1997 Upper Deck Game Jersey Michael Jordan PATCH AUTO /23 #GJ13S BGS 8 NM-MT

When Michael Jordan broke into the NBA in 1984, fans marveled at the 6-foot-6 guard with cat-quick ball-handling and mid-air hangtime more illusive than a magician’s levitation trick. Conventional wisdom told fans that humans of such size are not supposed to move with so much dexterity nor supposed to defy gravity for so long, but the unstoppable, unrelenting force that was Michael Jordan did not care what conventional wisdom whispered about human limits. Crossover after crossover, dunk after dunk, tongue wag after tongue wag, Jordan endeared himself to the NBA’s jaw-dropped faithful, who flocked to see the magician of the basketball court put on the Greatest Show on Earth. When Upper Deck broke into the mainstream trading card market in 1989, collectors marveled at baseball cards with a sleek design, sturdier card stock, high-quality photos, and anti-counterfeiting holograms. While competition in the baseball card market had pushed ingenuity forward throughout the 1980s, Upper Deck’s inaugural set surpassed anything other card manufacturers had produced. The following year, Upper Deck introduced autographs to its baseball product, and a year after that released its first basketball cards. Upper Deck continued pushing the technological limits of printing, adding foil, die-cutting, and more to its products throughout the ‘90s. In 1996 and ‘97, however, the company arguably made its greatest contribution in the evolution of trading cards—making collectors rethink their production. In 1996, Upper Deck acquired game-used jerseys from several NFL and NHL players and brought collectors closer to the game by cutting them up for its first Game Jersey sets. Featuring a swatch of the jersey, they seeded the cards once in every 2,500 packs, and duplicated the concept in baseball and basketball sets in 1997. But Upper Deck took the innovation one step further in Series 2 packs of its basketball release by leveraging its exclusive autograph agreement with Jordan to create a signed version of his Game Jersey card. Upper Deck produced only 23 of the hand-numbered autographed Game Jersey cards, creating one of the most important basketball cards in history and etching into place a practice that became a standard in many products for the next 25 years. Unlike the other 19 players in the 22-card basketball Game Jersey set, Jordan’s card features swatches cut from a specific jersey—the one he wore at the 1992 All-Star Game. Jordan led all players with 31 minutes, scored a team-high 18 points, and dished out five assists, but his efforts could not overshadow the fanfare surrounding Magic Johnson’s appearance with the West All-Stars, who won the 42nd annual All-Star Game in a 153-113 rout at Orlando Arena. In one of the game’s iconic moments, Johnson—who the fans selected to start despite announcing his retirement before the season—defended Jordan one-on-one in the final minute of the game, forcing Jordan’s shot to clank off the rim. “I respect him so much, and I am happy to get the opportunity to spend time with him again,” Jordan said before the game. “This is his opportunity to come back and shine. I want to be behind the scenes and let him stand in front of the camera.” After the All-Star break, Jordan had plenty of chances to shine, averaging 30.5 points per game down the stretch to polish Chicago’s 67-15 record. In 22 playoff games, Jordan averaged 34.5 ppg. as the Bulls won a second straight championship. In this month’s Premier Auction, this BGS 8 example of Jordan’s autographed 1997 Upper Deck Game Jersey will shine like the Bulls’ record. Hand-numbered 18/23, only one example of this card has received a higher assessment from Beckett, and among the seven that have earned a BGS 8 distinction, this example remains only one of two given a pair of 9.5 subgrades. With the legacy that follows this card in tow, collectors will marvel at this fabric- and ink-infused piece of cardboard. You will not need to levitate to win it, but you might need to avoid the Death Saw of competition that will likely crowd extended bidding to own this epic sliver of NBA history.