Despite retiring in 2003, Michael Jordan has kept up appearances in many new Jordan releases with the Jordan lineup, as well as the recent films/documentaries such as "The Last Dance" and "Air" that came out recently. Jordan's famous "Flu Game" in Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals, where he scored 38 points for the Chicago Bulls in a 90-88 win over the Utah Jazz despite experiencing flu-like symptoms. As revealed in "The Last Dance", Jordan did not catch the case of the flu, but rather food poisoning from a slice of pizza he had eaten earlier in the day. Regardless, this incredible feat has been remembered by millions of fans, and one of the most popular Michael Jordan feats.
The shoes that Jordan wore during the "Flu Game", a pair of signed Air Jordan 12s, were sold on Wednesday, June 14th for a whopping $1.38 million by the collectible marketplace, Goldin. The story of how these shoes got to auction is quite an interesting one. After beating the Utah Jazz in Game 5, Jordan gave the signed sneakers to Preston Truman, a ball boy for the Utah Jazz. Truman had reportedly kept the shoes for 15 years before he consigned them to Grey Flannel Auctions in 2013, where they sold for $104,765. Despite the sky-high price of $1.38 million, these are actually not an all-time record for a pair of sneakers. The crown goes to a pair of Air Jordan 13 Breds that Jordan wore in the second half of the 1998 "Last Dance" NBA Finals, which sold for $2.24 million back in April. An incredible price for an incredible piece of history, the Jordan 12 "Flu Game" will be a sneaker that many won't forget.
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Photos via Goldin