Jordan’s ‘flu game’ shoes sell for massive price at auction

The shoes Michael Jordan wore during the famous “flu game” in the 1997 NBA Finals recently sold for a whopping price of $1.38 million at Goldin Auction.

The shoes previously sold for $104,000 back in 2013. 

The “flu game” has become one of the signature performances of Jordan’s legendary career as he dropped 38 points on the Utah Jazz in a 90-88 Bulls Game 5 win to take a 3-2 lead in the series. They would win the series one game later. 

It was reported at the time that Jordan was dealing with flu-like symptoms that left him severely dehydrated during the game. It was revealed years later that Jordan was actually dealing with food poisoning and not the flu. 

The shoes were initially gifted to Jazz ballboy Preston Thomas after the game, with Thomas later selling the shoes in 2013. 

They were photomatched and came with a letter of authenticity from Thomas and a picture of Jordan signing the shoes after the game. Thomas initially received the shoes as a gift from Jordan after he remembered that Thomas had been able to get him a snack of applesauce and graham crackers before a game earlier that season, with Thomas again providing the same snack during the 1997 NBA Finals game. 

As impressive as the $1.38 million sale price is, they are still not the most expensive Jordan shoes to ever sell at auction. 

Back in April the shoes he wore during Game 2 of his final NBA championship series sold for more than $2.2 million at auction.