It’s a Dream haul for The Mailman

U.S. Olympic basketball legend Karl Malone was nicknamed “The Mailman” during his illustrious NBA career with the Utah Jazz because he always delivered when it mattered most.

Malone was part of the USA Basketball called “The Dream Team” at the Barcelona 1992 Summer Games, arguably the greatest collection of talent ever assembled in Olympic history. The team cruised to a gold medal in Spain, and Malone won another gold medal four years later in Atlanta.

He recently auctioned off 24 items of memorabilia from the Barcelona 1992 Games, including game-worn jerseys and shoes, for an estimated $5 million.

One of the items, a game-worn Michael Jordan #9 jersey worn during the Dream Team’s 127-76 semifinal victory over Lithuania, fetched over $3 million alone.

The official price of the jersey, $3,003,000, is a record for any game-used Olympic Jordan item. A pair of shoes from the 1992 Tournament of the Americas, an Olympics warm-up tournament, sold for $420,000.

Malone said his wife acquired many of the items and they were displayed for many years at one of his car dealerships in Utah.

Larry Bird’s semifinal jersey sold for $360,000, while a pair of his shoes sold for $91,200. Bird’s longtime NBA rival Magic Johnson saw his semifinal jersey return slightly less at $336,000.

Ken Goldin, the founder and owner of Goldin’s, worked with Malone on the auction and was very pleased with the results.

“It was truly remarkable to have been able to work with Karl Malone himself to offer this iconic collection to fans everywhere,” he told ESPN.

“Now a lucky few own a piece of revolutionary sports history from some of the greatest players of all time.”

The Dream Team, the first Olympic basketball team to feature active NBA players, was inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame in 2009 and the International Basketball Federation Hall of Fame in 2017.

Other jerseys included in the auction were from Charles Barkley, David Robinson and Clyde Drexler.