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Complete Michael Jordan Star Co Checklist

A look at the licensed and authentic Star Michael Jordan cards - this is the complete checklist so if a card is not on this list, it is not a licensed Star Co card.
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Consulting and fact checking by Steve Taft and Jarret Kahn

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From time to time, I receive emails from collectors looking to verify the authenticity of a Star Co Jordan card. More often than not - unfortunately - the photos sent in show either a backdated Shop at Home card, unlicensed 90’s Star card or a complete fabrication/custom card.

Unfortunately, if the card is a legitimate looking Star Co Jordan, closer inspection usually shows up red flags as to authenticity.

In fact, on one occasion, I did save a collector who was moments from buying a fake #101 being purported as a ‘rare proof white background #101’ along with a fake authenticity letter. Only red background #101 are legitimate and all else is fraudulent.

TL;DR - just show me Jordan Star Co checklist

The complete checklist of licensed Jordan Star Co cards.

I thought it would be useful to have a single easily accessible blog post list out the complete checklist of Jordan Star cards. This way collectors could see in one place whether the card they were looking at was likely to be a licensed Star Co release before considering authenticity.

If a card is not on this list, then it is not a licensed Star Co release - of course even if it is on this list, it could still be counterfeit.

In future I will also cover off the other authenticity topics with individual articles. This will look at the Shop at Home scandal, unlicensed Star Jordans, the custom Star cards, the reprints and a look at some of the signs of various fake Star Co Jordan cards.

Star Co experts

Steve Taft is well known for his expertise in Star Co cards and has been a great source of information over the years. You can consign cards to be sold by him and buy authentic Star cards through his eBay store and Beckett store. He also runs a Facebook page where he’ll post useful information and new cards for sale.

Please also do check out Jarret Kahn’s Basketball Gold website - it has a wealth of information across the sets. Jarret also sells authentic Star Co cards through his eBay store.

I’ve collaborated with both Steve and Jarret - along with other experts - on a number of articles over the years. You might be interested in these as you deep dive into the fascinating world of Star Co basketball cards:

1984 Star Co Jordan Checklist

Whether you believe the 84-85 Star Co #101 is Jordan’s true rookie card or not, there’s no denying that the Jordan cards released in 1984 by Star Co are Jordan’s first licensed NBA cards.

These cards - released in Jordan’s rookie season as he embarked on his stellar career - capture his rookie season in full colour photography on the only basketball cards available at the time.

While we are on the topic of firsts, it’s worth noting that some early collectors and dealers recall (but cannot 100% confirm) that the 5x7 Court Kings was released before the #101. So that may place the Court Kings as Jordan’s first NBA card - though being a subset card we would not consider it a rookie card.

So, let’s dive in and take an illustrated look at the only licensed cards released in Jordan’s rookie season of the NBA.

84-85 Star Co Michael Jordan XRC
84-85 Star Co Michael Jordan XRC
The True Michael Jordan Rookie Card - the Michael Jordan Star #101
84-85 Star Co Michael Jordan Gold Medalist
84-85 Star Co Michael Jordan Gold Medalist
Jordan's first appearance in the US olympic team featured on a trading card as the gold medalist.
84-85 Star Co Michael Jordan Rookie-Of-The-Year
84-85 Star Co Michael Jordan Rookie-Of-The-Year
Celebrating Jordan's Rookie of the Year award in 1985.
84-85 Star Co Michael Jordan Court Kings
84-85 Star Co Michael Jordan Court Kings
A 5x7 card featuring possibly the greatest photo of Jordan to ever adorn a trading card.
85 Star Co Michael Jordan Crunch 'n Munch All-Star
85 Star Co Michael Jordan Crunch 'n Munch All-Star
Another Star Co card featuring the script Bulls jersey - the Crunch 'n Munch All-Star.
85 Star Co Michael Jordan Gatorade
85 Star Co Michael Jordan Gatorade
Featuring Jordan in his rookie season wearing the Chicago script jersey.
85 Star Co Michael Jordan Lite All-Star
85 Star Co Michael Jordan Lite All-Star
Utilising the same photo as the Crunch 'n Munch All-Star this card features a blue bordering. It is also available in a variation where Jordan's hair is touching the border (shown here).
85 Star Co Michael Jordan Last 11 ROY's
85 Star Co Michael Jordan Last 11 ROY's
Part of the Star Co set featuring the last 11 consecutive Rookies-of-the-year.

1985 Star Co Jordan Checklist

In 1985 Star followed up the excellent 1984-85 releases with four cards. Like the only licensed rookie season cards in 84, these are the only licensed second year Jordan cards.

Included pre-season is 2 5x7 cards which use of one of the most iconic photos ever taken of Jordan as he flies to the rim in the 1985 Slam Dunk Contest.

You may also like to look at the Slam Dunk Supers 5x7 card #1 which features all participants from the 1985 Slam Dunk contest including Jordan.

85 Star Co Michael Jordan Slam Dunk Supers
85 Star Co Michael Jordan Slam Dunk Supers
The greatest photo ever used on a Jordan card gets another run on the 5x7 celebration of the Slam Dunk Contest.
85 Star Co Michael Jordan Team Supers
85 Star Co Michael Jordan Team Supers
An unusual choice of photo - one of few capturing Jordan's tongue out - on this 1985 5x7 basketball card by Star.
85-86 Star Co Michael Jordan #117
85-86 Star Co Michael Jordan #117
The second base card Star released featuring Michael Jordan. Michael Jordan's true second year card.
85-86 Star Co Michael Jordan All-Rookie Team
85-86 Star Co Michael Jordan All-Rookie Team
This Star Co card features Michael Jordan as a member of the All-Rookie team.

1986 Star Co Jordan Checklist

1985-86 was Star Co’s final season to hold a full NBPA license to produce basketball cards.

1986 gave us a complete 10 card subset dedicated solely to Michael Jordan. We also saw a further Court Kings - though this time regular sized - and the Best of the New set.

Finally, Best of the Best was not released until the summer of 1990. While it is not known exactly when these cards were originally printed, BGS graded copies from the Bill Schonsheck collection.

86 Star Co Michael Jordan Court Kings
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Court Kings
A regular sized issue, unlike the previous year, subset Jordan card by Star Company.
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Best of the New
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Best of the New
Jordan's career highlights as printed on the back of this card are already comprehensive.
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Checklist
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Checklist
Card number 1 in the Star Co Michael Jordan set - the checklist.
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Collegiate Stats
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Collegiate Stats
Card number 2 in the Star Co Michael Jordan set features Jordan's college stats and a nice home game photo including Orlando Woolridge.
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Olympian
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Olympian
Card number 3 in the Star Co Michael Jordan set features Jordan as a member of the 1984 US Olympic team.
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Pro Stats
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Pro Stats
What a photo choice! Card number 4 in the Star Co Michael Jordan set features Jordan's pro stats so far for 84-85 and 85-86.
86 Star Co Michael Jordan All-Star
86 Star Co Michael Jordan All-Star
Card number 5 in the Star Co Michael Jordan set features Jordan going up against Kareem in the 1985 All-Star game.
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Rookie-of-the-year
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Rookie-of-the-year
Card number 6 in the Star Co Michael Jordan set highlights Jordan's 1985 rookie-of-the-year award.
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Career Highlights
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Career Highlights
The Star Michael Jordan Career Highlights card lists out Jordan's already impressive list of accolades.
86 Star Co Michael Jordan 1986 Playoffs
86 Star Co Michael Jordan 1986 Playoffs
The Star Michael Jordan 1986 Playoffs highlights how strong Jordan was in the 86 playoffs scoring 49 and 63 points in games 1 and 2 against the formidable Boston Celtics.
86 Star Co Michael Jordan 1986 Personal Data
86 Star Co Michael Jordan 1986 Personal Data
A look at Jordan's personal information - birthdate, height, weight, schools and draft.
86 Star Co Michael Jordan 1986 The Future
86 Star Co Michael Jordan 1986 The Future
A prediction of 'He is surely the NBA Superstar of the 80s and 90s' adorns the back of the Michael Jordan Star Future card which rounds out the 10 card set.
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Best of the Best
86 Star Co Michael Jordan Best of the Best
Featuring the same photography as the Best of the New card, this card names Jordan as one of the Best of the Best.

1990 Star Co Jordan Checklist

Not everyone would include these next cards on a list of authentically licensed Star Co Jordan cards - the Star Co Equal set.

It is true that the Star Co Equal cards were not licensed through the NBPA. They were, however, legitimately licensed and produced on behalf of the Bulls to be handed out at games in the 1990-91 season.

There are a range of other non-NBPA licensed cards which I’ve previously discussed which fall into the same category yet retain full acceptance and respect of the collecting community. Some examples include the 85 Jordan Boy Scout Interlake, the previous year’s 89-90 Jordan Equal card and the Jordan Entenmann’s cards from 87-88 and 88-89.

The regular 90-91 Star Co Equal sets were released/given away in the well-known polybags while the glossy set was distributed in hard plastic cases. Each case was labelled on the back with a pink sticker bearing its /250 serial number. However there was no way to marry the serial to the individual cards unless still sealed.

90-91 Star Co Michael Jordan Equal
90-91 Star Co Michael Jordan Equal
Handed out in Bulls team bags to celebrate 25 years of the Chicago Bulls.
90-91 Star Co Michael Jordan Equal Glossy Variation
90-91 Star Co Michael Jordan Equal Glossy Variation
A glossy version of the Star Co Silver Season limited and serial numbered on the hard case.

I hope this checklist helps out any collectors looking to get into the world of Star Co Jordan cards and happy collecting.