Michael Jordan’s Signed Dunk Photo Heads to Auction

By Daniel Okafor

Goldin’s Fall Photography Auction has set a signed 1988 Type I photograph of Michael Jordan’s free-throw-line dunk as its headline lot. The print is one of three PSA-certified Type I images said to exist, and the sale runs through November 4.

The frame dates to February 6, 1988, when Chicago Bulls team photographer Bill Smith caught 24-year-old Jordan at the NBA Slam Dunk Contest in Chicago Stadium. The free-throw-line slam helped turn Jordan into a global icon.

Smith froze Jordan four feet above the court, launching from the line, palming the basketball in one hand and driving his other arm upward. His Air Jordan 3s, described here as carrying the now-famous Jumpman logo, make the airborne pose look almost rocket-propelled.

Smith’s low sideline view now counts among the most iconic sports photographs, according to the account. It sits alongside Sports Illustrated photographer Walter Iooss Jr.’s view from beneath the basket; the two are credited with immortalizing Jordan’s dunk and helping the NBA reach new heights of popularity.

What makes this print the draw?

Professional Sports Authenticator (PSA) certifies the photograph as a Type 1 Original Photo, and Jordan has signed it. PSA/DNA principal authenticator Henry Yee writes: “Michael Jordan was the most photographed athlete of the century… and it’s not even close.”

Yee says that among tens of thousands of images, none defines the “Air” in Air Jordan better, and calls Smith’s court-level angle a view of Jordan defying gravity and the laws of physics.

That is a powerful claim, not a complete condition history. The published offer gives no estimate, dimensions, condition report or detailed account of how Jordan’s signature was documented. Certification supports the object’s stated status, while the count of three supplies its scarcity claim. Neither establishes how this copy differs in condition or provenance from the other two.

How did Smith prepare for one chance?

In a 2020 interview with the Chicago Bulls, Smith said he had seen Jordan practise and knew he would attempt the free-throw-line dunk, though not when. He calculated his position to show the gap between the basket and the line, holding a spot on the sideline between them, slightly closer to the basket. His aim was to preserve the whole expanse beneath Jordan.

His equipment left no margin for error: “I had a Canon camera with a regular 50mm lens, nothing exotic. I was using strobe lights, mounted up in the catwalks, and when you shoot with strobes the camera takes a second or two to recycle. The flashes don’t go that fast. I had only one chance to get the shot.”

Smith developed the film overnight, then took it to a 24-hour lab in a parking lot on Adams Street. He returned when the lab opened at 8am and flipped through slides on a light table until reaching the dunk contest.

His hand shook, and he was afraid to look: Jordan’s eyes might have been closed, or his hand might have blocked the ball. The frame, Smith says, captured exactly what he had seen.

What else is on the block?

Goldin’s sale also includes a September 29, 1996 Type 1 photograph of 18-year-old NBA rookie Kobe Bryant in his Los Angeles Lakers uniform. The broader auction, devoted to sports legends and historic moments and milestones, runs through November 4.

Will rarity make the price?

By November 4, the sale will show what a celebrated image, a player’s signature and a one-of-three claim fetch. Smith’s visual achievement is not in doubt within the account: he anticipated the attempt, found his angle, accepted a single opportunity and brought back the decisive frame.

The unresolved question is commercial and archival, not pictorial: whether Goldin can supply enough detail to match the mythology with evidence. Until the estimate, condition notes and signature documentation appear, the print’s standing rests on the image and the claims surrounding it.