Former Utah Jazz ball boy files lawsuit over Air Jordans gifted to him by Michael Jordan
Game-worn Jordans are some of the most valuable pieces of sports memorabilia on the market. They often sell for hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars when put up for auction.
A lucky ball boy for the Utah Jazz was gifted game-worn shoes by Michael Jordan after Game 2 of the 1998 NBA Finals. The ball boy sold the shoes to an auction house and is now suing the auction house.
Preston Truman was a ball boy for the Jazz during the 1998 NBA Finals. Truman worked in the visitors' locker room during the series. The locker room hosted the legendary Chicago Bulls, led by Jordan.
A pair of Air Jordan 13s worn by Michael during the 1998 NBA Finals have broken the record for the most expensive pair of sneakers ever sold. Nicknamed the “Last Dance” and signed by Jordan, the kicks fetched $2.2 million in an auction by Sotheby’s
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Jordan autographed and gifted Truman a pair of shoes after Game 2 in 1998. He also gave Truman a pair during the 1997 finals against the Jazz. The shoes are now extremely valuable.
In May 2020, Truman filed a lawsuit against Grey Flannel Auctions, alleging that the company used threats and high-pressure sales tactics to force him to sell the shoes for much less than they were worth.
Truman sold the Air Jordan XIII Breds given to him by Jordan after Game 2 in 1998 to the auction house for $215,000.
Those same shoes were sold by the famous Sotheby’s auction house for $2.2 million, the highest price ever for a pair of sneakers. It beat the previous record by $700,000.
Truman said he gave up the shoes because of the pressure applied by Grey Flannel Auctions. He is now suing for monetary damages and wants the pair of shoes returned to him.
Truman sold his other pair of gifted Jordans to Grey Flannel in 2013 for $104,765. The bidding began at $5,000. The shoes were worn during the famous “Flu Game” when Jordan led the Bulls to victory despite being sick.
Michael Jordan’s first pair of Air Jordan sneakers—game-worn and autographed—just sold for a record $560k in a Sotheby’s online auction 👟🏀 https://t.co/XlPDyt27xi
Truman alleges that an unnamed overseas private buyer came to him with an offer for his 1998 game-worn XIII shoes. The offer was $215,000, nonnegotiable and the buyer gave Truman a three-hour limit to accept the offer.
Truman attempted to back out of the deal after agreeing to it and was allegedly threatened by the buyer, who said that the deal was final and that these were “people not to be messed with.”
Truman contends that they pressured him to sell and preyed on his lack of knowledge of the market.