Affordability of Michael Jordan autos?

[Chris P]

Originally Posted by jzx1103

Ive said this before and ill say it again. The biggest difference between Kobe and Magic in this hobby is that Kobe has a crazy collectors market overseas compared to Magic Johnson, epecially in China and the Philippines that tremendously affect the value of their cards. For whatever reason there are folks in this sub that either just want to be blatantly ignorant of this fact, or don't want to believe it. I've sold so many high end Kobe cards since the Pandemic and 80% of them are buyers from China. And before some of you guys are also ignorant of this fact, I can tell you that there are also lots and lots of folks in China with deep pockets, no less than here in the U.S. Also the reason why people in Asia care wayyyyy more about Kobe vs Magic is because Kobe played during the hey-days of NBA popularity in Asia, which is late 90s to the 2000s. Barely anyone in Asia got to watch the NBA in the 80s thus Magic got a lot less exposure there. It's not always about career achievements when it comes to value in this hobby otherwise Tim Duncan would be one of the most expensive hobby value-wise.

This is the big thing right here, and it applies to all sports. There's a reason why "hobby good" is a term. Achievements/play doesn't always translate into hobby success, it's just how it is

[Asian62150]

Originally Posted by jzx1103

Ive said this before and ill say it again. The biggest difference between Kobe and Magic in this hobby is that Kobe has a crazy collectors market overseas compared to Magic Johnson, epecially in China and the Philippines that tremendously affect the value of their cards. For whatever reason there are folks in this sub that either just want to be blatantly ignorant of this fact, or don't want to believe it. I've sold so many high end Kobe cards since the Pandemic and 80% of them are buyers from China. And before some of you guys are also ignorant of this fact, I can tell you that there are also lots and lots of folks in China with deep pockets, no less than here in the U.S. Also the reason why people in Asia care wayyyyy more about Kobe vs Magic is because Kobe played during the hey-days of NBA popularity in Asia, which is late 90s to the 2000s. Barely anyone in Asia got to watch the NBA in the 80s thus Magic got a lot less exposure there. It's not always about career achievements when it comes to value in this hobby otherwise Tim Duncan would be one of the most expensive hobby value-wise.

MJ was certainly popular in Asia while he played but he didn't make it a point to go there in the 90s (his first visit was after he retired). I'm pretty sure Kobe was one of the first (maybe with Starbury) to go over to China during his playing days (first visit was 1998), which was a huuuuuuuge deal and one of the main reasons he's still popular in Asia.

[jzx1103]

Originally Posted by Asian62150

MJ was certainly popular in Asia while he played but he didn't make it a point to go there in the 90s (his first visit was after he retired). I'm pretty sure Kobe was one of the first (maybe with Starbury) to go over to China during his playing days (first visit was 1998), which was a huuuuuuuge deal and one of the main reasons he's still popular in Asia.

Yes, MJ is really popular in China because everyone knows he's the greatest. It was also during the mid to late 90s when MJ really established himself as the GOAT with his 2nd three peat thats when NBAs popularity in China really started, then Kobe carried that title in China after Jordan retired.

[TheGZA]

A forever major regret I will carry with me always is not buying a MJ Bulls auto years and years ago when prices were "reasonable".

I do see the floor continuing to rise though, so like investing in the stock market, best time to do so is 10 years ago, second best time....

[bloodwings19]

Originally Posted by TheGZA

A forever major regret I will carry with me always is not buying a MJ Bulls auto years and years ago when prices were "reasonable". .

On a lesser degree, my regret is letting go UD UNC letter, UD Exquisite Shadow Box Auto and my NSCC Jordan Auto BGS 9.5/10. Sold it way too low at the same time Kobe autos were going for around $100 (Limited, Threads). Too much flipping, but I did end up with some cars and truck.

[SleepyWill]

His autos are expensive because he doesn't sign as much anymore really, and the majority of his autos are from his playing days.

[Asian62150]

Originally Posted by SleepyWill

His autos are expensive because he doesn't sign as much anymore really, and the majority of his autos are from his playing days.

Even if he started signing again, he's very cognizant of his image and reputation and definitely won't flood the market.

His UD Bulls autos are always going to be in-demand.

[Inferno]

Is it true most of his autos are playing days though? I would have thought the Exquisite NBA era (and the few years of unlicensed/UNC autos that followed) would have put more autos out there than the four or five years he played when auto cards were a thing.

[Asian62150]

Originally Posted by Inferno

Is it true most of his autos are playing days though? I would have thought the Exquisite NBA era (and the few years of unlicensed/UNC autos that followed) would have put more autos out there than the four or five years he played when auto cards were a thing.

I'm guessing most of his autos are post-playing days.

I believe his first basketball auto was in 1996 SPx and then they had him in various products through 1998, his last year with the Bulls.

He played with the Wiz from 2001-2003. Licensed Exquisite was on the scene from 2003-04 through 2008-09.

Not sure how many Bulls cards he signed while he played for Washington but odds are he signed more from 2003-2009 then he did from 1996-98.

Those autos from 96-98 are super expensive though.

[ninjacookies]

Jorgamble and his cards will always have a significant advantage over the competition...and that comes down to the Air Jordan brand.

Nobody's murdering each other over a pair of Lebrons or poverty Curry high tops. That moniker will most likely keep him at the forefront of current/past player relevancy until the end of time (I'm assuming Nike keeps going even after he's passed). 3 generations from now he'll probably still be more relevant than guys like Curry because of this.

HODL with maximum passion.





* 'Only invest what you can ̶a̶f̶f̶o̶r̶d̶ ̶t̶o̶ lose.' - most likely his inner thoughts when entering a Harrah's

[SleepyWill]

Currently have mine up for sale so will see where it goes

[Beavers98]

Originally Posted by SleepyWill

Currently have mine up for sale so will see where it goes

Having trouble pulling it up when I click your ebay link/name. Which one do you have up?

[SleepyWill]

https://ebay.us/m/YELKai


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Beavers98]

Originally Posted by SleepyWill

https://ebay.us/m/YELKai


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Nice Card. Seems to have a lot of interested activity on it.

[codered]

Originally Posted by Asian62150

If MJ continues not to sign, I think those prices will hold/rise.

It's pretty wild how expensive his stuff is relative to his status to other players. Just think about some of these:

Under $100:
-Montana
-Rice
-Magic
-Bird
-Kareem

I know these guys sign a lot, but the discrepancy is crazy considering how legendary they are. Magic/Bird/Kareem are top 10 maybe top 5 in some cases. Montana is considered a top 3 QB. Rice is easily the GOAT WR. Maybe a top 5 NFL GOAT if you factor in the distance between him and the #2 WR.

The one crazy thing to consider is, the price discrepancy between Jordan autos and guys like bird and magic was relatively small in the mid to late 2000’s. I remember you use to be able to get a non number bulls sticker auto in the $300 range about 15 years ago. For multiple reasons the Jordan market has just exploded

Originally Posted by jzx1103

Ive said this before and ill say it again. The biggest difference between Kobe and Magic in this hobby is thatKobe has a crazy collectors market overseas compared to Magic Johnson, epecially in China and the Philippines that tremendously affect the value of their cards. For whatever reason there are folks in this sub that either just want to be blatantly ignorant of this fact, or don't want to believe it. I've sold so many high end Kobe cards since the Pandemic and 80% of them are buyers from China. And before some of you guys are also ignorant of this fact, I can tell you that there are also lots and lots of folks in China with deep pockets, no less than here in the U.S. Also the reason why people in Asia care wayyyyy more about Kobe vs Magic is because Kobe played during the hey-days of NBA popularity in Asia, which is late 90s to the 2000s. Barely anyone in Asia got to watch the NBA in the 80s thus Magic got a lot less exposure there. It's not always about career achievements when it comes to value in this hobby otherwise Tim Duncan would be one of the most expensive hobby value-wise.

100% I live and played a ton of ball in a city with a large flilpino population. Tagalog is the second most spoken language in my city. I can attest that Kobe is beloved almost at a manny pacquiao level amongst the flilpino community. He’s an honorary blackapino (no disrespect to Jordan Clarkson and Jalen green)

Originally Posted by ninjacookies

Jorgamble and his cards will always have a significant advantage over the competition...and that comes down to the Air Jordan brand.

Nobody's murdering each other over a pair of Lebrons or poverty Curry high tops. That moniker will most likely keep him at the forefront of current/past player relevancy until the end of time (I'm assuming Nike keeps going even after he's passed). 3 generations from now he'll probably still be more relevant than guys like Curry because of this.

HODL with maximum passion.

I’d also argue the same thing for Kobe albeit to a lesser degree. Kobe’s shoe line is iconic. Kobe’s might not be on the same level as Jordan’s but they are on another level compared to any other player line…..ever. I mean Nike begged and begged Vanessa after Kobe’s contract ran out to bring the line back. To all the young’ins, your favourite basketball players favourite shoe is probably a Kobe

[Asian62150]

Originally Posted by codered

The one crazy thing to consider is, the price discrepancy between Jordan autos and guys like bird and magic was relatively small in the mid to late 2000’s. I remember you use to be able to get a non number bulls sticker auto in the $300 range about 15 years ago. For multiple reasons the Jordan market has just exploded

Yeah, but in those 15 years since, MJ has rarely signed anything (just Goodwin?) while Bird/Magic sign pretty much anything in sight. Steph Curry is getting to be that way, too. They all sign for Leaf, too!

All of those guys still do public signings and mail-ins. Steph was at Costco signing his bourbon last month. I remember getting a free Magic autograph back in 2005 at Meijer.

I think the last time MJ did any kind of signing was at his Flight Camp which ended around 2010? And you had to pay like $15K to attend.

[pip33tomj23]

All I have left is my Jordan UDA poster which is from 1996.

I had the baddest stuff and sold it ALL prior to the boom. Exquisites, patch autos, super patches, etc... I still look at the scans from time to time to remind me that I made a huge mistake.

[waulk11]

Hodl.

[mwf94]

Originally Posted by SleepyWill

https://ebay.us/m/YELKai


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Is the insert on the front a hardwood piece? I read the back of the card and it just said "memorabilia used in an NBA game". It looks a little too... fiber-ish to be a game floor?

[bjho852]

Originally Posted by Asian62150

Yeah, but in those 15 years since, MJ has rarely signed anything (just Goodwin?) while Bird/Magic sign pretty much anything in sight. Steph Curry is getting to be that way, too. They all sign for Leaf, too!

All of those guys still do public signings and mail-ins. Steph was at Costco signing his bourbon last month. I remember getting a free Magic autograph back in 2005 at Meijer.

I think the last time MJ did any kind of signing was at his Flight Camp which ended around 2010? And you had to pay like $15K to attend.

MJ did still sign relatively many for a few years, after UD lost the NBA license and shifted to the NCAA license, to the point that UD guaranteed a MJ or LeBron auto for case hits in their products, in order to compete with Panini (who snagged Kobe away from UD). For those roughly 4-5 years, MJ auto cards could still be had for $300-500 range, hard-signed, if a casual collector just wanted one and didn't mind non-NBA.
It is after their collegiate license ended (and who else snagged it away from them?), while MJ also extended the deal with them around the same time, that UD decided to limit the number of his auto releases, not just for the cards, but for the non-card items as well, driving up the secondary prices, non-NBA ones included.

[ninjacookies]

Originally Posted by codered

I’d also argue the same thing for Kobe albeit to a lesser degree. Kobe’s shoe line is iconic. Kobe’s might not be on the same level as Jordan’s but they are on another level compared to any other player line…..ever. I mean Nike begged and begged Vanessa after Kobe’s contract ran out to bring the line back. To all the young’ins, your favourite basketball players favourite shoe is probably a Kobe

Kobe easily the 2nd to Jordan. Plus his name benefits greatly from the early death halo effect. Also something to be said about spending 97% of his career with the same squad, which also happens to be the most marketable team in all of sports.

[Chris P]

I had a 2006-07 SP Signature Edition sticker auto of Jordan that I sold off to buy this so although I regret I don't have his auto in card form, I'd much rather have this

[Archangel1775]

Originally Posted by Inferno

Is it true most of his autos are playing days though? I would have thought the Exquisite NBA era (and the few years of unlicensed/UNC autos that followed) would have put more autos out there than the four or five years he played when auto cards were a thing.

Upper Deck Authenticated is probably the largest factor and pretty much shaped what we see today for MJ Autos. He was exclusive through them for memorabilia so he wasn't doing private signings like you see today with athletes sitting in a room with 20 tables full of memorabilia. When Kobe was an exclusive with UD, I recall game used shoes showing up on the site. I see Tom Brady doing something similar except he's running his own company.

Edited to add: I might be confusing UD and Panini with those gamers

[Archangel1775]

Originally Posted by mwf94

The prices on EVERYTHING has risen in the last couple years. Dudes that had 1 all-star appearance have had rising prices, this isn't an argument.

Death buffer does not work as magically as you think it does.

Kindly explain to me why Magic Johnson has had low prices despite doing a very similar amount for the game that Kobe did.

You're definitely not tracking.

Magic is alive and well. He's also signed A LOT MORE than Kobe Bryant. Magic is still signing today. Simply put, it's Supply & Demand.

There are many reasons that Kobe Bryant is just as heralded as Michael Jordan overseas. One is connection. Kobe lived overseas for a good part as a young child. Then as mentioned, he played in an era where the NBA expanded into China. This was the era Hall of Famer Yao Ming showed up and played for the Rockets. So not only did you have millions of fans watching the Rockets but also watching the Lakers play them in the West multiple times per year. It's easy to like someone that played similar to the GOAT and also had the same killer instinct. Throw in the importance, as mentioned by a member here, of Kobe making himself available to fans overseas and you have a player that transcends borders and generations. The Redeem Team helped too.

[Asian62150]

Originally Posted by Chris P

I had a 2006-07 SP Signature Edition sticker auto of Jordan that I sold off to buy this so although I regret I don't have his auto in card form, I'd much rather have this

100%. I did the same thing. As an MJ fanatic growing up, I wanted a nicer, bigger piece to display and not just put in a box with the rest of the collection. I used to have a lot of UDA posters and autographed stuff. I sold some during the pandemic so the current stuff I have is basically free.

And as a former UD employee said, MJ is the MVP of autographs. Whether he's signing on a card, large poster, baseball, basketball, whatever...he almost always takes time to give a relatively full signature.

Originally Posted by Archangel1775

The Redeem Team helped too.

Especially since that team played during the Beijing Olympics.