How much was a 1986-87 Fleer Michael Jordan rookie card in May of 1999? Just Collect looks back on the Summer before High School graduation and what that iconic card set us back as we readied for the real world.
In May of 1999, I was about to graduate high school. I had hair, gas was under $1.00 a gallon, and I may or may not have had a crush on the Spice Girls. Like today, I enjoyed the hobby! For basketball cards, Reggie Miller was my guy, but I knew the value was in Michael Jordan. Collect Reggie - invest in MJ. The Internet wasn't really a thing yet back then, so I would bring a trusty price guide to sports card shows in Albany, NY. One memory I have is passing up on a 1986-87 Fleer rookie card for $125. The card wasn't in high grade, but I opted to pass. Foolish, I know. How much was a well-conditioned Jordan rookie back then? Today, I busted out one of those old Beckett Magazines from May of 1999 to see just how foolish I was.
Above is a Jordan Fleer rookie card. The card I passed on wasn't as nice; it had soft corners and the centering wasn't as good. Nonetheless, it was an MJ rookie card. Let's open up this Beckett from May of 1999:
This brings back memories! There is Jason Williams on the cover; he brought streetball to the NBA. In the all white Kings uniform, he looks to be driving to the rim with the ball in his left hand. A great cover by Beckett! Williams has the ball over the "basketball card monthly" text on the cover - pretty cool. Yes, that's the original copy I held onto!
The price on the left is Near Mint and the price on the right is Mint. PSA grades on a scale from 1 to 10 with 10 being Gem Mint perfect. These values are probably a PSA 9, Mint, and PSA 8, Near Mint.
PSA 8 in May 1999 = $800
PSA 9 in May 1999 = $1,100
PSA 8 today = $14,850
PSA 9 today = $39,950
If only we had Doc Brown's DeLorean...
With the Near Mint card valued at $800, the card I passed on for $125 was pretty reasonably priced. Let's call that $125 card a PSA 5. The last sale of a PSA 5 = $6,750.00. Why did I pass this up!? I couldn't retire today, but I might be able to get VIP tickets to a Spice Girls reunion show.
Just for fun, I took a look at a few other cards I probably should have picked up:
1996 Topps Chrome Refractor Kobe Bryant rookie card was $2,000 in Gem Mint condition. The last PSA 10 sale was for $97,600.00. That stings.
1997-98 Upper Deck Game Jersey Michael Jordan autograph was $1,400. The last sale listed is from 2021 for
$1,440,000.00. That is enough flipping through the price guide for tonight.
Just Collect is always buying Michael Jordan rookies! Recently, we purchased a collection of FIVE Michael Jordan rookie cards. Reach out for a
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