Underwear worn by Michael Jordan sold for over $3K at auction

The market for game-worn sneakers from Michael Jordan has exploded in recent years, as a pair of Air Jordan 1s from 1985 sold last year for a then-record $560,000. Thanks to one of the strangest sports memorabilia auctions we’ve ever seen, we now know what the high-end is for underwear worn by the GOAT.

A pair of Jordan Brand underwear worn by the man himself sold last week for $3,341 through an auction at Lelands. According to the listing, the underwear shows signs of “definite use” — which is either disgusting or part of the very appeal of such an intimate collectable. And to really drive home the point, the underwear was described as “about as close to greatness as one can get.”

The underwear came from John Michael Wozniak, who The Last Dance viewers will remember as the permed Chicago Bulls security guard who hit a meme-worthy shrug after beating Jordan in a coin toss game. He was given the underwear directly by Jordan along with other items slightly less strange including suits, ties, belts, and jackets. A dry cleaning tag on the underwear bears Wozniak’s name, which means at least one wash separates Jordan’s genitals from whoever won the auction.

Let’s put the figure in context — The first Nike Air Yeezy sample Kanye West wore in public surpassed Jordan’s record for the highest-selling sneakers of all-time earlier this year by fetching $1.8 million. After doing some nominal research, I can also report that Jordan’s used underwear isn’t a record holder either. According to Cosmopolitan, a woman operating under the alias Lady Kitten sold a single pair of panties for $5,000 after wearing them for three weeks straight. In the used underwear market, it would seem kink trumpets accomplishments in sports, and there’s no telling how high prices have gone in private.

There is documentation, however, for a pair of era-appropriate knickers that belonged to Queen Victoria. The royal collector’s item sold for more than $16,000 at auction six years ago. In the context of other used underwear and Jordan collectibles, his boxer briefs can be considered a bargain.