Imagine opening Tuff Stuff or SCD and reading a National Convention or Sportsfest ad stating that Michael Jordan will be one of the autograph guests. Don’t get too excited because it probably isn’t ever going to happen.
Very few celebrities carry the same persona as Jordan, and throughout the years sports fanatics have supported this fact.
Heck, I’m not even really a Jordan fan and I have still purchased his Nike Air Jordan sneakers, bought all his highlight video tapes and even purchased a signed Upper Deck Authenticated Jordan jersey.
So, what is it about MJ’s star power that everyone is so attracted to? Well, for starters Jordan is the undisputable “best” from his sport. Who is the best baseball player ever? Not sure. How ‘bout football? Let me think about that one. And basketball? Michael Jordan is.
Also, Jordan has pretty much always said the "right" thing, and has done it in a “cool” way. Don’t get me wrong. I think Tiger Woods is awesome, but he almost seems too goodie-goodie at times.
Another reason why Jordan is so sought-after, at least in the collecting world, is his exclusivity. For as long as I can remember, Jordan has had an autograph deal with UDA. So, unless you are buying a product put out by Upper Deck, you really have very little chance of obtaining a signature from the six-time NBA World Champion.
That brings me to the point of my rambling. If Jordan did a signing at a card show, how much could he charge?
Keeping in mind how many Jordan fans there are Worldwide, and the fact that many of them would pay mucho bucks just to be in the same room with him, I truly think that he could sign autographs publicly for $3,000 a piece.
To my knowledge, no athlete, dead or alive, has ever even charged more than $1,000 to sign a piece of sports memorabilia in a public setting, so I fully expect that some of my readers will scoff at my bold prophecy. But, think about it, everybody loves Jordan. Nearly everybody in the world knows who he is. He is probably the most famous man on the planet and one of the least accessible.
Why couldn't he charge that much at a signing?
Maybe I am throwing it out there because I don't think it will ever happen. The days of a superstar athlete signing at a card show is deteriorating at a fast pace.
Muhammad Ali, Brett Favre, Lebron James, Kobe Bryant; the list goes on. These guys don't do public signings. And why don’t they? Simple. They just don’t need the money or the hassle.
In a perfect world these guys would want to sign for their fans out of the goodness of their hearts. Heck, the fans are the ones who made them who they are – superstars, but unfortunately there’s a better chance of Babe Ruth coming back from the dead and signing at the 2008 Chicago National than for one of these guys to do a card show.
Just think of all the really cool pieces that could get signed from his days at UNC and in Chicago.
If Jordan did a signing, it could spark a Bulls Reunion show. How neat would that be? MJ, Ron Harper, Scottie Pippen, Phil Jackson, Dennis Rodman and crew could all be reunited again and accessible to collectors.
It has been reported that astronaut Neil Armstrong was offered $1 million to sign at a public autograph show years ago and he turned it down. Now, I am not sure, but I would assume that Jordan would probably command more than Armstrong. So, what would it take, MJ? How about you sell 1,000 autograph tickets for $3,000 each and make a cool $3 million?I’d love to see it happen.