“Buried” Michael Jordan Treasure Saw Daylight After 19 Years for Potential $20,000 Value

Published 02/04/2024, 2:13 PM EST

A maintenance worker accidentally stumbled upon shoes worth $20k. No, it wasn’t that the shoes themselves were expensive, it’s who they belonged to that made them so valuable. Larry Awe was one day doing his task of demolishing an abandoned mall in Wisconsin when his eyes went to a pair of Jordans.

These shoes belonged to the Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan. After finding the shoes back in 2001, Awe kept them with him for nearly 20 years before finally auctioning them off.

Although he received some pushback when he tried to sell the Jordans, $20k is a lot of money and therefore he went through with it. While tearing down the abandoned mall, Awe walked into a storage room and saw a pair of sneakers. He noticed that the shoes had “My Very Best” written over them and realized that they belonged to the sports apparel store Playmakers. The Playmakers were known for their exclusive collector’s items, and it didn’t take much time for Awe to realize that there was a lot of potential in those shoes.

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On top of that, he also saw the faded signature of Jordan and that was the final signal for him. He told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinal in a 2019 interview, “We’d walk through the mall quite a bit. I was a big basketball fan, and the biggest crowd I ever saw (in the mall) was when new shoes were displayed.” The maintenance worker brought the shoes home in 2001 and after 19 years he sold them for $20k. The pair that he found was worn by Jordan in 1985.

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Michael Jordan’s Dynasty Collection breaks records

Another piece of Jordan memorabilia was auctioned recently. One shoe from the six successful championship runs that MJ made in his career was given to their PR executive because of a promise that later became part of superstition. The six shoes that Jordan wore in championship games, known as “The Dynasty Collection” were recently auctioned off. To no one’s surprise, the memorabilia fetched a record number in auction.

Brahm Wachter, head of modern collectibles at Sotheby’s said, “Today’s record-breaking price is a testament to the GOAT. The Dynasty Collection undeniably ranks among the most significant compilations of sports memorabilia in history. [A] truly unparalleled moment and milestone in auction history, the sale of these six championship-clinching sneakers will likely never be replicated.” The $8 million auction is now the record holder for most expensive game-worn sneakers.

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My introduction to basketball was through Kobe Bryant. Soon enough, I was hooked to his game and although I started with being a fan of his, I also became a fan of basketball. To this day, Kobe remains my reference and guide as I try to navigate through life.

Edited by:

Caroline Joseph

“Buried” Michael Jordan Treasure Saw Daylight After 19 Years for Potential $20,000 Value

Michael Jordan’s Dynasty Collection breaks records

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