Description
Collector's Note – Why This Issue Matters
The September 1998 issue of Slam magazine featuring Michael Jordan on the cover documents the Chicago Bulls' dynasty at its absolute final moment of triumph — and that timing gives this issue a specific historical weight that Jordan covers from earlier in the decade do not carry. The Bulls had won their sixth NBA championship in June 1998, defeating the Utah Jazz in a six-game series in which Jordan's performance — including his iconic final-second game-winning jumper in Game 6 — constituted one of the most complete individual championship performances in the history of the sport. By September 1998, when this issue was published, the dynasty was effectively over: Phil Jackson had departed as head coach, Scottie Pippen had played out his contract, and Jordan himself was about to announce his second retirement. A September 1998 Slam cover therefore captures Jordan and the Bulls dynasty in the immediate aftermath of its conclusion, at the moment when what had just happened was fully known but before the retrospective distance that would transform it into legend had developed. For collectors building a serious archive of Jordan's media presence and the Bulls' championship era, the Michael Jordan magazine collection is the most comprehensive single resource for tracking his appearances across the major sports titles of the period, and this September 1998 issue occupies a specific and irreplaceable position in that chronology.
Michael Finley's presence alongside Jordan in this issue is itself a period-specific detail that rewards attention. Finley had left the Bulls after the 1996-97 season to sign with the Dallas Mavericks, and his inclusion in a September 1998 cover alongside Jordan — as a distinct feature — reflects Slam's characteristic practice of combining its major cover subject with coverage of other significant figures in the basketball world, creating issues that functioned as comprehensive documents of the NBA landscape rather than single-subject profiles. By September 1998, Finley was establishing himself as one of the Mavericks' cornerstone players and one of the more respected players in the Western Conference, and his presence in the same issue as Jordan places this within the broader late-nineties NBA narrative that Slam was uniquely positioned to document. The Slam Magazine collection provides the full publishing context for understanding how this issue fits within the magazine's documentation of the late-nineties NBA moment. For collectors building a broader archive of the period, the 1998 magazine collection documents the full range of sports, culture, and lifestyle publishing from the year the Bulls dynasty ended.
The timing of this issue within the Bulls' story — published in the months immediately following the sixth championship and immediately preceding Jordan's second retirement announcement — makes it one of the more historically specific Jordan covers in the collector market. It documents the dynasty's conclusion in real time, from the publication that covered NBA basketball with the most cultural authority and insider credibility of any title in the market. Slam was not a mainstream sports publication translating basketball for a general audience but a voice that spoke from within basketball culture, and its September 1998 cover treatment of Jordan and the Bulls carries the specific gravity of a subject-matter-expert publication marking the end of something it had covered and celebrated from the inside.
About the Publication
Slam Magazine was founded in 1994 and established itself over the following years as the definitive voice of basketball culture — not just the sport itself, but the music, fashion, personality, and urban identity that surrounded it. Where mainstream sports publications covered the NBA from a statistical and analytical distance, Slam approached the game from the inside, with a voice that reflected the culture of the players and the fans who followed them most passionately. Its covers were iconic within basketball collecting circles, its photography was consistently distinctive, and its editorial sensibility — irreverent, knowledgeable, and unafraid of personality — made it essential reading for anyone who cared about basketball as a cultural phenomenon. By September 1998 it had been publishing for four years and had established itself as the sport's premier culture magazine, and a Jordan cover in the aftermath of the sixth championship was a natural and consequential editorial choice for a publication that understood exactly what that moment meant.
Key Highlights Inside
- Michael Jordan cover feature — documenting the greatest player of his era in the immediate aftermath of the Bulls' sixth and final championship, capturing the dynasty's conclusion at the specific moment before Jordan's second retirement transformed it from current events into permanent history.
- Michael Finley feature — coverage of one of the late-nineties NBA's more respected players as he was establishing himself as a cornerstone of the Dallas Mavericks, providing the broader league context that distinguished Slam's issues as comprehensive NBA documents rather than single-subject profiles.
- Coverage of the Bulls' 1997-98 championship season — the editorial content addressing the sixth title, Jordan's final-second Game 6 jumper against the Jazz, and the circumstances surrounding the dynasty's conclusion, constituting a primary document of how the basketball culture media was processing the end of the most dominant team of the modern era.
- Late-nineties NBA cultural content consistent with Slam's September 1998 format — the music, fashion, personality, and lifestyle coverage that distinguished the magazine's editorial approach from mainstream sports journalism and made it the essential document of the sport's cultural moment during this period.
- Note: Specific additional article titles, secondary features, and further interior content beyond those indicated in the listing have not been confirmed from available sources. The highlights above reflect what is documented in the listing and Slam's well-established editorial format for this period.
Condition & Rarity
Surviving copies of the September 1998 Slam in good condition represent a collectible example of one of the most historically significant issues in the magazine's run. The address label on the front cover identifies this as a subscription copy mailed to its original recipient in the months immediately following the Bulls' sixth championship — a provenance detail that connects the physical artifact to a specific historical moment with unusual specificity. The label's presence partially obscures the Jordan cover image, which is the primary reason most display-focused collectors prefer label-free newsstand copies of the same issue; this is consistently reflected in how the market prices subscription versus newsstand copies. Minor wear consistent with nearly three decades of age is the expected and honest condition profile of an original, unrestored periodical. The protective plastic sleeve is the appropriate conservation measure for a magazine of this paper stock and age, stabilizing further deterioration without requiring any alteration to the original item.
Looking for More Issues Like This?
A September 1998 Slam with Michael Jordan on the cover — published in the immediate aftermath of the sixth championship and on the eve of the dynasty's dissolution — is one of the most historically specific Jordan covers in the magazine's run, and collectors who understand the timing will recognize what makes it distinct from earlier or later Jordan appearances. If this particular issue is no longer available, the Michael Jordan magazine collection is the best starting point for finding other issues that document his career across the major sports titles of the period. The full Slam magazine archive covers the complete run of the title, and the 1998 magazine collection provides broader context for anyone building an archive of the late-nineties sports and cultural moment.