Michael Jordan’s 1992 Dream Team signed, game-worn shoes were the sale’s top lot, selling for $190,373.
Review by W.A. Demers, Photos Courtesy of Lelands
NEW YORK CITY – Michael Jordan’s 1992 Dream Team signed, game-worn shoes sold for $190,373, a Joe DiMaggio 1949 Yankees game-used bat fetched $157,000 and a rare Connor McDavid rookie card garnered $135,000 in the Lelands 2020 spring Classic auction, which closed June 19.
Lelands president and partner Mike Heffner said, “After being in the business for more than 30 years and seeing all types of markets, even we were shocked at the level of interest and high prices. It was one of our most successful auctions ever. We have done hundreds of them and this one is definitely in the top five from a performance standpoint.”
The Jordan shoes were worn during the Tournament of Americas qualifying event for the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and are the first MJ photo-matched Dream Team items to ever be offered publicly. The 1992 Tournament of the Americas, later known as the FIBA Americas Championship and the FIBA AmeriCup, was a basketball championship hosted by the United States from June 27 to July 5, 1992. The games were played at the Memorial Coliseum in Portland, Ore. This FIBA AmeriCup was to earn the four berths allocated to the Americas for the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona. It was the international debut of the Dream Team, which defeated Venezuela in the final to win the tournament.
The auction featured a treasure trove of Jordan memorabilia, including a pair of signed, game-worn shoes from the 1981-82 season at the University of North Carolina that went out at $95,176.
The DiMaggio game-used bat was photo-matched to September 28, 1949, and has been identified with probable use in the 1949 World Series when the Yankees defeated the Brooklyn Dodgers. The 1949 World Series featured the New York Yankees and Brooklyn Dodgers, with the Yankees winning in five games for their second defeat of the Dodgers in three years, and the 12th championship in team history. This victory would start a record run of five straight World Series championships by the Yankees, and was also the first of 14 AL pennants in 16 years (1949-1964 except for 1954 and 1959) for the Yankees. History was made in the ninth inning when the Ebbets Field lights were turned on, making this the first World Series game finished under artificial lights.
A Joe DiMaggio 1949 Yankees game-used bat fetched $157,000. The Hillerich & Bradsby model D29L professional model bat was uncracked and showed evidence of outstanding use, including possible World Series use.
A rare Connor McDavid rookie card garnered $135,000. The 2015-16 Upper Deck The Cup Connor McDavid rookie patch was numbered 97 of 99. The card number of 97 matches McDavid’s jersey number. The card was encapsulated and graded by PSA Mint 9. It was signed by McDavid with 97 inscription beneath the patch swatch.
Additional auction highlights included a Jack Lambert Steelers game-worn jersey, which sold for $50,131 and which headlined a collection of Steelers game-used jerseys directly from the team’s archive. Also, a 1952 Topps #311 Mickey Mantle card earned $55,144, and a George Mikan 1948 Bowman #69 signed rookie card finished at $43,273.
Among the other modern day cards sold in the auction were a 2005-06 Upper Deck Exquisite Dual Number Pieces Michael Jordan & LeBron James patch auto signed by both, $35,763; a 2003-04 SP Signature Edition LeBron James rookie auto, $18,574; a 1984-85 Star Chicago Bulls team bag with #10 Michael Jordan rookie, $11,816); a 2018-19 National Treasures Luka Doncic RPA rookie auto logo patch, $17,731; and a 2003-04 UD glass auto focus Lebron James /100, $6,510.
Other one-of-a-kind baseball memorabilia that went under the hammer included a circa 1908 Reach catcher’s mitts tin litho advertising sign, $46,072, a Mel Ott single signed baseball, $44,401; a Babe Ruth signed photo, $31,414; a Lou Gehrig autographed photo, $22,013; a 1910s Ty Cobb Type 1 photo, $17,300; and actor Tom Hanks A League of Their Own set-worn uniform, $17,732.
Prices given include the buyer’s premium as stated by the auction house. For more information, www.lelands.com.
