The Last Dance: Jordan and Pippen's Fleer Rookies

We are now into our second month without sports. So, it is no surprise that the eyes of the sports world turned to the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls on Sunday night. The Last Dance is not only setting the sports world on fire, but it is also setting the sports card world ablaze.  Players like Jordan, Pippen, and Rodman have all seen an increase in their card prices and they certainly aren’t the only ones.

In episodes one and two of the documentary we saw the origin story of Michael Jordan. But, we also saw one of the earliest moments where he started to build his legend. In the 1985-86 season, Jordan missed 64 games with a broken bone in his foot. Jordan was able to come back late in the year and will the Bulls into the playoffs. Even given a very firm minutes restriction. That effort landed the Bulls a first-round date with very possibly the best Celtics team during the Larry Bird era.

While the Celtics swept the Bulls, Jordan did everything he could to keep the games close.  In the series opener, he scored 49 points in a 123-104 loss.  In game 2 Jordan then dropped 63 points, which still stands as the single-game playoff record. Unfortunately, that came in a double OT loss. The Celts would finish the Bulls off 2 days later.

It is game 2 that led Larry Bird to make his remarks, “That wasn’t Michael Jordan out there, that was God disguised as Michael Jordan.” Ironically, 1986 is also the year that gave us the Holy Grail of modern basketball cards.  The Michael Jordan 1986 Fleer Rookie #57 is among the most iconic cards in the Hobby.  The PSA 10 version of this card was trading for over $30,000 for most of 2019.  With all attention in the sports world fixed on The Last Dance, this card is selling for over $50,000 per PSA’s auction data. All grades have seen a bump though. The PSA 9 has gone from $5,000-$6,000 to over $10,000 most recently. Even Jordan’s Fleer #57 PSA 8 has jumped from around $2,500 to well over $3,000 and even close to $4,000.

It is no surprise though given that our only taste of sports for a month has taken us back to the most dominant athlete in modern times and the iconic dynasty that he helped to build.

As the whole world knows though, Jordan didn’t do it alone. He had the best number two of all time when the Bulls drafted Scottie Pippen.  In fact, Jordan’s Bulls didn’t even make it out of the 1st round of the playoffs until Pippen arrived. The Last Dance takes a deep dive looking at the tension between Pippen and the Bulls’ management. Before that, Pippen was a small-town kid from Arkansas who was able to battle and scrap his way to the number 5 pick in 1987’s NBA draft.  And in 1988 the basketball card world was blessed with the Scottie Pippen Fleer Rookie #20.  The front of the card features Pippen mean-mugging as he rises up for a lay-up.  The card may be more well known for its backside though. This features the misspelling of Scottie’s last name, Pippin.

Pippen’s ‘88 Fleer Rookie #20 has also seen a significant rise recently.  The PSA 10 jumped from a card that was trading for around $600 to now trading for over $2,300 in the last week! Pippen’s 1988 Fleer PSA 9 was available for $50 at the beginning of this year, it is now a card worth over $500.  The PSA 8, you ask? That was a $20 card that is now at $250.  With sports on pause, The Last Dance is sure to keep Jordan and Pippen’s Fleer rookie cards hot.

To Kick off the celebration @stockxtradingcards is giving you the opportunity to win Scottie Pippen’s 1988 Fleer #20 PSA 8 rookie card on instagram.  You can check out the details by clicking the link below!