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Permalink Reply by Steve on November 10, 2019 at 9:53pm

I believe this to be fake.

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Permalink Reply by Mark Greenwich on November 10, 2019 at 10:00pm

Just curious...how can u tell?  Thanks so much!

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Permalink Reply by Taylor116 on November 10, 2019 at 10:12pm

I haven't studied Jordan's autograph much but I know that he has a contract with Upper Deck for signing autographs. I personally wouldn't purchase anything signed from Jordan unless it's certified by Upper Deck, especially since his autograph is so heavily forged. Id say it is likely fake IMO.

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Permalink Reply by James on November 10, 2019 at 10:56pm

It is an obvious fake, but don’t worry.  All of us were new to this at one point.  I by no means would consider myself a Jordan expert, but I’ve owned 4 or 5 authentic Upper Deck MJ autographs over the past 20 years.  So I have some experience.

To guarantee that you get an authentic Jordan, buying a UDA (Upper Deck Authenticated) Jordan is the way to go.  Upper Deck actually witnesses the signing.  So it’s a sure thing, but prices are sky high.

His autograph has evolved over time, and you can find authentic pre-UDA items that may be certified by PSA, JSA, or BAS.  

When I bought my first Jordan UDA item about 22 years ago, I purchased a signed basketball for $800.  If you’re really patient, you might be lucky and be able to get one from $900 to $1500.  However, most sellers on eBay are wanting over &2500 which is ridiculous.  Some sellers are even putting as much as a $6000 price tag on them.  But they’re not going to get close to that.

This past month, a non-dealer put his full-size, gorgeous All-Star game basketball on eBay in AUCTION format.  It was beautifully signed in bold silver.  And he only got $910 for it after bidding was over...but that’s a STEAL price!  I’d like to have one again, but the max I would pay is perhaps $1500.  But that’s not an easy price to land either.

Upper Deck has now raised their prices for Jordan again, and so dealers are having to pay insane prices.  Personally, I don’t think these prices are sustainable over time.  I’d be very careful about what I paid for a Jordan because you might not be able to get your money out of it if you ever decided to sell.

Why?  Because Jordan has simply signed thousands upon thousands of autographs for UDA.  I would not be surprised if he had signed 100,000 items for them over the last 25+ years.  And he’s only like 56yo.  He could still sign many, many more items.  And these ridiculous prices may collapse in due time.

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Permalink Reply by Steve on November 11, 2019 at 10:49am

I agree with the other comments.  Jordan had an exclusive contract with UDA.  The only other time I saw him sign was at the Mario Lemieux golf tournament.  

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