Zion Williamson's shoe got blown up again. This time by the auction house Goldin.
On Wednesday, Goldin said it would be bringing to market the famous shoe from Williamson's game against North Carolina in February 2019. But when the auction opened Friday at 8 p.m. ET, the lot was nowhere to be found.
Both Williamson's blown-out left shoe and the still-intact right one were to be included in the auction.
Asked why the Nike shoes weren't in the auction, Goldin founder and CEO Ken Goldin told cllct there was a dispute that needed to be rectified, but he had confidence the shoes would be auctioned in the future.
Goldin would not say who the consigned the sneakers, but a source told cllct the shoes were at least once owned by Zion's stepfather, Lee Anderson.
When Williamson's left shoe blew out in the first minute and he injured his knee in that loss to North Carolina, Nike promised to investigate what happened. If the company did investigate, it never shared the results, and Williamson certainly didn't share anything after he was signed to a $75 million deal with the Jordan Brand.
Many believed Nike had destroyed the shoes, but that obviously was not the case. To quash any doubts the shoes are the genuine article, they were photomatched by Meigray.
Nike officials could not be reached for comment.
The blown-out shoe has serious value just because the moment is so iconic, but the fact Williamson has not lived up to his sky-high expectations in the NBA could curb the price from where it would have been a few years ago.
Williamson's career has been defined more by his sitting on the bench than what he has done on the court. In his five seasons, he has missed 54 percent of the Pelicans games.
The game was one of the most expensive tickets in college basketball history. The get-in price on the secondary market was $2,500 at game time at Cameron Indoor. One of the fans was President Barack Obama, who pointed at Williamson as his sole split open.
The auction includes photo-matched jerseys of Michael Jordan, Aaron Rodgers, O.J. Simpson and LaDainian Tomlinson.
Darren Rovell is the founder of cllct.com and one of the country's leading reporters on the collectible market. He previously worked for ESPN, CNBC and The Action Network.