basketball has in Michael Jordan to his greatest figure of all time: winner of six NBA rings with chicagobulls, his name is synonymous with success. Any object that has been touched, worn or autographed generates interest, especially in auctions. including your used underwear.
Yes, it happened in 2021. The auction house Lelands, expert in sporting goods, sold Her Majesty’s used underwear.
The initial offer for her was $500, eventually selling. at $3,340. But what is his story?
A gift from Michael Jordan to the eccentric John Michael Wozniak
Item belonged to John Michael Wozniak, who was a security guard for the NBA legend, who passed away on January 18, 2020. The eccentric character even appeared on The Last Dance, the famous Netflix documentary.
A relative of his kept Jordan’s garment and decided to auction it off. How did it come into the hands of Wozniak? Obviously as a gift from MJ, the product of some trick.
Wozniak was a former narcotics agent in Chicago, recommended to be Jordan’s security guard by Gus Lett, another of Her Majesty’s employees. Wozniak’s son recalled: “Lett was like, ‘This kid is a legend, they call him Hollywood.’ He had created his own brand of himself before he met Michael, because he was a cheeky one. Had a couple of loose screws… and Michael ended up putting him on his team.”
In The Last Dance, he appears as Wozniak beating the ultra-competitive Jordan in a coin-op game in the security room at the United Center. as Sporting News recalls. He also won the bet, leaving this famous photo of the guard shrugging his shoulders, today turned into a meme.
The characteristics of Michael Jordan’s used underwear
As Lelands explains, “unusual item shows definite wear as Michael Jordan wore this pair of compression underwear/shorts with some obvious loose threads in the seams.”
The boxer shorts, in light gray and with the symbol of the Jumpman, have a tag that says Michael Jordan, with the iconic last name on the waistband.
On September 25, 2021, it was sold for $3,340 to an unidentified buyer. “The closest thing to greatness that one can get”, defines Lelands in his presentation.
“This is just one of many items in this auction that MJ gave to Wozniak, including suits, ties, belts, and jackets.”