National Basketball Association

Michael Jordan's 1997 NBA Finals 'Flu Game' sneakers sell for $1.38 million

Published Jun. 15, 2023 1:39 p.m. ET

Another pair of Michael Jordan's game-worn sneakers were auctioned off with a seven-figure price tag.

This time, it was the sneakers Jordan worn in Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals, better known as the "Flu Game" sneakers, which were sold at auction for $1.38 million.

Wearing his Jordan XII shoes, the Chicago Bulls superstar scored 38 points on 13-of-27 shooting with seven rebounds and five assists while dealing with an illness that wasn't specifically known by the public at the time. In the lead-up to that pivotal game against the Utah Jazz — the series was tied 2-2 — it was reported that Jordan was dealing with flu-like symptoms after he awoke in the early hours of the morning of Game 5.

The widely-accepted story, which Jordan eventually confirmed years later in his 2020 docuseries "The Last Dance," was that he suffered from food poisoning after ordering a pizza to his Park City, Utah hotel.

Bulls trainers told Jordan that he wouldn't be able to play in Game 5 due to his condition, and he missed the shootaround later that day. However, Jordan reportedly got out of bed at 5:50 p.m. on Wednesday and arrived just in time for tipoff.

Jordan's 38 points were by far the most in the game — twice as many as Utah's top-scorer (Karl Malone, 19 points) and more than twice as many as the next highest-scoring player for the Bulls (Scottie Pippen, 17 points).

Jordan, who was visibly weak throughout the game, made a clutch 3-point shot to give the Bulls an 88–85 lead with 25 seconds remaining in the game, and Chicago held on for a 90-88 road victory and a 3-2 series lead.

The Jazz were a perfect 10–0 at home in the postseason up until that point.

Jordan's condition led to one of the most iconic photos in NBA history when Pippen grasped his teammate in his arms with just a few seconds remaining in the game and after Jordan's key fourth-quarter bucket.

Following the Bulls' penultimate victory of their title-winning season, Jordan signed his shoes and gave them to Jazz ball boy Preston Truman, who gave Jordan applesauce throughout the game to help him feel better.

The shoes remained in Truman's possession for 15 years before he auctioned them off for $104,765 with the help of Grey Flannel Auctions in 2013. At the time, that was the highest price that game-worn shoes were ever sold for.

While the shoes were resold at over 10 times the original price, they aren't the most expensive pair of Jordan-worn sneakers sold in recent years. The Air Jordan XIII Breds that Jordan wore in Game 2 of the 1998 NBA Finals were sold for a record $2.238 million in April through Sotheby's Auction House. Two years earlier, Sotheby's sold a pair of game-worn Jordan Air Ships for $1.472 million. Those sneakers were worn by Jordan in his rookie season and are believed to be the oldest-known pair worn by Jordan during a regular-season game.

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