Nike skateboard sneakers are expected to fetch up to $44,000 at Sotheby’s auction

Michael Jordan isn’t the only athlete with a Nike seal of approval – this week’s one Sneaker auction at Sotheby’s Hong Kong Bet skateboard shoes are probably worth a lot more than you think: even up to $44,000.

“Initially, Nike didn’t see any value in making sneakers for skateboarders, so they were produced in limited quantities,” explains Bernie Gross, Creative Director of Extra butter, a purveyor of collectible kicks, to The Post. “The company made runs of fewer than 1,000 because they didn’t want to see the sneakers go on clearance shelves.”

Skaters from the Nike team like Danny Supa, Paul Rodriguez and Reese Forbes gave their names to the chic shoes of the Nike SB line. Now, these early offerings are coveted by sneakerheads with deep pockets.

“Initially the pair was $75 or $80,” Gross added, “these were definitely accessible — but you had to have the right perspective. Later, in the secondary market, people paid not to know.”

Here are six coveted kicks in Sotheby’s auction block through April 25:

Nike SB Dunk Low Pro Supreme ‘Black Cement’

Auction estimate: up to $12,000

Black Cement (2002) was designed as a homage to the Air Jordan 3 – with a similar color scheme and even partly made from the same material as that shoe – and was produced in collaboration with Supreme, just as the streetwear pioneer was gaining worldwide recognition. Gross recalled a scene he witnessed in 2008 while waiting online for another sneaker drop in the East Village: “A kid was wearing a pair of Cements and someone offered him $2,000 to take them off immediately. But the kid didn’t want to sell himself.”

Nike SB Blazer Premium ‘Milk Carton’

Auction estimate: up to $2,550

These 2007 sneakers were made in collaboration with Jeff Han, owner of the successful Fly Skate Shop in Shanghai. He dropped out of school as a child and “disappeared” to skate. Han drew a line drawing of his face on the ankle of this cheeky sneaker to resemble milk cartons with pictures of missing children on them.

Nike SB Dunk Low Pro ‘Freddy Krueger’

Estimate up to $38,000

Nike paid tribute to the psycho from 2007’s A Nightmare on Elm Street with “blood spatter,” right down to his signature stripes – but the film’s copyright holders weren’t flattered. “There were issues between Nike and the cinema company, so Nike stopped releasing it,” Brahm Wachter, head of streetwear and modern collectibles at Sotheby’s, told The Post. “This couple was somehow not destroyed. I would say there are less than 150 out there. But no one knows for sure.”

Nike SB Dunk Low Premium “Yellow Lobster” promo pattern

Auction estimate: up to $44,000

In 2009, Concepts, a Boston streetwear shop, collaborated with Nike on some sneaker styles that honored Bean Town’s most luxurious seafood: lobster. “Then they did 36 of them [shoes], in yellow, for friends and family,” said Wachter. “According to Nike, there’s a 1 in 40 million chance of pulling up a lobster trap with a yellow lobster in it.” Complete with rubber bands that clench the toes together — just like the rubber bands used to keep the crustacean’s claws closed — and insides that look like a lobster bib, these sneakers are designed to hint at rarity in a sophisticated way.

Nike SB Dunk Low Pro Reese Forbes ‘Denim’

Auction estimate: up to $12,000

“[Nike] left the edges untreated so the sneakers would unravel as you skate” — just like a pair of beloved jeans — said Gross. “In the skate world, beating up a couple of these [2002] Sneakers are a bit flexible: ‘I know they’re coveted, but I’m going to make the most of them.’”

Nike SB Dunk Low Pro “Pigeon” with box signed by Jeff Staple

Auction estimate: up to $40,800

In 2005, when the Pigeon—a homage to NYC through the colors of its emblematic bird (the sole is pink, like the underside of a pigeon’s claw)—was launched, no one could have predicted demand. With just 50 examples for sale at a Lower East Side streetwear shop, Reed Space, owned by the shoe’s designer Jeff Staple, a furore broke out and made the front page of the Post. “I’ve had clients that were on that line who told me there was a mess,” Wachter said. “It was a successful day if you made it out of the store without getting mugged for your shoes.”