(LOT 200)
1984 Michael Jordan UNC "Pre-Rookie" PSA Type 1 Encapsulated Jim Stratford Photo – Measures Approx. 7" x 9"
This magnificent PSA Type 1 Photo reveals the iconic Michael Jordan leaping high off the court in his customary manner, basketball in hand, during the Friday, March 9, 1984 ACC Tournament game against the Tar Heels arch rival Clemson Tigers (March 9, 1984 stamp on the verso). In typical Jordan fashion, his North Carolina (UNC) team would best the Tigers by a 78-66 score, with UNC ultimately knocked out of the tournament in the "Final 16" by the Indiana Hoosiers 13 days later. Only two years earlier, on March 29, 1982, Jordan had won the NCAA tournament for the Tar Heels with his dramatic game winning shot against Georgetown to seal UNC's 63-62 NCAA championship. This significant offering measuring 7" x 9" stands as a true Michael Jordan "Pre-Rookie" photo and some 3+ months (June 19, 1984) after it was taken, he would be drafted 3rd in the first round by the Chicago Bulls and commence his unprecedented journey as the NBA's greatest all-time player.

Jordan was certainly not done with his big-game dramatics for in the 1998 NBA Finals, not even Hollywood could write a more storybook script. In his final season with the Chicago Bulls, Jordan's jump shot with 5.6 seconds left in the NBA Finals bested the Utah Jazz by an 87-86 score and secured another "Windy City" championship. "MJ" would temporarily retire after winning that 6th and final NBA Title, all of which he was named Finals MVP. Of course, a few years later, "His Airness" would eventually come out of retirement and play a few seasons with the Washington Wizards, but it is his unparalleled career with Chicago that has earned him the title as basketball's "greatest all-time player". In 15 seasons, this iconic shooting guard/small forward would amass over 32,000 points (4th all-time), achieve the highest "points per game" average ever (30.12), win an unfathomable 10 NBA scoring titles and claim 5 NBA MVP awards.

Yet for all of these accomplishments, it was his fierce competitiveness and uncanny ability to thrive in pressure situations that places him as the finest basketball player to ever grace a hardwood floor. His legacy in sports is comparable to that of the incomparable Babe Ruth, and we cannot imagine a more significant keepsake than his ultra-rare 1984 "Pre-Rookie" illustration that portrays the immortal Michael Jordan in one of his final collegiate games (he would play 3 more times) before etching his indelible mark on the National Basketball Association!

MIN BID $400
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