Card Dive: 1985 Nike Michael Jordan Promo
In which I pump the previously pumped (and dumped) Jordan card
In the pantheon of GOATs, Michael Jordan stands far apart from others in terms of the uniqueness of his rookie cards.
There is the iconic Fleer rookie and a cohort of lesser cards that didn’t hit the mainstream via issues of licensing, distribution, or scale. Those being the ‘84 Star, ‘85 Interlake, ‘85 Merchante, ‘85 Prism Jewel, and the ‘85 Nike promotional.
They’re a singularly unique lot of cards that all have a bit of quirkiness to them. I could absolutely steer my collecting gene toward acquiring all of these. Maybe one day I will.
With the news that PSA is going to start grading ‘84 Star, we may be moving into an era where the ‘86 Fleer and the ‘84 Star become dual pillars of the rookie set, as they were both officially licensed. While they are great cards, to me they are not the most interesting.
It’s the Nike promotional card that stands out. It’s so much more than just a rookie card. It’s the birth of Jumpman. One of the most important logos in the history of brands was derived from a promotional sports card. It is a photo that quite literally saved Nike and turned it into the behemoth that it is today.
Jordan first signed with Nike in 1984 as a rookie coming out of UNC. In 1985 MJ took part in the now famous promotional photoshoot where he struck the midair pose. This is how he described it in a 1997 interview with HOOP magazine:
“I wasn’t even dunking on that one. People think that I was. I just stood on the floor, jumped up, and spread my legs and they took the picture. I wasn’t even running. Everyone thought I did that by running and taking off. Actually, it was a ballet move where I jumped up and spread my legs. And I was holding the ball in my left hand.”
Michael Jordan interview in HOOP Magazine (1997)
The famous photo was used for posters, hangtags, and a promotional set of cards that also included Dwight Gooden, James Lofton, John McEnroe, and Lance Parrish. The original pilot-wings inspired Air Jordan Logo is also on the card. It was designed by Peter Moore who designed the Air Jordan I and II sneakers.
Now, how did this card save Nike? As lore has it, after designing the first two Air Jordans, designer Peter Moore grew unhappy with Nike and planned to leave to start his own company… and take Michael with him. Saving Michael (and Nike) fell on the shoulders of now legendary shoe designer Tinker Hatfield, who at that time had just been plucked away from being a corporate staff architect. Tinker’s brilliance was to take inspiration from the ‘85 photoshoot, remake the logo to feature the iconic MJ pose, and feature it on the tongue of his design for the upcoming release of Air Jordan III.
Featuring the Jumpman logo on the tongue instead of the ubiquitous Nike Swoosh was corporate branding heresy but the bold move was loved by Michael and the Air Jordan III saved his relationship with the company.
So the 1985 Nike Michael Jordan Promotional card has a lot more history packed into it than just being a unconventional rookie card. It’s an amazing card and it’s all the better when you know the story behind it. And that has made it highly desired but trying to get one into your collection is not without risk.
During the halcyon days of the card boom this card got cooked to oblivion. All grades of the card shot up and crashed down, leaving a heap of bag holders. The card is not particularly scarce. There are 3550 copies graded by PSA alone. The propensity for price manipulation is not the only risk here. The other issue is how frequently this card has been faked.
The card was not manufactured with intentional scarcity in mind and as such replicating the card is not exceptionally difficult. There are claims of counterfeits getting past graders at PSA and BGS, but now with the extra authenticity protections eBay has but in place, this risk, which was small to begin with, should be miniscule when buying through their platform.
But what about raw? Doing a bit of research will help you spot the most obvious counterfeits. And again, buying off eBay with the authenticity guarantee program for raw cards selling above $250 should give you some comfort. But it is still not without risk.
Happy collecting.