FOR HERITAGE’S DIRECTOR OF SPORTS AUCTIONS, THE GREATEST COLLECTIBLES ARE FOREVER LINKED TO THE MOMENTS THAT MADE HIM A FAN
By Steve Lansdale | August 4, 2026
When Heritage Auctions experts are asked for collecting advice, one recommendation is always near the top of the list: Collect what you love. The reason, of course, is that no matter what happens to the value of an item or collection, the owner still has something that brings joy and excitement.
Chris Ivy definitely subscribes to that theory. As Director of Sports Auctions at Heritage Auctions, the world’s leading sports auctioneer, he has seen and held many of the greatest sports items ever offered to the collecting world, from Babe Ruth’s 1932 World Series “Called Shot” jersey and Muhammad Ali’s “Rumble in the Jungle” championship belt to the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card that became the hobby’s first eight-figure item.
But like so many others, Ivy is, at heart, a passionate sports fan. Born and raised in Dallas, he grew up on the Dallas Cowboys, Dallas Mavericks, and Texas Rangers, before heading to the University of Texas at Austin to start his college years as a proud Texas Longhorn. While he grew up surrounded by some of the most visible and popular athletes and franchises, his knowledge and love of sports reached far and wide.
While Ivy now spends his days surrounded by the world’s greatest sports collectibles, the pieces that stay with him aren’t necessarily the most valuable — they’re the ones that reconnect him to the teams, athletes, and moments that shaped his life as a fan. Below, he shares six past Heritage offerings that continue to resonate long after the hammer fell.
1. 1998 Heisman Memorial Trophy Presented to University of Texas Longhorns Running Back Ricky Williams
“This was my final semester as an undergrad at UT, and I attended the game at 10:30 a.m. the Friday after Thanksgiving. It was an early morning, and a long day, but Williams did not disappoint, as he ran into the record books to break Tony Dorsett’s all-time college football rushing record. He broke the record with style with an amazing 60-yard run against our in-state rival, Texas A&M, to score a dramatic touchdown falling across the goal line. I still remember the pandemonium and shaking of Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium with over 90,000 fans going nuts.”
2. 1992-93 Michael Jordan Game-Worn Chicago Bulls Uniform Photo-Matched to 17 Games and the October 18, 1993, Cover of Sports Illustrated
“Growing up in Dallas as a Mavericks fan in the 1990s was a tough assignment, so when the greatest player in the game came to town, it was a highlight of the season. I still recall attending several games with my father when ‘His Airness’ came to Dallas to play the Mavericks. Watching Jordan deliver incredible performances is something that I’ll never forget.”
3. 1993 Nolan Ryan Win No. 323 Game-Worn Texas Rangers Jersey
“Baseball was my first love as an obsessed 13-year-old sports fan, and when the Texas Rangers signed Nolan Ryan in 1989, there was no bigger story for me. We got to celebrate as Ryan surpassed 5,000 strikeouts and dealt no-hitters No. 6 and No. 7 of his epic career, bringing the organization to a level it had not previously experienced.”
4. Texas Rangers Eric Nadel 2023 World Series Last Out Call Note and Radio Broadcasting Headset Used for Over 10 Years, Including 2023 World Series Championship Run
“After decades of suffering as a lifelong Rangers fan, the 2023 World Series championship was as much of a surprise as I’ve ever experienced in sports. I understood at the time that this could be a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so I was able to enjoy two of the four series victories in person: one incredible extra-innings win in Game 1 with my father-in-law, and an epic Game 5 victory to take the championship in Arizona with my best friend. Experiences like these are what sports are all about.”
5. 2011 Dallas Mavericks NBA Championship Ring Presented to Point Guard Jason Terry
“While the Mavericks had a nice team in 2011, nobody expected them to bring home the Larry O’Brien Trophy — except for guard Jason Terry, who famously had a tattoo of the trophy added to his arm prior to the 2011 season. I love that story, and I love that this Dirk Nowitzki-led team had to run through the defending champion L.A. Lakers; the up-and-coming OKC Thunder with Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, and James Harden; and finally the vaunted Miami Heat in the Finals against LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh. It was one of the toughest roads to a championship and an unexpected delight for a lifelong Mavs fan.”
6. 1995 Emmitt Smith Super Bowl XXX Game-Worn Dallas Cowboys Helmet
“Being a Cowboys fan in the early to mid-1990s was a spoiled existence, as the team won three Lombardi Trophies in four seasons. The NFL’s all-time rushing leader — a record buffered by the fact that 32-year-old Baltimore Ravens running back Derrick Henry is the only active player with even half of Smith’s 18,355 yards — Smith wore this helmet while rushing for a pair of touchdowns in the Cowboys’ 27-17 Super Bowl victory over Pittsburgh at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, Arizona. He was one of the celebrated Dallas ‘Triplets’ who made up an offensive machine that led Dallas on a stretch of success never matched in team history.”
