Michael Jordan's mother: Auctioned items are replicas

The auctioned items reportedly originated from Michael Jordan's Chapel Hill restaurant, which closed in 2003. (Tim Boyle/Getty Images)

Deloris Jordan, better known perhaps as the mother to Michael, said in a report Wednesday from NBC Chicago that items being auctioned off as "authentic" are, in fact, replicas.

How does she know? Because she claims she has the originals. Among the items being auctioned off by Goldin Auctions are two University of North Carolina recruiting letters, a diploma and Jordan's college transcript, NBC Chicago reports. Jordan told ESPN's Darren Rovell that she has all of them in a vault:

"I know what I have. They are all replicas. I just can't sit by and let these people say that they have what they say they have, when they don't."

Goldin Auctions' CEO, Ken Goldin, said in response to her claim that the items are in fact certified to be genuine with genuine signatures by the company that deemed them to be authentic. He said it's possible Jordan's mother has duplicates, but the transcript from the school, and other UNC documents being auctioned off originated from the Registrar's Office.

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The auction company reportedly purchased them from a consigner who had bought the items from an individual who had purchased a storage locker with the memorabilia. Prior to the storage locker, they have been on display at Michael Jordan's 23 restaurant in Chapel Hill, but it closed in 2003.

The president of the company that authenticated the items, Joe Orlando of PSA/DNA, said he respects Jordan's view, but until he sees something that contradicts his view that the documents are genuinely original, he has no reason to call the items being auctioned as anything but originals.

From the ESPN report:

"We stand behind our authenticators' opinion 100 percent that what the auction is selling is real. And there hasn't been anything legitimate presented that contradicts the opinion of our authenticators. I respect Mrs. Jordan's approach and concern, but unless there's evidence to the contrary here, it doesn't mean much."

Goldin said if the items being auctioned off are proved to be not authentic, he will pull them from the auction.

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