference, in 2017, a different pair of Converses worn by Michael Jordan from the 1984 Summer Olympics sold for $190,372.80 by SCP Auctions. With that said, keep your eyes peeled for the final results.
Images courtesy of SI Vault and Grey Flannel Auction
