This Michael Jordan Card is a Modern Hidden Gem
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Everyone in the hobby wants to get their hands on a Michael Jordan card or two. When you look at any GemRate report, you'll see Jordan cards are among the most graded cards month in and month out. A Michael Jordan autographed card recently sold for $4.25 million, and even 1986 Jordan rookie reprints are gaining momentum in the hobby.
Jordan is and will forever be a staple for most basketball card collectors.
However, some of the more recent Jordan cards have not been been fairly disappointing. Sure, there are exceptions (like the Upper Deck Scarface card), but more often than not anything past 2008 or so featuring Jordan has been a flop.
Back in 2024 Skybox released a Metal Universe Champions set featuring Jordan, and let's just say it's pretty rough. For instance, the first card in the set features the GOAT wearing a long-sleeve lime green shirt tucked into his acid wash jeans. It's a very far cry from Jordan's legendary 1986 Fleer rookie card.
The Diamond in the Rough - A 1985 Throwback
However, there is one card Skybox released that makes up for the rest: their version of the 1985 Nike Air Jordan promo card, which features one of the earliest images of Jordan performing the iconic Jumpman dunk.
The Metal Universe team decided to throw collectors a bone when they created this variant of card #1 with the restyling of the Nike Promo. Not only are there base copies that sell for a few thousand, but there are also low-serial-number Precious Metal Gems parallels that really make this card pop and elevate its value.
Top Prices for Rare Jordan Parallels
High-graded base promo "reprint" cards sell for a few grand, with the highest sale to date being a PSA 9 that sold for $2,550 on November 16, 2025. However, the PMG reds (/100), greens (/10), and one-of-one gold sell for far higher.
The red looks nice with the color matching element. The highest-selling PMG reds (/100):
- PSA 7 that sold for $7,443 back in June 2025
- PSA 6 red sold in January for $6,600
The top PMG green (/10) sale was a BGS 8 that sold for $42,000 on March 20, 2026.
And then there's the gold.
The highest selling one-of-one 2024 Metal Universe PMG gold was graded a PSA 6 and sold for a staggering $146,400 back on November 1, 2025. For context, that is roughly $40K more than the highest-selling signed copy of any 1985 Nike Jordan promo card.
These ultra-rare Jordan cards show that demand for ultra-rare cards featuring the six-time NBA champion can push prices up into the six-figure mark with the right design and the right level of scarcity.
Its a tried-and-true playbook that continues to deliver when executed well.
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Conor is a life long sports card enthusiast who started collecting in the early ’90s, inspired by hometown heroes like Larry Bird, Paul Pierce, Tom Brady, and David Ortiz. Like many ’90s hoops fans, he also started building (and continues to build) a modest Michael Jordan collection.