2008-09 UD Star Signings Gold MJ Auto BGS 9 Sells

A low-population, on-card Michael Jordan autograph from the late 2000s just changed hands, giving collectors another data point in an already tight market for premium MJ ink.

On December 19, 2025, Goldin sold a 2008-09 Upper Deck Star Signings Gold #SS-MJ Michael Jordan signed card, serial numbered 05/10, graded BGS MINT 9 with a Beckett 10 autograph, for $12,201.

The card at a glance

• Player: Michael Jordan
• Team: Chicago Bulls (pictured in Bulls uniform)
• Year: 2008-09
• Set: Upper Deck Star Signings
• Parallel: Gold, hand-numbered /10
• Card number: SS-MJ
• Autograph: On-card autograph (signed directly on the card)
• Serial number: 05/10
• Grading: BGS MINT 9 with a Beckett 10 auto grade
• Population: Pop 3 in BGS 9/10 according to Beckett’s population report (a population report is the grading company’s public count of how many copies exist in each grade).

This is not a rookie card—Jordan’s true rookies are from 1984-85 Star and 1986-87 Fleer—but it is a key modern-era autograph: low serial numbering, hard-signed (on-card), and produced in the period when Upper Deck still held the NBA license and the exclusive Jordan autograph deal.

Why 2008-09 Upper Deck Star Signings Gold matters

For context, the late 2000s are a transitional era in basketball cards. It sits between:

• The 1990s “insert and autograph boom,” where pack-pulled MJ autos were still relatively scarce, and
• The modern ultra-premium era (Exquisite-style high-end releases and Panini’s National Treasures/Flawless era).

Within that window, Upper Deck Star Signings is a recognizable autograph program:

• It focuses on signatures as the main draw, not relics or rookies.
• The Gold parallel /10 sharply limits supply. A print run of 10 means that, in practice, only a handful of high-grade examples are ever likely to appear on the open market.

For Michael Jordan specifically, collectors often group his autographs into tiers:

1. Premium patch/auto and ultra-low serial masterpieces (Exquisite, certain high-end UD sets).
2. Numbered on-card autos from licensed UD-era sets, often in the /10–/25 range.
3. More common or non-numbered autos, stickers, and modern multi-player issues.

This Star Signings Gold fits solidly into Tier 2. It’s a clean on-card autograph, in a scarce Gold /10 parallel, from a fully licensed Bulls-era card. That combination is what keeps demand steady even as broader MJ markets move up and down.

Grading: BGS 9 with a 10 auto

The card received:

• BGS MINT 9 overall – a high but not gem-mint grade that usually reflects minor surface or corner touches.
• Beckett 10 autograph grade – indicating the signature is bold, centered on the signing area, and free of noticeable streaking or smudging.

In autograph-driven cards like this, the auto grade can matter as much as the card grade. A 10 auto is often preferred to a slightly higher card grade with a 9 auto, especially for PC (personal collection) buyers who care about eye appeal.

With a population of 3 in BGS 9/10, this grade level is objectively scarce. Beckett’s population report only reflects cards actually submitted and graded, but for a /10 parallel, the pop numbers usually track pretty closely to total supply.

Market context and recent sales

For a niche, low-print MJ autograph like this, sales are infrequent. That means collectors typically look at two types of information:

• Direct comps (direct comparisons): recent sales of this exact card, same parallel and grade, if any exist.
• Adjacent comps: similar MJ on-card autos in the same era, similar numbering, and similar grades.

Recent publicly visible results for this specific 2008-09 Upper Deck Star Signings Gold #SS-MJ /10 in BGS 9 or comparable grades are sparse. When a card only has ten copies, and just three of them are BGS 9 copies with 10 autos, it’s normal to see long gaps between auctions.

Instead, collectors often look at:

• Other Star Signings MJ autos from 2008-09 in non-Gold parallels.
• Comparable Upper Deck Jordan on-card autos numbered to 10–25 from 2005–2010, particularly from mid-range products rather than ultra-premium Exquisite.

Across those adjacent comps, strong-condition, on-card MJ autos numbered to 10–25 commonly realize prices in the low-to-mid five figures, depending on brand, design, and whether there is a premium patch or other feature attached.

Within that framework, the $12,201 price realized at Goldin on December 19, 2025 sits in a reasonable, data-consistent range for:

• A non-rookie, non-patch, but cleanly designed licensed Bulls-era on-card MJ auto.
• A low-serial /10 parallel with solid BGS 9/10 credentials.
• A card from a respected, but not the absolute top-teir Exquisite-level, Upper Deck release.

There is no clear indication that this sale is a record breaker, but it does offer fresh, public pricing on a card that simply does not surface often. For collectors tracking MJ autograph markets, this is a useful reference point, especially for low-numbered Upper Deck autos from the late 2000s.

How this sale fits into the broader Jordan auto market

A few structural realities shape the high-end Michael Jordan market:

1. Finite autograph supply: With Jordan’s long-standing exclusive signing arrangement with Upper Deck, the stream of new, licensed pack-pulled MJ autos effectively stopped when Upper Deck lost the NBA license. Most new Jordan autos entering the hobby now are from existing UD back stock or redemptions, not new mainstream NBA products.

2. Era preferences: Many collectors prefer Bulls-uniform, playing-days or near-playing-days imagery over later Wizards or generic Team USA/multi-era designs. 2008-09 issues check that Bulls box.

3. On-card vs. sticker: On-card signatures, as on this Star Signings Gold, consistently command a premium over stickers because the autograph sits naturally on the card design.

4. Serial numbering: Low serial numbering like /10 puts this card into the “true scarcity” bucket. Even if demand wobbles, the supply is so limited that any appearance at auction carries weight.

In that context, this $12,201 result is another example of measured, steady demand for premium MJ autos. The market has matured to where collectors differentiate sharply between:

• True grails (Exquisite patch autos, ultra-premium masterpieces),
• Strong tier on-card autos like this one, and
• More commodity-level autos and inserts.

This sale lands in that middle tier and helps anchor expectations for similar Upper Deck-era MJ autos.

Takeaways for collectors and small sellers

For collectors considering similar MJ autographs:

• Rarity plus eye appeal: Cards like this Gold /10 show how low serial numbering, a clean design, and a 10 auto grade can combine to support value, even without a patch.
• Grade vs. auto: Don’t look at the numeric grade alone. A BGS 9 with a 10 auto can be more desirable than a BGS 9.5 with a 9 auto when the signature is the main draw.
• Set reputation matters: While not as iconic as Exquisite, 2000s Upper Deck autograph programs like Star Signings still carry strong brand equity because of their direct connection to the UD–Jordan era.

For small sellers and flippers:

• Comps will be thin: For ultra-low serial MJ autos, expect very few perfect-matching sales. You may need to map a matrix of adjacent comps—similar numbering, era, and set tier—to frame reasonable expectations.
• Auction visibility: An auction at a major house like Goldin, as in this December 19, 2025 sale, provides exposure to the segment of the market that specifically hunts for rare MJ ink, which is often different from the audience on general marketplaces.

Final thoughts

The 2008-09 Upper Deck Star Signings Gold #SS-MJ Michael Jordan, numbered 05/10 and graded BGS MINT 9 with a Beckett 10 auto, selling for $12,201 at Goldin on December 19, 2025, is a measured but meaningful result in the ongoing story of Jordan’s autograph market.

It reinforces a pattern we’ve seen for years:

• True scarcity plus on-card signatures from Jordan’s Upper Deck era continue to be quietly contested by informed buyers.
• Even outside the ultra-premium Exquisite lane, tight-supply MJ autos from respected 2000s sets remain anchored by a deep collector base.

For anyone tracking Michael Jordan’s long-term card narrative, this sale is less about a dramatic price spike and more about another solid, public benchmark for an under-the-radar but genuinely scarce autograph parallel.