UCLA coach John Wooden's iconic jacket, Dr. J's '70s jersey, Champ. rings in Grey Flannel auction The iconic jacket worn for decades by UCLA basketball coach John Wooden, Dr. J's 1972-73 game-used ABA road jersey, and an array of players’ Championship rings are in Grey Flannel's May 11 auction.
News-Antique.com - Apr 12,2011 - WESTHAMPTON, N.Y. – The iconic jacket worn for decades by UCLA basketball coach John Wooden, Julius “Dr. J” Erving’s 1972-73 game-used Virginia Squires ABA road jersey, and the largest selection of players’ Championship rings ever seen in one auction lead the lineup in Grey Flannel’s 2011 Summer Games event. The May 11 auction contains 925 lots of game-worn apparel, equipment, jewelry and autographed material from some of the greatest names in professional sports.
Offered with letter of authenticity from John Wooden (1910-2010), the incomparable UCLA coach’s personal jacket would be a top prize in any collection of important basketball memorabilia. “In every educated sports fan’s eyes, John Wooden is viewed as the greatest coach of all time, in any sport. He was known as the “Wizard of Westwood” for leading UCLA to an unprecedented 10 NCAA national championships in a 12-year period. Besides being phenomenally successful, he was revered, loved and respected,” said Grey Flannel president Richard Russek. “The jacket in our sale is very closely associated with John Wooden. We have photos spanning decades of his career in which Mr. Wooden is seen wearing the jacket to and from games and at practices. It was obviously very meaningful to him. It’s the type of thing you would expect to see at the Smithsonian.” An autographed photo of Wooden wearing the jacket accompanies the lot, which has a reserve of $25,000.
The demand for early jerseys is greater than ever, and the May 22 auction contains an outstanding selection, led by an extremely rare 1972-73 Dr. J game-used and autographed road jersey from the ABA Virginia Squires. It comes to the sale with impeccable provenance, a photo match and JSA authentication, and is offered with a $10,000 reserve.
Another coveted memento from hardcourt history is the LA Lakers game-used road jersey Wilt Chamberlain wore in the 1968-69 playoffs (NBA Finals year). A minimum bid of $10,000 is required on this lot. Other key jerseys from LA Lakers superstars include: 1971-72 Elgin Baylor game-used road jersey (final season), $5,000 minimum; circa-1972 Jerry West game-used and autographed home jersey, $5,000; and 1982-83 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar game-used road jersey, $2,500.
A $5,000 reserve accompanies both the 1971-72 Nate Thurmond Golden State Warriors game-used and autographed road jersey (with Thurmond LOA and photo match), and a 1967-68 shooting shirt worn by Elvin Hayes during his college days with the University of Houston’s Cougars.
Two 19th-century basketball relics have been consigned to the auction. A circa-1897 leather-laced basketball with side-panel construction will open at $5,000. A similar reserve has been placed on a YMCA basketball program dated Feb. 21, 1894 and titled “Field Day Sports and Basket Ball at the Armory – YMCA vs. Soldier Lads.” It lists player rosters and identifies Dr. A.G. Courtney as referee. Courtney was a member of the 1888 Syracuse YMCA team and was an advocate of indoor athletics, winning the YMCA Championship Series in 1892 and 1893.
Boston Celtics fans have some great choices available to them, starting with a
