1984-85 Star Co. Michael Jordan #101 Value & Price Guide

In 1984, a small New Jersey company called Star Co. held the exclusive NBA trading card license. They printed cards in team sets, sealed them in clear plastic bags, and shipped them to a handful of hobby dealers. About 3,000 bags went out for each team. Nobody treated them like anything special. Most got ripped open, shuffled through, tossed in shoeboxes. The Chicago Bulls bag included card #101: a rookie named Michael Jordan.

Forty years later, that card has sold privately for more than $1 million.

Quick Value Summary

Item: 1984-85 Star Co. Michael Jordan #101 Year: 1984 Category: Sports Cards (Basketball) Manufacturer: Star Co.

Condition Range:

• Ungraded (clean copy): $3,000 - $8,000

• PSA 5 (Excellent): $8,000 - $15,000

• PSA 6 (Excellent-Mint): $15,000 - $25,000

• PSA 7 (Near Mint): $30,000 - $50,000

• PSA 8 (Near Mint-Mint): $60,000 - $100,000

• PSA 9 (Mint): $700,000 - $1,000,000+

Record Sale: Over $1,000,000 (private sale, September 2024) Rarity: Very Rare (approximately 3,000 produced, far fewer surviving in high grade)

The Story

Star Co. was the only company making NBA cards in the mid-1980s. They operated on a shoestring compared to Topps or Fleer. Their cards were printed on thin stock, distributed exclusively through hobby channels in sealed team bags, and never sold in retail stores or wax packs. This wasn't a deliberate scarcity play. Star Co. simply didn't have the infrastructure for mass distribution.

The 1984-85 set was a 288-card release covering all NBA teams. Card #101 featured a third overall draft pick out of North Carolina named Michael Jeffrey Jordan. The photo shows Jordan in his Bulls uniform, a clean studio shot with the Star Co. logo and "Chicago Bulls" banner across the top. Nothing about the card screamed future billionaire athlete.

Star Co. lost the NBA license to Fleer after the 1985-86 season. Two years later, Fleer released their own Jordan card (#57 in the 1986-87 set), which became the card most collectors recognized as Jordan's rookie. For decades, the hobby treated the Star #101 as an "extended rookie card" or XRC, a technicality that kept it in a strange gray area. The card was older, rarer, and Jordan's actual first NBA card, but it didn't meet the traditional definition of a "rookie card" because it wasn't sold in packs.

That distinction started to collapse around 2023-2024. Collectors began re-evaluating the Star #101 as Jordan's true first card, period. Prices exploded. A PSA 9 sold privately for $925,000 in May 2024. Four months later, another private deal reportedly crossed the $1 million mark. PSA population reports show only 3 copies graded PSA 9 and none at PSA 10, making high-grade examples among the rarest Jordan cards in existence.

How to Identify It

Key visual markers:

• Card number #101, printed on the back

• "Star Co." logo in the upper left corner of the front

• "Chicago Bulls" banner across the top in red

• Jordan shown in a white Bulls home jersey

• Back features Jordan's North Carolina stats and brief bio

• Card measures approximately 2.5" x 3.5" (standard size)

Common variations:

• Standard #101: The base card from the Bulls team set

• All-Star (#163): A separate Jordan card from the All-Star subset. Worth significantly less.

• Olympic (#195): From the 1984 Olympic subset. Also less valuable.

Make sure you have card #101 specifically. The other Star Co. Jordan cards are valuable but not in the same league.

Common confusions:

• Don't confuse first printing cards with the reprints Star Co. produced later. Reprints have slightly different color saturation and card stock feel.

• Counterfeit Star Co. cards are extremely common. The card stock, color registration, and cut quality on fakes are usually off. Professional authentication is essential for any copy.

Value by Condition

Ungraded (clean, presentable copy): $3,000 - $8,000 An ungraded copy with decent centering, no creases, and clean surfaces. The wide range depends on whether the card looks like a PSA 5 candidate or a PSA 7 candidate. Most ungraded copies floating around show at least some wear from the team bag or handling.

PSA 5 (Excellent): $8,000 - $15,000 Noticeable wear on corners and edges, possible light surface scratches. These are the most commonly encountered graded copies. Still a five-figure card for a grade that usually means "well-loved."

PSA 6 (Excellent-Mint): $15,000 - $25,000 Minor corner wear, decent centering, clean surfaces. A solid mid-grade example.

PSA 7 (Near Mint): $30,000 - $50,000 A PSA 7 sold for approximately $30,000 at auction in late 2024. Sharp corners with only minimal imperfections. Centering should be reasonably close. This is where the card starts getting serious.

PSA 7.5 (Near Mint+): $70,000 - $100,000 A PSA 7.5 sold for $93,000 at Robert Edward Auctions in October 2024. The half-point jump from 7 to 7.5 nearly triples the value, which tells you everything about demand at higher grades.

PSA 8 (Near Mint-Mint): $60,000 - $120,000 A PSA 8 sold for $73,200 at Goldin Auctions in March 2024. Excellent centering, sharp corners, minimal surface issues. PSA population at this grade is very small.

PSA 9 (Mint): $700,000 - $1,000,000+ Only 3 copies have ever been graded PSA 9 (as of late 2024). One sold privately for $925,000 in May 2024. Another reportedly sold for over $1 million in September 2024. No PSA 10 exists. A PSA 9 is the finest known grade for this card.

Price trend: Sharply upward. The market revaluation of this card as Jordan's true rookie (rather than XRC) has driven exponential price growth since 2023. Whether this is a sustained correction or a speculative bubble remains debated.

Known Errors and Variations

Star Co. cards are known for printing inconsistencies, but there are no major recognized error variants for the #101 Jordan. Some copies show slightly different color registration (the red banner tone can vary), but these are production variations rather than distinct collectible errors.

The more relevant "variation" is the team bag itself. Jordan cards pulled from sealed, authenticated team bags command a premium, as the bag provides additional provenance and protection context.

Authentication & Fakes

Fakes are extremely common. The Star Co. Jordan #101 might be one of the most counterfeited sports cards in the hobby. Given that originals are now six and seven-figure cards, the financial incentive for forgery is enormous.

What to look for in fakes:

• Card stock: Originals use a specific thin stock that's hard to replicate exactly. Fakes often feel too thick or too smooth.

• Color registration: The red banner and Star Co. logo should be crisp. Fakes often show fuzzy edges or slightly off colors.

• Cut quality: Star Co. cards were not perfectly cut. Ironically, a card that looks too cleanly cut might be suspicious.

• Back printing: The text on the back should be sharp and properly aligned. Fakes often show blurry text or misaligned columns.

Professional authentication is not optional for this card. Any ungraded copy being sold for thousands of dollars should be PSA or BGS authenticated before purchase. The cost of grading ($50-$150 for standard service) is insignificant compared to the risk of buying a $10,000 fake.

For copies declared at high value, expect PSA grading fees of $300-$600+ (their Express or Walk-Through tiers). BGS (Beckett) offers similar services at comparable price points.

Where to Sell

Best venues:

• Major auction houses: Heritage Auctions, Goldin Auctions, and Robert Edward Auctions regularly handle high-value Star Co. Jordan cards. For PSA 7 and above, auction is almost always the best route. Buyer's premiums are typically 20%, but you'll reach the deepest pool of serious buyers.

• Private sale through PWCC or Goldin Private Sales: For six-figure copies, private sales can avoid the auction premium while still reaching vetted buyers.

• eBay: Viable for lower-grade copies (PSA 5-6), but the platform's protections become inadequate at higher price points.

Expected selling costs:

• Grading (if not already graded): $50 - $600+ depending on declared value and turnaround

• Auction house buyer's premium: 18-22% (paid by buyer, but affects final bid willingness)

• Seller's commission: Varies; some houses charge 0-10% to consignors for high-value lots

• Insurance and shipping: $50 - $300+ depending on value

Not sure about your card's condition? Upload a photo to Curio Comp for a quick estimate before investing in professional grading.

Related Items