Stories from Michael Jordan‘s past continue to dominate sneaker headlines as his infant stages with the Chicago Bulls again emerge with a gripping tale. Back before MJ was wearing his own signature shoe, he donned a white/red pair of Nike Airships in early December of 1984. During that time, Los Angeles Lakers ball boy Khalid Ali braved conformity and asked his airiness for the game worn pair of sneakers he had been so drawn to. Michael, of course, rewarded the young Khalid with the gift complete with autograph in tow. Fast forward 30 years later and Ali placed the shoe up for auction after storing them at his parent’s home for safe keeping.
The grail worthy Nike Air Ship with an MJ signature garnered just over $71k through auction, making it one of the largest after market sneaker sales in recent memory. And although it’s hard to put a price on something of this magnitude, Ali definitely scored a pretty penny with this sale. Check out the clip below to see how it all went down.
