The jersey is being considered an “elite asset” and “iconic” work of art. A record-setting auction has enshrined Michael Jordan’s 1998 NBA Finals Game 2 Chicago Bulls jersey into the collectible market’s rafters after a memorabilia enthusiast paid millions to acquire it.
Marketed as the Game 2 jersey—where the Bulls beat the Utah Jazz 93-88 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah—Jordan’s red jerseys from Games 1, 2, and 6 of the finals have become some of the most highly coveted uniforms in basketball history.
As one of the “holy grails” of sports, the jersey sold for $14 million in a private treaty sale announced by Hunt Auctions on Monday. The item is a world record for any piece of basketball memorabilia and the second-highest price paid for a game-used jersey from any sport.
Jordan’s jersey is second only to Babe Ruth’s 1932 World Series uniform, which sold for $24.12 million in 2024.
The sale surpasses Jordan’s previous record set in September, when a white Game 3 jersey from the same Finals sold for $12.26 million. A September 2022 auction saw his Game 1 red jersey fetch $10.091 million, which surpassed soccer legend Diego Maradona’s “Hand of God” jersey from the 1986 World Cup that sold for $9.28 million.
Outside of Jordan, Kobe Bryant holds the next most valuable NBA jersey at $7 million, which sold in 2025.
The record-setting jersey was originally purchased directly from the Chicago Bulls by a collector and comes with a 2003 letter from Chicago Bulls Director of Community Relations Jeff Schultz. “It is my opinion that this jersey is one of the finest examples of any game-worn jersey I have ever seen in my 15+ years of managing the Chicago Bulls memorabilia,” Schultz wrote.
The jersey has what was described as a “succinct” chain of custody, having changed hands only once since it was purchased from the team. It was also autographed by Jordan himself through a signing authentication by Upper Deck.
Collector Ron Firman, originally from Rye, New York, thanked the auction house and called Jordan “an incredibly talented player who is admired around the world.”
Hunt Auctions’ David Hunt remarked that Jordan and Ruth items are by far the most coveted in the collector’s market for American sports. “The record-setting price achieved for the related Michael Jordan jersey is yet another corroborative result as to the significance of Jordan within the industry and popular culture,” Hunt said.
Hunt added that Jordan memorabilia has been elevated to the status of the “elite asset class more typically reserved for iconic works of art.”
The 1998 NBA Finals are considered Jordan’s “Last Dance” and serve as the backdrop for his iconic Netflix series.
