1993-94 Ultra Scoring Kings

Some basketball cards are popular because they’re rare (like PMGs). Others become hobby icons because the design, checklist, and timing all come together perfectly.

1993-94 Ultra Scoring Kings is both.

With its hypnotic, gasoline-on-pavement foil, lightning-bolt design and a 10-card checklist featuring nine Hall of Famers, it has remained one of the most recognizable basketball inserts of the early ’90s.

In fact, the Michael Jordan card from this set is so iconic that in 2008, Fleer did a one-of-one buyback card with Jordan’s autograph, and that card recently sold for $504,000!

Scoring Kings At A Glance:

• 10-Card Checklist

  • Roughly half can still be found for $60 or less raw

• Randomly inserted into 1:36 Series One packs

• Often hailed as one of the most iconic early basketball card inserts

• Hobby Icon Score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Best 1993-94 Scoring Kings Cards to Collect

Top Chase Cards:

• Michael Jordan (#5)

  

• Shaquille O’Neal (#8)

  

Full Insert List:

• Charles Barkley (#1) - HOF

• Joe Dumars (#2) - HOF

• Patrick Ewing (#3) - HOF

• Larry Johnson (#4)

• Michael Jordan (#5) - HOF

• Karl Malone (#6) - HOF

• Alonzo Mourning (#7) - HOF

• Shaquille O’Neal (#8) - HOF

• David Robinson (#9) - HOF

• Dominique Wilkins (#10) - HOF

Scoring Kings Market Snapshot

Highest Recorded Sale

• Player: Michael Jordan

• Grade: PSA 10

  • PSA 10 Population = 97

• Price (Date): $63,000 (July 24, 2026)

• Two-Year Trend: +400%

  

• Other Notable Sale(s)

• Player: Shaquille O’Neal

• Grade: PSA 9

  • PSA 9 Population = 220

• Price (Date): $2,499 (July 30, 2026)

• Two-Year Trend: +1,000% (yes - you read that correctly)

  

Overall Trend: Collectors have really taken notice of Jordan and Shaq, with Scoring Kings prices climbing dramatically over the past two years. If you love the design or collect one of these 10 players, I'd rather own a copy than chase the market after another big move skyward.

Also, its important to note that the foil stock is also the set’s biggest grading headache: chipping and surface damage can punish otherwise sharp copies. The Jordan card has a Gem Rate of roughly 3% and fewer than 10% receive a 9.

Conor’s 2 Cents

This one’s tried, true, and battle tested. It’s been a basketball card collector favorite for more than 30 years, and it’s not going anywhere.

I don’t think the Jordan can sustain 400% growth over two years, but with basketball as a sport becoming more global and basketball cards from the Jordan era becoming more and more iconic, this is one of the most defensible inserts to own long term. It may even be one you hand down to your grandkids, along with stories about how great 90s basketball was.

Do I Own Any? Yes, I own two ungraded copies (Jordan & Robinson). The Jordan was a lucky pre-COVID purchase. I’m priced out now. I’m looking to add Ewing and Barkley later this year. Maybe next year I’ll be able to afford the Shaq.

Biggest Opportunity? - As a 10-card set, especially one like this where 9 of 10 are in the Hall of Fame and 7 of 10 were on the NBA 75th Anniversary Team, this iconic insert offers several compelling opportunities, and it’s almost impossible to go wrong with any of these cards.

But the biggest opportunity, based on two-year trends for PSA 9s or 10s, looks to be either Sir Charles (up only 27% in two years) or “The Admiral”, David Robinson (up 47% in two years).

Another expensive but interesting opportunity, if you can find one, is the Shaq PSA 10, which only has a population of 19 and are up “only” 300% in 2 years (compared to 1,050% for PSA 9s). The highest price paid for one is $9,900 from a sale in April, 2026. If you can find one below $15,000, that could be a fantastic card to own with phenomenal long-term upside potential.

Conor Collects Rating for Scoring Kings:

Buy/Sell/Hold: DIAMOND STRENGTH BUY

Scoring Kings Selling on eBay

I’ve compiled a list of raw and graded Scoring Kings in case you want to add one or two to your PC.

Please note, buying any of these cards also helps me earn a small commission (at no cost to you) which helps support my work. Thanks in advance if you decide to pick one up!

Buy Scoring Kings on eBay

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July was a BEAST of a month for basketball cards, so let’s tip things off!

1. Opening Tip-Off

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• Overall grading activity increased to 3.61 million cards and was up 3% in July compared to June and up 54% year-over-year

• Jordan was the most searched basketball player on eBay for the first half of 2026

• PSA is expanding with a new location in Texas

• Card Shows dominated in July with Fanatics Fest & The National

• LeBron’s Philly move creates hobby mayhem

• A 1/1 Wemby Kaboom sold for $1.44M - the highest basketball card sale in July

• It looks like basketball card collectors are giving up on Banchero

• I’m buying Dr. J and selling one big name on a new team

  

• A little more love for OG Stadium Club Beam Teams

• 🎉🎉🎉🎉And last, but not least - After 4+ years of trying, I’m finally going to be working in the hobby full time! More to come! 🎉🎉🎉🎉

Fun Fact: Upper Deck purchased 23 factory-sealed packs of 1986-87 Fleer Basketball cards. Michael Jordan signed those packs, and they will be inserted as redemptions into 2026 Goodwin Champions, Upper Deck’s annual multi-sport trading card set. Will you be buying Goodwin Champions?

2. Graded Card Trends & eBay Data📈

Total Grading Volume

Despite higher grading fees and plenty of economic uncertainty, collectors just keep sending cards to PSA and other grading companies.

According to the latest GemRate Report, grading volume looked to plateau in general with PSA again grading roughly 2.5 million cards while the other four key grading companies all saw bumps in grading volume.

Key Takeaways

• PSA graded 2.49 million cards, more or less flat compared to June but up ~50% compared to last July.

• Stats on basketball cards were not present in this month’s report, but if we use ~9% (based on past reports) we can safely assume about 220K basketball cards were graded in July.

• Sports card volume dropped by 9% at PSA for the month of July. CGC (up 21%), SCG (up 12%), and TAG (up 55%) all saw monthly increases in sports card volume while Beckett saw a 21% pullback.

  

A few cool eBay stats:

Thanks to being part of the hobby media (something I’m still getting used to…) I sometimes get cool emails from folks at eBay and elsewhere with cool basketball card insights, so I want to share with you all!

• On July 24 – when LeBron James announced he was signing with the Philadelphia 76ers – global eBay searches for the team increased more than 570% compared to the average day during the week prior (July 17-23, 2026).

• Also on July 24 - global eBay users searched for “LeBron James” more than 3,700 times per hour! King James indeed!

  

• During the first half of the year, the most-searched basketball players in eBay’s Sports Mem, Cards & Fan Shop category were Michael Jordan, Victor Wembanyama, Cooper Flagg, and Kobe Bryant. (Anyone surprised?)

3. Top Basketball Card Sales 💰

Three basketball cards accounted for more than $2.5 million in sales last month.

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Top 3 Sales in July

#3 - $504,000 - A one-of-one PSA Authentic (with a 10 auto) 2008 Fleer Buyback ‘93 Ultra Scoring Kings Michael Jordan autograph (#5) sold on July 24, 2026. A stunning card no question, but I wish the image below captured more of the original Scoring Kings imagery, with the lightning and Scoring Kings icon in the bottom right. It’s there, but its so faint that you can hardly see it.

In case you were curious, the highest selling MJ 1993 Ultra Scoring Kings card was a PSA 10, that sold for $63,000 also on June 24, 2026. Both of these Scoring Kings cards were sold through Fanatics Premier.

#2 - $617,320 - A PSA 7 (w/ 10 auto) 2003-04 Upper Deck Exquisite Collection Limited Logos Kobe Bryant Autograph Patch (/75) sold on July 11, 2026.

Now no disrespect to Kobe, but how on earth is a Kobe PSA 7 serial numbered to 75 selling for this much? Sure, three color patch and on card auto help, but it’s just an image of Bryant’s head and its otherwise just a mediocre looking card.

Dare I say the Kobe market is getting too hot?

#1 - $1,443,133.20 - A PSA 9 2024 Panini Revolution Kaboom Green Victor Wembanyama (1/1) sold on July 9, 2026.

This matters because it highlights how the Wemby market has not shown any real signs of slowing down. This is now the second Wembanyama card to top $1M, an impressive feat for someone with no rings and no MVP awards.

For context, Nikola Jokic only has 1 card over $1M and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander also only has 1 (and each of those barely crossed the $1M mark). SGA is an interesting one to compare to since his one-of-one PSA 10 Green Kaboom sold back in January, 2026 for $432,000. The reason I’m highlighting both of these players is because they’ve each won multiple MVP awards and an NBA Championship… two things Wemby lacks, yet his high end market puts those two players to shame. Does that make sense to you?

In my recent piece about a Yao Ming Kaboom sale I also highlighted the some fears around how Wemby’s career could in some ways pan out like Ming’s. If you’re interested, here is the link to that piece.

4. Player Trends: 🔥Hot & Not ❄️

Every month I like seeing where collectors are actually putting their money.

Note: I tightened the Card Ladder credentials from 15 cards to 25 to try and capture more signal rather than noise. I like these results and plan to hold it at 25 moving forward.

HOT 🔥🔥🔥

The three hottest players in July all benefitted from recent trade moves.

🔥Kristaps Porzingis🔥

Kristaps Porzingis agreed to 2-year, $40M deal with Warriors and hope springs eternal for the 7’2 Latvian journeyman. Could he be the missing piece for the Warriors?

Maybe, but I have my doubts.

As a Celtics fan, I wanted Porzingis to work more than almost anyone. When he played, he looked like a great fit. The problem was getting him on the floor.

He’s been limited to a total of 74 games in his last two seasons due to a mysterious illness along with Achilles tendinitis. In fact, when you look back at his 10-year career, he’s only had three seasons where he’s played more than 60 games.

“Tingus Pingus” just turned 31 on August 2^nd and given his health concerns and limited playing time (especially these last 2 seasons), I just can’t get behind the July Porzingis market pop. Sorry Warriors fans.

🔥LaMelo Ball 🔥

Just like Porzingis, the LaMelo Ball market moved higher in July after he was traded to the Timberwolves in late June. As much as I hate to admit it, Ball is “a bucket” as the kids like to say. One stat that really stood out to me was his insane 99th percentile rank in on/off differential on offense, per Cleaning the Glass. He can both score and dish the rock, averaging 7.3 assists per game over the course of his career.

However, also like Porzingis, health and reliability are a major concern. Ball entered the league at just 19-years-old but over the course of his six year career he’s only managed two seasons playing more than 51 games.

He’s suffered multiple ankle sprains and fractures over the course of his short career and he’s undergone surgeries as well as incorporated ankle braces and minute restrictions to avoid re-aggravation.

The Ball market bounce is a great opportunity if you’re looking to sell, which makes Ball my top sell target for this month’s recap (more below).

🔥Moses Malone 🔥

A few years ago I probably would have ignored Moses Malone completely. Today, I'd rather own a scarce Hall of Famer than another overhyped prospect, and I think more people are coming to this same conclusion.

Before I explain, let’s back up to 2022 when there were several PSA 10 Moses Malone rookie cards (pop of 40) selling for $50K+, including one for $102,000! The market has cooled significantly since, with the highest seller this year closing at $19,520, but we’re starting to see another move higher for Big Mo.

Why?

The Moses Malone market is clearly benefitting from LeBron’s Philly move. There’s been some talk of how LeBron could be the 76ers missing piece, much like how the 76ers got Malone back in 1982 and won the NBA Championship that season.

The recent media coverage may also be coinciding with a broader trend toward scarce vintage sports cards. And honestly… it’s about time.

I suspect many collectors my age (early 40s) and older are looking to buy up undervalued vintage greats with lower populations, like Moses Malone, who was a 13x All-Star, 3x MVP, and the NBA Finals MVP after averaging 25.8 points and 18.0 rebounds per game in a 4-0 sweep against the Lakers.

As the 76er narratives continue to pick up steam when the season starts, I suspect the Malone market to continue to do well. Despite being up over 30% already, if you like vintage greats I think there’s still plenty of upside left for Big Mo.

NOT ❄️❄️❄️

❄️ Deandre Ayton ❄️

After five years in Phoenix, Deandre Ayton looks to be the latest in a long stretch of journeymen centers whose numbers are trending in the wrong direction.

He’s down to playing just 27 minutes per game which had dragged his PPG numbers down to 12.5 and last season was his first where he didn't average double-digit rebounds, grabbing just 8.0 per game.

After just one season in LA, Ayton was again traded to the Wizards – the franchise where players go to fade into obscurity. Collectors have collectively given up on Ayton and for good reason. Stay away!

❄️ Paolo Banchero ❄️

Paolo Banchero, the first overall draft pick in 2022 saw his market initially soar – as it so often does for top picks. While his raw stats remain impressive, averaging 22.2 points, 8.4 rebounds, and over 5 assists last season, he’s on a mid-level Magic team that didn’t get any stronger with this year’s NBA draft or with any big moves this summer.

As a result, the Magic are likely eyeing another mediocre season, which certainly puts a damper on Banchero’s market.

For the newest round of hype, collectors and flippers need to offload past players with limited upside, which is exactly how I’d describe the near-term Banchero market.

This is a great buying opportunity if you believe in Banchero, but I won’t be placing any Banchero bids anytime soon. Far too many other good options.

❄️ Jamal Murray ❄️

Jamal Murray is coming off his best regular season ever and his first ever All-Star appearance, which naturally pushed his card market to new heights.

But after an early Playoff exit at the hands of the Timberwolves due, in part, to a rough FG% playoffs from Murray, the Nuggets star guard is seeing his market sink in the off season. The West is also very strong (again…) so flippers and fair-weather Nuggets fans are likely looking for key players with higher upside potential.

This naturally creates a tantalizing buying opportunity for Murray and one that I think is actually worth considering, especially if you’re a Nuggets fan.

5. Trending Industry News 📰

July wasn't just about big card sales. It was one of the busiest months we’ve ever seen for the hobby itself.

Card Shows Dominate with Fanatics Fest & The National

The third annual Fanatics Fest was a major success, drawing close to 200,000 fans and collectors to the three-day event from July 16-18. Athletes and actors showed up in troves, including Tom Brady, KAT, Jalen Brunson, LeBron James, David Beckham, Lionel Messi, Serena Williams, Jay-Z, Kevin Hart, Jason Sudeikis, Livvy Dunn, and a bunch more!

Cooper Flagg also signed a Rookie Debut Patch Autograph card (1/1) at Fanatics Fest.

More on that story here: Cooper Flagg signs 1-of-1 rookie debut patch Topps card

The other major card show was the 46th National Sports Collectors Convention in Chicago stretching from July 29 - August 2. Tons of basketball stars will be on site to sign autographs including: Dennis Rodman, Hakeem Olajuwon, Kevin McHale, Allen Iverson, Julius Erving, Walt Frazier, Bernard King, and many more.

I’m pretty bummed that I wasn’t able to attend either Fanatics Fest or The National this year but I’m already marking my calendar for next year. If any of you are going to either event, I’d love to connect!

PSA Expands To Texas

In order to address their 12+ million backlog, PSA announced they had a fully operational facility in Plano, Texas. With the facility, PSA hopes to have capacity to handle their backlog which grew in the month of July from ~11 million to 12.4 million.

More on that story here (by yours truly): PSA Opens New Texas Facility as Their Backlog Reaches 12.4 Million Cards

LeBron to Philly & Topps Now Card Record

On July 24, LeBron announced he would play his 24th NBA season with the 76ers. Topps seemed to be wise to this info ahead of time, because almost instantly they released a 2026-27 Topps Now Offseason card featuring him in a Sixers uniform, including an autographed 1/1 copy.

The LeBron Topps Now card also set a record for most sales, beating out Cooper Flagg by a narrow margin.

Wemby Sets Another Basketball Card Record

Collectors just can’t get enough of Victor Wembanyama. As highlighted above, Wemby was the only player in July to have a card cross $1 million with his one-of-one Green Kaboom!

Wemby now joins Lionel Messi as the only other athlete with a $1M+ Kaboom! sale and holds the record among all athletes for the highest selling Kaboom! The next closest basketball player is Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, with a one-of-one PSA 10 Green Kaboom! that sold for $432,000 in January 2026.

Despite my many warnings, everyone seems to be piling into the Wemby market.

6. One Player I’d Buy & One I’d Sell🎯

BUY Target

Vintage Julius Erving cards and/or autographed inserts

Example: 1975 Topps Julius Erving All-Star #300

Julius Erving’s market wasn’t low enough to make the “Not” list, but his market dipped a bit a little over 5% in July. If you appreciate vintage basketball icons (as you should), now is a fantastic time to pick up some Dr. J cards.

The vintage card market has been tragically out of favor for as long as I can remember and there are some very cool options to choose from for Erving. One good example is the one I highlighted above, the 1975 Topps ABA All-Star card (#300). Keep your eyes peeled for good raw or graded copies.

However, it looks like vintage cards for other sports (like baseball and soccer) are starting to get some much overdue love, at least according to SI’s weekly sports card sales report (which I authored) from July 27, 2026.

LeBron’s move to Philly only strengthens the case. If the Sixers make a deep playoff run, I think collectors will naturally revisit legends like Dr. J, just like we’ve recently seen with Patrick Ewing and Earl Monroe.

We are already seeing that play out with Moses Malone and the momentum will only increase if the 76ers get off to a strong start.

Plus, Dr. J highlights were some of the first basketball clips I obsessed over as a kid. I even had the chance to shake his hand once. In addition to being a basketball legend, he just seems like a nice guy, and personality matters to me.

If you’re looking for some awesome Dr. J cards, I’ve added to my eBay store and am linking to it via the button below. (Please note, any purchase made through my store helps me earn a small commission at no cost to you but its a cool way to support my work and add to your PC. I’m already up to $6.55 🤑)

Buy Dr. J Cards on eBay

And just for fun, check out this vintage 76ers theme song. But let me warn you, it’s one of those jingles that will stick with you for a very long time.

Don’t say I didn’t warn ya!

SELL

I almost picked Wemby for a third straight month, but I’ve made that case enough. If you’ve been reading since May, you already know where I stand.

So this month I’m selling LaMelo Ball.

Example: 2020-21 National Treasures LaMelo Ball Rookie Patch Autograph #130

The LaMelo Ball market is up over 40% this month after the news of him being traded to the Timberwolves to play alongside Anthony Edwards. But when you look back at history and compare the number two option to the number one guy, let me just tell you that its not pretty for the Scottie Pippens of the world.

Let’s just look at two of the best second options on teams that won multiple championships: Scottie Pippen and Dwyane Wade. Both phenomenal players (each one much better than Ball) but the highest for either player was $224K - which is actually much higher than I would have guessed.

That card was a BGS 9.5 Exquisite Collection D. Wade autograph rookie patch (/99) and it sold during peak card mania back in 2021. The highest selling Wade card since the start of 2025 was a 1/1 that sold for $66K and the highest selling Pippen card in that same period was also a 1/1 that sold for $150K.

I can almost guarantee that by the end of his career, LaMelo won’t hold a candle to either Wade or Pippen, and yet his highest selling card since the start of 2025 was a BGS 9 (10 auto) 1/1 National Treasures autographed logoman card (below) that sold for $176,473, a painfully high figure for a mid-tier second option.

Full disclosure: I’ve never been a Ball family fan, so yes, that probably biases me a bit. Even setting that aside, I still think the current prices assume a ceiling he probably never reaches.

For me, the numbers just aren’t making sense. I don't see LaMelo ever reaching Wade's career, and I certainly don't see his cards deserving Wade-level prices. That's why I'm selling into the hype.

But if there are any big Ball fans reading, I’d love to hear a counterargument.

7. What I’m Watching 👀

• Last month my top topic to watch was where LeBron ends up and now its the 76ers card market, both past and present, now that Philly looks to be a top contender. The 76ers haven’t won a Championship in over 40 years so the comparisons to the Knicks are legit, but unlike the Knicks Philly has tons of hype before the season even starts so the market for LeBron and other iconic 76ers (Iverson, Dr. J, Barkley, etc.) could see strong upward momentum for a while.

  

• Graded 1984-85 Michael Jordan Star rookie cards #101. This card has been absolutely on fire recently and while the image isn’t as iconic as the 1986 Fleer, these cards are FAR more scarce. There are only three MJ Star rookie cards with a PSA 9 grade, compared to over 3,000 for the Fleer card. Many view the 85 Star rookie as Jordan’s true rookie, so its a key one to watch.

  

• Vince Carter rookie cards and cool inserts of him dunking - I can’t explain this one, but I’ve been on a big Vinsanity kick recently. I love those late 90s Raptors uniforms and Carter was one of my favorite players to watch during his Toronto days.

  • His reverse dunk Topps Chrome rookie card is iconic and he’s got a ton of other insane inserts out there. And apparently I’m not alone getting back into the VC market, his cards are up over 30% year-to-date.

    

• [Non Basketball] - I’ll be keeping an eye on the Joe Jackson market over the next 12+ months. I’m convinced he gets into the HOF in 2028 and I think that story will send his cards soaring next year. I also loved the movie Field of Dreams as a kid, but who didn’t?

  "People will come, Ray. People will most definitely come.”

  

  • The Shoeless Joe market is down about 5% over the past month and up only 12% year to date so there’s still plenty of time to grab a good SJJ card or two if you’re picking up what I’m putting down. Now is as good a time as any.

  Buy Shoeless Joe cards on eBay

8. Insert of the Month 💎

✨1992-93 Stadium Club Beam Teams ✨

Keeping this section very short and sweet since I covered these beauties already with my first “Must Know Inserts” piece, but this is one of my favorite early 90s inserts featuring Michael Jordan and Shaq’s most valuable rookie card.

A PSA 10 Shaq Members Only Beam Team card just became the highest selling Beam Team card ever when it sold for $30,600 on July 5, 2026. Ungraded Jordan Beam Teams have been selling for around $1,600, so these cards are in high demand.

Buy Beam Teams on eBay

For more info on Beam Teams, check out Must Know Inserts #1!

9. Conor Collects Discounts 🏀🤑

To help you save a little cash and to help put a little money in my pocket, I’m forming partnerships that are exclusive to Conor Collects readers. Any purchases made using these codes will also help support my work, its a win/win! Thanks for your support!

BCW Supplies*: Need sleeves, top loaders, boxes, displays, or really anything to store and show off you collection? Check out BCW Supplies!

Get 10% off when you use the code CONORCOL for your order using this link and help support my work at the same time.

Ding Defend*: For protecting your cards during shipping. If you’re out of cardboard and you need protectors built for raw cards or slabs, Ding Defend has some great options for you.

Get 10% off using code Conor2026 when you use this link.

Please note: the above coupon is only valid for purchases of $40 or more and limits to one order per customer. Thanks!

10. Final Buzzer

July reaffirmed why I love this hobby so much.

Card shows are booming and LeBron moved markets. Collectors are slowly rediscovering vintage. The market looks like its (mostly) rewarding the right narratives and punishing players who aren’t living up to expectations. And, of course, the hype train remains full speed ahead even in the off season.

As always, I’d love to hear where you think I’m right or wrong. Just leave a comment—I read ‘em all.

And if you liked this recap or know someone who would, please send it along to a basketball card collector you know. Thanks!

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Each of these players is a 90s or early 2000s basketball icon and although I’m a Boston fan through and through, I couldn’t help but root for and/or respect each of these players. Remember, the Celtics were HORRIBLE from about 1991-2007 so I watched a good amount of Bulls and Spurs basketball during those years.

Without further ado, let’s jump in!

Kobe Bryant - First Class

This 2000-01 SP Authentic Kobe Bryant First Class (#FC7) has to be one of the best-looking and underrated inserts from the early 2000s.

Capturing Kobe mid dunk with a fantastic color blast style in the background, these raw cards tend to go for around $75-$125 which starts us off well within budget.

If you’re looking for a nice but not Gem Mint 10 graded copy you can pick up a PSA 9 for $200-$250.

This card is also nice because it captures Kobe during the early 2000s Lakers dynasty when they won three straight championships.

Personally, I love cards tied to championship seasons. There’s just something different about owning a card from the exact era when a player was sitting at the top of the basketball world. Not everyone cares about that, but I think its a nice addition to the PC.

Quick note: I’ve included links to these cards through my eBay affiliate store. If you purchase through those links, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thanks for supporting Conor Collects!

Tim Duncan - High Voltage (Rookie Card)

I’m a big Tim Duncan fan and the look of this black and silver card compliments the Spurs uniform perfectly.

Raw copies of this 1997 Hoops Tim Duncan High Voltage (#15HV) Rookie card sell for around $100 but graded copies will break our budget. The PSA 8 copies have been selling for just shy of $300 recently while PSA 9s will set you back around $650.

This card also has a very cool looking numbered parallel (/500) that the grading companies have dubbed the High Voltage 500, but those are budget busters.

The most recent sale of a Tim Duncan High Voltage 500 was the above BGS 7.5 copy that sold for $1,870. I’ve included any and all copies of this card in the link at the end of this piece, just in case there are any high rollers reading.

But for those of us on tighter budgets, I still think this regular High Voltage card is incredible and well worth it. You just have to find one.

Michael Jordan - Jam Masters

Despite this being a Jordan, its actually the most affordable raw card on this short list. The 1996-97 Upper Deck UD3 Michael Jordan Jam Masters #15 usually sells for between $40-$60 ungraded.

Graded copies will naturally cost a bit more, with PSA 8s selling for around $80 and PSA 9s coming in around $125ish, both of which are still well within budget.

The Gem Mint 10s will bust our $300 budget, with recent sales closing between $600-$700.

The design might be polarizing with all that white space, but it looks and feels very 90s to me.

Plus, Jordan rocking the black pinstripe jersey and what looks to be Air Jordan 12s - its peak MJ. The ‘96 season with 72 wins gets all the attention but the Bulls followed that up and won 69 games in ‘97 and were in the middle of their late 90s three-peat (1996, 1997, & 1998) behind Jordan’s 29.6 PPG season.

Like I mentioned with the Kobe card, cards from Championship years just add a little something to the collection.

Ideal $300 Kobe/Duncan/Jordan Distribution

So here’s my view on the best breakdown of how to spend $300 split between these three fantastic cards. The hardest part of this lineup isn’t really the money; it’s finding the right copies at the right price.

Ideal Target Pickups:

• $80 - Raw Kobe Bryant First Class

• $120 - Raw Tim Duncan High Voltage (most difficult)

• $100 - Graded 8+ Michael Jordan Jam Session (although I’m fine with raw too)

Below is a button that links to my ebay store where you can quickly look through a curated list of all three of these cards and grab any that belong in your PC.

But please note, there wasn’t much inventory for any of these cards (especially within budget), so I encourage you to look at other platforms (like CollX or Courtyard) and create alerts if you’re a fan of any of these.

Buy These Cards on eBay

And that’s a wrap! I hope you enjoyed this piece focused on chasing legends without chasing the price tag. Please subscribe for more content like this, plus Must Know Inserts, Monthly Basketball Card Reports, Hot Takes, and more!

Which of these three would you buy first? And what other legends belong on a $300 budget (give or take)?

Thanks for reading and keep collecting whatever greatness means to you.

-Conor

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But three months later I’ve learned far more than the subscriber count alone would suggest. If you’re thinking about starting a newsletter, wondering whether it’s worth the effort, or just curious about my journey, here’s everything I’ve learned so far.

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I started my Substack on April 16, 2026 and it’s a lot different than the writing I’ve done for Sports Illustrated or Sports Collectors Daily.

(Note: If you read my note earlier this week I said 2 months… we just got a puppy and my brain is FRIED! It’s been 3… but here are a few photos if you like puppies!)

One of the most frustrating things about any solopreneur endeavor (which I consider Substack to be) is the lack of insights or benchmarking that can be trusted.

Sure, you can ask any AI and you’ll get a decent response, but my goal with this piece is to share a few of my key stats plus some learnings that have helped me better understand what people read and what works for growth.

And yes, I’m still very small (<80 subscribers) but if this information can help anyone get started or grow from 50 to 100 (or 78), I’ll be thrilled.

My Writing Journey Before Starting Substack

Before I get into some key Substack stats and insights, let me just share that I’m a relatively new writer but I absolutely love it.

I love (almost) everything about it. I love the research, I’m addicted to the stats/performance of each piece since I feel like it’s a reflection of me, and I love the opportunity to engage with collectors and nerd out with them about basketball cards and anything else they collect.

As you can see from my SI bio, I started writing for them almost a year ago. It’s part time and it’s a pay-per-click model which barely covers the cost of the coffees I consume to write, but it helped get me re-acquainted to writing for a wide collector audience. I say re-acquainted because I used to have a basketball card blog at the beginning of Covid and wrote maybe 50+ pieces there, but I never renewed my account so that died off years ago.

I’ve also done some writing for other sites including Sports Collectors Daily and GradeX Media - those pay a little better but it’s still not much. Which leads me to…

Insight #1: Writing is a privilege.

You have to have a real full-time job to be able to afford to write because before writing pays your bills, it asks you to pay your dues. Writing asks you to believe in yourself long before anyone else does.

The reason I’m sharing my prior writing experience is not to humble brag, but rather to let you know that I started out with two slight advantages: (1) I have a little extra credibility in my niche thanks to prior work and (2) I know some basics about writing online [SEO, backlinks, etc].

Now that you know that, let’s talk about my Substack “success” - the wins and the duds. I don’t think there are any losses here, it’s all learning, or at least that’s what I tell myself when some pieces get 4 clicks.

The Numbers Behind My First 90 Days

Subscriber counts rarely tell the whole story. The lessons behind them are much more valuable.

I’m 3 months in and have 78 subscribers… although it looks like I’m plateauing at 78 for a few days now. I honestly thought I’d have 100 subscribers by now, but I’m very grateful for those 78 (and counting).

I’ve written 15 pieces so far (not including this one) so I’m averaging about 7 or 8 per month, which may be too much.

I have 1,680 views across all my posts so little over 100 per post but some get more than others (more on this in a minute). The good old 80/20 rule at play.

And one kind soul pledged $8/mo for a year so I’ve earned $96 (thank you, you know who you are). That was crazy to see that and it energized me for days. It’s a cool feeling, and I hope you all you writers get to experience it and more.

One of the joys of starting my own Substack has been the stat tracking. I absolutely LOVE seeing the data and why I wanted to share it. I’m a little embarrassed to admit this, but I refreshed my analytics way more than I’d like to admit. Is that normal?

Ok, now that we have the basic stats of my Substack covered, let me add some qualitative data and some insights into the mix, because that’s where all the value lies.

Insight #2: Don’t overthink; just start writing… and publishing.

I was sitting on a few ideas but I kept getting in my own way. I wanted to write stuff that I could be candid about, sharing my own thoughts and opinions, but I kept hitting roadblocks and didn’t publish my first piece until nearly a month after starting the account. It wasn’t perfect, but I put it out there and one or two nice people commented and I got a subscriber.

Researching, writing, and publishing gets easier the more you do it, just try not to get in your own way.

Insight #3: Write what you know.

I started with a baseball post about a player named Shoeless Joe Jackson and I did a ton of research for it, but I’m mostly a basketball fan, not a baseball guy. So I was a little out of my wheelhouse. Still, it was a passion piece and I enjoyed it. It got 62 total views and was a strong start out of the gate, and even now it ranks as the 7th most viewed piece I’ve done so far, so I’d call that a success.

My next article was a piece on how eBay rejected GameStop’s takeover bid and announced some enhancements to the platform. It got 16 views and no one liked it or commented. It showed me that I can’t just regurgitate the news, I need to come up with my own ideas and put some effort in (duh!).

I wrote four more pieces after that between May 20th and June 3rd. None of them got more than 30 views, although I was starting to show the Substack world that my niche was basketball cards. So the stats of my first six pieces are the following: 144 total views across six pieces and a total of ONE subscriber. Yes, even after all that, I just picked up a single subscriber from my writing.

Until my next piece, when I published the May 2026 Basketball Card Recap on June 4th, which helped me get a little of my mojo back because it was my best piece to date. Which leads me to important insight #4…

Insight #4: Monthly basketball card reports are my most popular content (so far).

When I published the May 2026 Basketball Card Recap it did well. It was viewed 73 times and earned me 2 subscribers. The open rate could have been better, but all in all it was my strongest piece to date.

I clearly still hadn’t figured out how to make the little thumbnails (woof!) so my visual for the report was weak, but the content was strong and my subsequent report for June did even better and is my best performing piece yet… and I finally figured out the thumbnails.

Insight #5: The biggest growth multiplier wasn’t Google; it was other writers.

I expected Google to matter. But it turns out other writers mattered far more than I would have guessed.

Partnering and recommending other Substack accounts has been the single biggest source of growth for Conor Collects. Three months in and 20 of my 78 subscribers have been from other accounts recommending me (shout out to Bonkers Cards & The Baseball Card Investor).

Notes have also been surprisingly helpful and 15 of my subscribers have come from just commenting or creating notes.

That’s a little hard for me to wrap my head around, because right now it looks like nearly 50% of my current subscriber base is coming from low effort or no effort sources. I’d love to know if anyone else is seeing this with their Substacks?

And despite all my prior knowledge about SEO and writing to get picked up by Google and other search engines, I only got a solo subscriber from Google.

Brutal! Is SEO/Google dead?

Insight #6: Affiliate marketing is a tough nut to crack when no one knows you.

Affiliate marketing is getting a small commission for any sale you help another company make. When you hear your favorite podcaster saying something like “Use MorningBrew20 for 20% of yada yada” whenever you use that code, not only are you saving 20%, but you’re also putting helping to put money in the pocket of whoever gave you the code. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this, but a lot of people still don’t know what affiliate marketing is and how to wield it.

And to date, when it comes to my own affiliate marketing attempts, I know what it is. But wielding it… well I’ve made $6.55, or roughly what I make for each SI article.

Above is my eBay Associates dashboard and as you can see, I’ve had a few folks click on cards I’ve recommended and I’ve helped sell a few, which has earned me $6.55.

I don’t know if there’s a way to dig deeper into the data to see the source piece that people were clicking on, but I have started including links and custom buttons on Substack that send people to my eBay store which ties into the cards I’m featuring.

For instance, for a piece titled 3 Must-Own Basketball Cameo Cards Every Collector Should Know, I included a link to a curated list on eBay featuring cards that matched up the ones I was talking about in that piece.

I’ve since evolved slightly and am now creating custom buttons instead of links, like the one below that will point you toward my eBay store (as a reminder, if you do buy anything, I get a small cut at no charge to you).

Conor Collects eBay Store

I’m curious to know if any of you all have found success with affiliate marketing opportunities that are both a win for your audience (through discounts etc.) and put a little money in your pocket? If so, I’d love to know more.

Insight #7: Don’t ask for people to share your stuff too soon.

One mistake I made was asking for help sharing my content too soon. No one shared. I think it’s because even with 100s of SI articles and years of knowledge in the space, I’m still below 100 subscribers. I might try again around 250 or even wait until I reach 500, but asking when I only had 50-60 was silly. Don’t make the same mistake.

Insight #8: Experiment early and often.

It’s probably too early for me to label this an insight but I’m currently experimenting with some fun series that I’d want to read if you saw someone else write them.

Excluding my monthly report, I’m experimenting with 3 series: Buy This Over That, Must Know Inserts, and Cards I’d Buy On $X Budget. They’re all fun for me to write and they aren’t super lengthy so if I dedicate an hour or two to any one of these, I can augment the content I offer and if something sticks, I’ll lean into it.

Even this piece is an experiment, and hopefully a helpful one. Many more to come!

Insight #9: Backlink as much as possible.

Backlinking is linking to your Substack wherever you can: Twitter/X, LinkedIn, your personal blog, it doesn’t matter. Between LinkedIn, GradeXMedia (a collectibles media company I’ve written a few pieces for), and basketball-reference.com I’ve been able to obtain 4 subscribers.

That may sound like very few right now, but I expect the backlink multiplier to compound over time. Every quality backlink becomes another permanent doorway leading people back to your work, and unlike a social media post, many of those doors stay open for months if not years!

Insight #10: Don’t build an audience from scratch if you can borrow one.

If you visit any news or information aggregator sites that share the same type of content you write about, reach out to them and ask if you can guest write or better yet, pull your content in directly from Substack.

It was a little bit of work, but I was able to get my content to appear in the news feed for basketball-reference.com, a website I use to do a lot of basketball stats or game specific data.

If you search any basketball players stats, like ‘LeBron James Stats’ or ‘Patrick Ewing Stats’, you’ll see the first website that populates is basketball-reference.com. They also have a new site on each player, and now Conor Collects shows up there when it relates to a certain player.

That’s free advertising and it’s a very on-brand audience, so go find your equivalent.

Final Thoughts (and One Hope for the Next 90 Days)

Three months in, I’m nowhere close to replacing my day job, but that wasn’t my 90-day goal. The goal was to build something that’s truly mine. One thoughtful article, one collector, and one conversation at a time.

If even one of these lessons saves you time or gives you the information you need to keep going, then writing this was worth it.

Whether you’re a basketball card die hard, enthusiast, or even just card-curious, my goal here isn’t just to write about basketball cards.

Its more than that. I want to document what it’s actually like trying to build something meaningful. What works, what fails, and everything in between.

If that sounds interesting, I’d love to have you join me. Cheers!

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1992-93 Stadium Club Beam Team

Few basketball inserts capture the magic of the early '90s quite like Beam Team. With its bold photography, dramatic spotlight design, and unforgettable checklist led by Michael Jordan and rookie Shaquille O'Neal, it's no surprise this remains one of the hobby's most beloved inserts.

Beam Team At A Glance 👀:

• 21-Card Checklist

  • Nineteen can typically be purchased raw for $20 or less.

• Has 2 versions (regular & Members Only)

• Randomly inserted into 1:36 Series Two packs

• Widely considered one of the defining basketball inserts of the early '90s.

• Hobby Icon Score: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Beam Team is also a personal favorite of mine and was the card that really drew me into basketball card collecting as a kid.

Key Beam Team Cards

Top Chase Cards:

• Michael Jordan (#1)

  

• Shaquille O’Neal (#21)

  

Notable Hall of Famers:

• Michael Jordan (#1)

• Dominique Wilkins (#2)

• Clyde Drexler (#5)

• Scottie Pippen (#6)

• Chris Mullin (#7)

• Reggie Miller (#11)

• John Stockton (#14)

• Tim Hardaway (#15)

• Charles Barkley (#16)

• Hakeem Olajuwon (#17)

• Karl Malone (#18)

• Patrick Ewing (#19)

• Dennis Rodman (#20)

• Shaquille O’Neal (#21)

💰 Market Snapshot 💰

Highest Recorded Sale

• Player: Shaquille O’Neal (Members Only)

• Grade: PSA 10

• Price & Date: $30,600 on June 5, 2026

• Two Year Trend: Up 300%

  

  Another Notable Sale

• Player: Michael Jordan (Members Only)

• Grade: PSA 10

• Price (Date): $23,500 on June 8, 2026

• Two Year Trend: Up 270%

  

Overall Trend: Beam Team continues to gain momentum. Members Only copies lead the market, but standard versions of star players have also seen steady appreciation, and I don’t expect that to change anytime soon.

Other big name cards from this set are heating up this summer as well, but there are still some great opportunities to own some iconic players - I’ve highlighted my two favorites below. But as always, choose the players you like. I honestly don’t think you can go wrong here.

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Conor’s 2 Cents

Do I Own Any? - Yes, this is one of just two insert sets that I’ve completed (all raw - I don’t have that type of money) because of its incredible checklist, unforgettable design, and the nostalgia it still brings every time I look at these beauties.

Biggest Opportunities:

• David Robinson - For a 2x NBA Champ and a defining player of the 90s, the Robinson market still looks very attractive. Only 2 PSA 10s (pop 33) have cleared $1,000 (both in June 2026) so look out for bargains, or even pristine looking raw cards. The Robinson card also features a Spurs/Knicks matchup which has taken on a whole new dimension in 2026.

  

• Hakeem Olajuwon - Another two-time NBA Champion and legendary big from the 90s, Olajuwon, like Robinson, looks like a great option. Only 3 PSA 10s (pop 71) have cleared $1,000 - all three of which since May 2026.

  

Conor Collects Rating For Beam Team Overall:

Buy/Sell/Hold: STRONG BUY

Beam Team Cards Selling on eBay

I’ve compiled a list of raw and graded Beam Teams in case you love these cards as much as I do. Buying any of these cards also helps me earn a small commission (at no extra cost to you) and helps support my work. Check ‘em out below!

Shop Beam Teams on eBay

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1. Opening Tip-Off

• Knicks cards take off after winning first NBA title in 53 years

• LeBron Rookie Sets Record

• SGA card breaks the $1M mark

• PSA makes progress on the backlog

• NBA Rookie logo gets a facelift

• Wemby “Hoops Oops” goes viral

• And did I move the Simpsons Promo Card Market?

  

Fun Fact: LeBron has changed his autograph several times over the course of his career. His current auto resembles a crown. Will it change again on his next team?

2. Graded Card Trends 📈

Total Grading Volume

According to the latest GemRate Report, volume surged to a record-setting 3.50 million cards graded, up 13% on a per business day basis relative to May.

Key Takeaways

• PSA graded 2.50 million cards, up 21% vs May and up an incredible 74% year over year!

• PSA has been doing everything they can to catch up on their backlog, which currently sits at ~12 million cards and it looks like those efforts are paying off.

• Unfortunately, the GemRate team is no longer publishing sports breakdowns but I’m going to see if I can work with them to get access to basketball card data for future recaps.

Notable eBay Stats

Below are some fun basketball card search stats, according to my source at eBay:

• On June 11 – the day after his tip-in capped a historic, 29-point comeback – searches for OG Anunoby increased more than 16x compared to the day before the game

• During the Knicks’ historic playoff run, eBay searches for “New York Knicks” (570%) and “Jalen Brunson” (520%) saw tremendous volume spikes.

3. Top 3 Basketball Card Sales 💰

3. $469,700 - A PSA 8 1984-85 Star #101 Michael Jordan Rookie card sold on June 28.

This is a record sale for a PSA 8 copy. I don’t see the Jordan card market cooling, probably ever… unless he does something insane. He’s the GOAT, and everyone wants to own an MJ rookie (myself included).

2. $1,061,400 - A one-of-one 2025-26 Topps Chrome Gold Logoman Autographed Relics #GLM-1 sold on June 6.

SGA FINALLY has a $1M+ card! Honestly, its about time. I wrote a piece in May for GradeX about SGA and said, “when you look at where his top tier cards are selling relative to other modern players, like Victor Wembanyama (Wemby) and Luka Doncic, both non-US elite players, it looks like SGA is undervalued.” - I still feel that way and I expect the SGA market to do well over the next few years.

1. $2,928,000 - BGS 9.5 2003-04 Exquisite Collection Rookie Patch Autograph (/23) featuring LeBron James sold on Monday, June 29th.

This was not only the biggest basketball card sale of the month but also the biggest card sale of the month! This rookie card is one of the most iconic cards in the last few decades and a BGS 9.5 with a tri-color patch is going to remain at the top for the basketball card market, along with PMGs and key logomans.

4. Player Trends: 🔥Hot & Not❄️

A quick look at the hottest and coldest players in June (for any player with 25+ cards in the Card Ladder database)

HOT

Jalen Brunson

+69%

Brunson, and to a lesser extent Towns are seeing nice pops in demand and value after their historic NBA Finals. OG Anunoby isn’t showing up in the Card Ladder data perhaps because he isn’t graded enough and doesn’t meet my 25-card criteria, but from my research for SI on players that popped in value, he also saw a massive spike in demand this month.

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I think every Knicks fan wants to own a Brunson card or two and I wish I had pulled the trigger on one of his rookies before the Finals, but I missed the boat there. However, I’m bullish on Brunson and think his market may cool a bit, but will have a strong second half of the year as well.

Karl-Anthony Towns

+35%

Finals Fever! See the notes for Brunson.

I’m neutral on Towns. His cards didn’t pop like many of his teammates and it felt like he was in foul trouble for most of those playoffs so I don’t anticipate much more upward momentum for KAT. But that above card is so sick if you’re a Knicks fan!

Ben Simmons

+25%

What’s Simmons doing here? The question many of you (myself included) are probably wondering? To be honest, I don’t know. Maybe its a few outlier buys or a few rich Aussies are buying up Ben? Your guess is as good as mine but I’m not touching the Simmons market any time soon.

It’s also a little difficult for me to fully trust the Card Ladder data when the above Simmons PSA 9 Kaboom sold for $122.50 on July 4th.

NOT

Jason Kidd

-23%

As a 10x All-Star, HOFer, and one-time NBA Champion, Kiss is absolutely an elite PG (top 10 all time in my book) but he’s not the most sought-after in the hobby? Rings matter and Kidd only has the one. His market is down only 14% YTD so this feels like more noise than signal.

I’m not super bullish on Kidd for the long run, but you can do FAR worse. His market will likely rebound at some point, so if you like him, now is a great time to look for Kidd cards.

Dwyane Wade

-25%

This one makes no sense to me. Wade is a personal favorite of mine and at his peak he was unstoppable. Wade is a Heat legend from one of the strongest NBA Draft classes and there’s no reason for this sort of drop. You’ll see below that Flash is my top pickup for players to buy due to this dip.

I’m very bullish on Wade in the long run, he’s got 3 Championships and was on one of the strongest and most hyped NBA teams in recent history. Don’t waste this opportunity if you’re a Heat or Wade fan.

De’Aaron Fox

-29%

Game 4 was the greatest NBA Finals comeback ever. That game was incredible to watch and I’m SO GLAD I didn’t turn that one off at halftime. But Fox could have prevented the Knicks from completing the comeback had he just not attacked the rim with 13 seconds to go in the game. He SHOULD have dribbled away form the hoop forcing the Knicks to foul. Instead he tried to drive on OG Anunoby who came up with the key block.

Fox had a lackluster finals overall and struggled to make his usual impact. He averaged just 12.8 points, 6.0 assists, 3.0 rebounds, and 1.4 steals per game while shooting a 35% from the field and lowly 24% from three. His inefficient scoring, poor decision making, and inability to consistently break down New York’s defense played a major role in his disappointing series.

The hobby hive mind can be extremely unforgiving once a player is written off, as prices often reflect perception just as much as performance. I’m bearish on Fox.

5. Industry News 📰

Apart from the major sales, which we already covered, the big basketball stories making waves in June were:

PSA Pause Update

Backlog has dropped to 12 million according to a recent post from PSA.

Reading between the lines, does “we received fewer than anticipated” mean people are sick and tired of PSA, waiting to submit, or exploring other graders with more affordable options, like C3 Grading?

Rookie Logo Facelift

Topps announced a new logo that will debut with this newest rookie class and be the default logo going forward for all Topps rookie cards.

Definitely an upgrade in my humble opinion.

Wemby “Hoops Oops” Goes Viral

The “toppshoops” Instagram account posted a pretty damaging post that looked to be a junior employee’s copy/paste error. The post featured a NBA Hoops hyper Signature Victor Wembanyama autograph and the most awkward line in the post said,

"this specific Wemby card isn’t one worth posting. It’s a boring insert from a very low-end paper product…”

Not good when Topps is saying what most of us are thinking, Hoops is trash and not worth buying. Sales likely won’t change, but it’s certainly not a good look for Topps/Fanatics and I feel for their (new?) social media manager.

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New Product Releases Coming in July

Lots of new product coming out this month!

The first one available taking pre-orders in just a few days is the 2025-26 Topps Chrome Extension w/ Luka & Minions, with one auto in each box.

If you love Chrome (as I do), on July 7th you’ll be able to preorder the 2025-26 Topps Chrome Update. It’s the first time Chrome has ever extended this product and it will also be the debut 2025-26 Topps Chrome Update Series.

Not only will the update include rookie standouts like Dylan Harper, Cooper Flagg, and Kon Knueppel, but it will also feature cards of Luka Dončić, who didn’t make it into the flagship product.

In a bizarre twist, it will also feature minions?! Yes, you read that correctly. Those yellow pill-shaped henchmen from Despicable Me will be featured doing classic NBA poses like Steph Curry’s “night night”.

Other basketball card releases next month include:

• 2025-26 Topps Motif – July 9th

• 2025-26 Panini Court Kings – July 24th

• 2025-26 Panini Prizm – July 31st

• 2025-26 Panini Noir – July 31st

Important Note: Panini lost their NBA license to Fanatics (Topps) so none of the Panini products will feature players in the NBA jerseys.

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6. Buy & Sell 🎯

BUY

Dwyane Wade rookies and rarer inserts.

Example: 2003 Topps Chrome Refractors #115

Why now?

His market has dipped for no reason and the Giannis trade has made the Heat an Eastern Conference threat again for the first time in years, so expect more people turning their attention to Miami legends. Especially if LeBron takes his talents back to South Beach, expect some nostalgia-driven buys for D. Wade.

Wade also has 3 Championships under his belt, all for Miami including his Finals MVP Championship that he earned before LeBron joined him in Miami.

If you believe, like I do, that titles matter most in the long term, along with being in the HOF and named to the NBA 75th Anniversary team are key long-term accolades, then Wade is a no-brainer buy.

If you agree with me, I’ve pulled several Wade cards into a separate eBay Ambassador collection (that I also receive a small commission for) that you can find below:

D. Wade Cards on eBay!

SELL

For the second month in a row I’m selling Victor Wembanyama. The Wemby hype balloon is going to pop at some point, and you don’t want to be sitting on a stacks of his cards when it does (just look at what happened to Trae Young).

I’m a seller or any big name Wemby cards like Kabooms, Downtowns, Color Blasts, and rookie cards.

Example: 2024 Panini One and One Wemby Downtown

Why?

The market has gotten (and stayed) far too hot for my liking.

Also, if there was a likability metric for players, Wemby’s would have crashed during the NBA playoffs, especially the Finals with the flagrant foul he got away with pushing Brunson and the classless way he just walked off the court without shaking hands at the end of Game five.

Plus, I have reservations for a 7’4” center with such a skinny frame. Only 3 NBA players over 7’3” have had seasons of 500 games or more: Rik Smits, Mark Eaton, and Shawn Bradley. Eaton played the longest of those 3, with 875 total games.

Wemby is entering his 4th season having played close to 200 games, so if he’s able to tie Eaton (far from guaranteed), he’s got maybe 9 more seasons left.

His cards are selling at LeBron and Kobe levels, bot those guys won four or more championships. Factoring in likability and longevity, I’m a Wemby seller until he gets 2+ rings.

If you’re a Spurs fan, buy Duncan or David Robinson, they’re both proven, class acts, and WAY cheaper.

7. What I’m Watching 👀

• Where LeBron ends up - A move to Golden State, Cleveland, or Miami could impact markets for past and present players on those teams.

• I’m keeping an eye on the newest rookie class and how they’re fitting in on each team. This will be apparent after the first 15-20 games of the season.

• Kon Knueppel, Dylan Harper, and VJ Edgecombe - Now entering their sophomore season, who sees the biggest cooling over the summer?

  

• WTF did the Celtics just do? How will the Jaylen Brown market react? Is he still a 1B in Philly? Or a 1A? Or a 1C?

• Jordan & Kobe insert momentum (always)! And how those compare to other 90s legends like Shaq and Duncan.

• Vintage Knicks players from the 1970 and 1973 Championship teams, like Willis Reed and Walt Frazier.

• [Non Basketball] How does Conor McGregor do in his comeback bout? I covered his highest selling cards for SI and his market is popping ahead of the big fight.

• [Non Basketball] Is the Joe Jackson card market heating up like I thought it might? A new record hit on June 1, when a 1910 T210 SCG 3.0 sold for $850K!

  

• [Non Basketball] Simpsons cards - The show is absolutely iconic but its bound to wind down sometime soon. At 72, Matt Groening and his team are likely thinking about a wind-down or transition period soon. When that happens the earliest cards could soar.

  • And at least a few people out there are listening to me. Within 48 hours of my SI piece on Simpsons promo cards, two ungraded Jordan Knows Bart cards sold for $90 and $100, which are record highs for these cards.

    

8. Hidden Gem of the Month 💎

1999 Fleer Ultra Kobe Bryant Gold Medallion #50G

• Population: ZERO GEMS - That’s no typo. There aren’t any Gems for this card and the PSA 9 pop is just 31. If you get a raw card and it Gems you are looking at a $1,500+ card while a PSA 9 will fetch around $400.

• 2025 pricing: PSA 9s last June were selling for around $200, which tells me collectors are starting to take a strong interest in this card.

• Why many collectors ignore it: It’s honestly a pretty easy one to ignore. It’s not a Kobe rookie and its not a well known insert but its a fantastic shot of Kobe and its a Tim Duncan cameo card making it just that much better.

• Potential upside: 25%-50% by this time next year, and that may be a conservative estimate. I like this card and all Kobe Gold Medallions for the long run.

9. Conor Collects Discounts 🏀🤑

To help you save a little cash and to help put a little money in my pocket, I’m forming partnerships that are exclusive to Conor Collects readers. Any purchases made using these codes will also help support my work, its a win/win! Thanks for your support!

BCW Supplies*: Need sleeves, top loaders, boxes, displays, or really anything to store and show off you collection? Check out BCW Supplies!

Get 10% off when you use the code CONORCOL for your order using this link and help support my work at the same time.

Ding Defend*: For protecting your cards during shipping. If you’re out of cardboard and you need protectors built for raw cards or slabs, Ding Defend has some great options for you.

Get 10% off using code Conor2026 when you use this link.

Please note: the above coupon is only valid for purchases of $40 or more and limits to one order per customer. Thanks!

10. Final Buzzer

Record grading volumes, more million-dollar sales, and the Knicks’ championship run reshaped the basketball card market in the blink of an eye. We saw several new opportunities emerge and we also witnessed how quickly sentiment can turn. Whether you’re buying overlooked legends like Dwyane Wade or taking profits on overheated stars like Wemby, staying disciplined and true to your PC matters more than chasing headlines.

Thanks (as always) for reading, and I’ll see you next month as we navigate what should be another exciting for the basketball card market!

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There are tons of fantastic cameo cards out there, and I have said before (and I’ll say it again) that I wish Topps and others would try and incorporate more fun cameo cards into the mix.

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And a cameo card, for those of you new to collecting, is a card of one player (like Larry Bird) but prominently featuring another player (like Magic Johnson).

LeBron James’ Best Cameo Card

The best and most iconic LeBron James cameo card is the 2008-09 Topps Chrome Kobe Bryant card with LeBron playing tight defense. This card is just an absolute classic, with LeBron on the Cavs and Kobe playing keep-away. The card is also numbered #24, matching Kobe’s jersey number.

I personally love when card companies like Topps do this, it just gives the card a little something extra to appreciate.

I don’t recommend buying this raw (although I did many years ago) just because at this point I think its probably a pretty big target for counterfeiting.

PSA 10 refractor copies of this card have been clearing $10,000 easily, with one sale even touching $12,600 on June 21. The PSA 10 non-refractor copies sell for about $2,000.

When these two went head-to-head it was always a great matchup. However, LeBron usually got the best of Kobe. In their 22 battles, Kobe only won 6.

Kobe Bryant’s Best Cameo Card

If you’re a big baseball and basketball card collector, you may be familiar with the Topps Now Yasiel Puig card featuring the Lakers legend, but that is not the top pick for my best Bryant cameo card.

Honestly, this one was hard for me because there are two that I really like. The first one is the 2008 Tracy McGrady card with Kobe easily visible in the background reaching for the ball. I also loved this matchup back in the day.

The second Kobe cameo card, and the one I’m selecting as the most iconic (partially because its my personal favorite), is the 2002-03 Topps Chrome Tim Duncan card with both Shaq and Kobe in the background.

It captures a moment of Lakers/Spurs dominance (no other team won a championship between 1999-2004), it features Tim Duncan, one of my all-time favorite players (who I also think is criminally undervalued), and it’s also a cameo for The Big Aristotle aka Shaq. How can it get any better?

And the color matching black one below - chefs kiss! 🤌

This card has a few parallels, but the ungraded base copy can be yours for just $5. A PSA 10 refractor sold earlier in June for $400, but the non-refractor copies sell for $100-$150, which seems like a pretty good deal for a card featuring three of the best NBA players of all time.

Michael Jordan’s Best Cameo Card

This is very hard for me. I wrote an entire piece for SI on Jordan’s best cameo cards and I still never feel as confident as I am with the LeBron and Kobe cards. So let me share an unpopular opinion first.

The Sam Vincent Jordan cameo with MJ wearing #12 is cool, but I don’t see it as worthy of the the top spot for most iconic Jordan cameo. However, it is very affordable so if you like it, go grab it. It’s not the most iconic, but it’s still a very cool card to own.

I also really like the 1997 Topps Chrome David Robinson card for an honorable mention, but still not the top dog.

After plenty of debate (and maybe a little soul-searching), one card keeps rising to the top: the Penny Hardaway Titanium insert card from 1997-98 Skybox Metal Universe.

It features about as full a picture of Jordan as you can hope to get, plus its from the 1997-98 season, Jordan’s last with the Bulls.

Unlike the Vincent/Jordan cameo, this one is a bit pricier. An ungraded copy sold in May for $421, while a PSA 10 (with a population of just 11) sold on November 11, 2025 for $2,500.

Current Listings on Ebay for These Cameo Cards

Great cameo cards don’t stay hidden forever. Once collectors start paying attention, the best copies tend to dry up fast, especially for clean and well-centered raws and low-pop Gems.

If one of these cards belongs in your PC, I’ve already done the digging and pulled together some of the best current listings below. (This is an affiliate link, so purchases also help support my writing.)

Here’s the link to my Elite Cameo Finds!

Why I Like Cameo Cards This Much

Well for one, I’m on a budget.

So there’s that.

But the real value of cameo cards goes beyond price; cameo cards preserve iconic matchups the hobby sometimes forgets.

If you watched a lot of basketball in the late 90s and early 2000s like me, you remember how incredibly talented players like Tracy McGrady were. For several years, McGrady was right up there with Kobe, despite never winning a championship.

It’s these types of matchups that I typically look for on cameo cards. They may not always be the most valuable, but they’re very fun to discover and it usually brings me back to key battles or deep dives on Youtube to relive that nostalgia.

What do you think about these cameo cards and which, if any, would you replace for the best and most iconic of these three basketball legends? Leave a comment and please share and subscribe if you want to see more of my content.

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In the first-ever BTOT, we looked at two fantastic Michael Jordan cards.

In BTOT #2 we decide if a very rare autographed Cooper Flagg rookie card OR a slightly less rare autographed LeBron James rookie card is the better buy.

In one corner: a PSA 10 with a 10 auto 2025 Topps Sapphire Chrome Cooper Flagg Gold autographed rookie card serial-numbered to just 50. This card has been a hot card in today’s market and a copy sold for $96,000 on May 22, 2026. There are only a few like it and Flagg is already setting records, so he has a lot of potential.

And it the other corner: a BGS 10 with a 10 auto 2003-04 Upper Deck Ultimate Collection LeBron James autographed rookie card serial numbered to 250.

This card also sold for $96,000 and also on May 22, 2026…which naturally inspired this piece.

As you likely know, LeBron is almost always in the GOAT debate, he’s a 22x All-Star, he’s won 4 NBA titles on three different teams, he’s a 4x MVP, and he also won Rookie of the Year in his rookie season. He’s literally done it all.

The two cards have the same sale price but very different risk profiles, so lets get into it.

Note: Because the Flagg rookie has such a low population and because of his rookie status, we can only look at the market price changes by player, not by card, which are charted below.

LeBron James vs Cooper Flagg Trend (6/24/26)

Cooper Flagg (not what you’d expect)

• 3 Month = -10%

• 6 Month = -29%

• 1 Year = -68%

One of the big challenges with the Card Ladder data is that with lower card populations and newer players, especially ones as hyped up as Flagg, we tend to have a messy data set.

As you can see, the data is showing a massive cooling effect for Cooper Flagg but that doesn’t seem right given his multiple six-figure sales in 2026. But for our analysis this time, it really doesn’t matter much because we are sticking to our guns and going off principle rather than data.

Having said that, its also worth noting that the card featured in this piece (10/50) did sell in April 2026 for $162K. So maybe despite the recent monster sales the data is highlighting a bigger trend with Flagg. It’s difficult to say.

Also, one macro trend working against Flagg is that he’s no longer the shiny new guy in the NBA. The new rookie class looks very strong and this new crop of talent will certainly be looking to make their mark in the 2026-27 NBA season.

LeBron James (exactly what you’d expect)

• 3 Month = 10%

• 6 Month = 32%

• 1 Year = 78%

The LeBron James market trend is positive which is what you’d expect for someone with LBJ’s credentials. If you’re constantly in the GOAT debate (Shaq just listed LeBron as #3 behind only MJ and Kobe), there’s going to be plenty of demand. Like I said above, we don’t really have to worry about the data for this one since the decision here will be based on principle.

And the BTOT #2 winner is…

It’s not even close. I didn’t expect the data to trend like that, but it makes the decision even that much easier.

So, if ever you’re lucky enough to have $100K to spend on a card and you’re faced with this Flagg vs LeBron decision (or something similar), ALWAYS go with the player with the most championships as a rule of thumb. Don’t even worry about the pop 50 vs 250 here either, because at the PSA/BGS 10 level the numbers are going to be small.

But just to be safe, I checked: the PSA/BGS 10 population is 19. Even if it were double that I’d be saying the same thing.

Which is, we’re taking LeBron James over Cooper Flagg here. I’d be sticking with LeBron if we were comparing him to Wemby and I’ll say the same thing about whoever next year’s ROTY winner is.

Sell the hype, buy the greats. You’ll be happy with the result 99% of the time.

Thanks so much for reading. If you like this type of content please let me know by leaving a comment, subscribing, or sharing. Be well and be smart with your collecting.

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A MASSive Event

This thing is huge. The three-day event will be the biggest card show in the Northeast, bringing together collectors from across New England and beyond. The show will feature 1,000 vendor tables, more than 50 celebrity guests, free autographs (with admission), card grading, trade nights, memorabilia, Pokémon and more.

Celebrities & Athletes Attending

The more than 50+ celebrity guests appearing at the show include Jermaine Wiggins, Joe Andruzzi, Kevin Stevens, Dana Barros, and Matt Chatham. They’re offering one free autograph of each and every celebrity guest (with paid admission).

I don’t know if I’ve ever seen that level of free autographs at a card show before, which makes the admission price a lot easier to stomach. Get your cards ready!

Also, sports card dealer and content creator “Talon” Friedman will also be appearing.

Discount Code for Conor Collects Readers

You guys all do a LOT for me and I appreciate it, whether its a comment, a sub, a pledge, or whatever. Its been so fun connecting with collectors here on Substack.

For the first time, I am able to give a little something back with a discount code below.

DISCOUNT CODE = CONORCOLLX

This code allows for a $5.00 discount to general admission tickets only for any of the three days of the show. The code is active now and will expire at 11:00 PM this Monday (6/22). This is an exclusive discount to this audience, with hopefully more coming soon.

Please let me know if you go and what you think. I’m going to try and get there myself on Friday so if you see me, come say hi.

Thanks for reading all and please share with anyone you know in the greater Boston area.

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The only logical and financially responsible way to slowly but methodically build out a collection is to focus on buying singles.

Below I’m sharing two cards I love and am actively looking to add to my PC when I get the chance… which wont be for a while because every penny is going towards my wedding later this year.

Please note: The content below also contains eBay affiliate links. If you purchase either card from the link I share, I will get a small commission.

Dennis Rodman Electrifying

This was the last card I was actively bidding on but I had to draw the line at $100 (and lost) because I was already over budget for the month.

This Dennis Rodman card is from the iconic 1998-99 Fleer Tradition Electrifying 10-card set plus this set came right after the Bulls three-peat which makes this card a little extra special. Raw cards are pretty safe, as long as you can see additional pictures that show the textured elements of the card.

I find its easiest to see this on the back of the card, where the lightning ridges create clear enough divots on the back of the card, as you can see in the image below. And for further safe buying, always go with a “Authenticity Guarantee” seller.

Bids for these raw cards have been closing for around $150-$200 but if you don’t want to fuss with bidding or lose your “deal” at the last second, you should be able to pick one up for $250 or less through a Buy It Now auction.

Gem Mint copies sell for roughly $1,700 and the most recent PSA 9 sold for just under $500. Even if you don’t decide to grade this, I think it looks fantastic and I’d love to have a complete set of these late 90s stunners.

Here is an example of a raw Rodman Electrifying card that looks legitimate, despite a steeper price point.

Ray Allen Skybox Autographics Rookie

This has been on my Must Own list for a long time but I just keep missing my opportunity to get one for a price I think is reasonable.

I’m a big Ray Allen fan and I like this card because its a very early example of an autographed rookie card, plus I like how Ray is wearing his draft day suit and Bucks hat with the color matching background.

This card has two autograph variants, one with blue ink and the other with black. The blue inks are a lot more rare, with some sources saying there are only 100.

Ray Allen is one of the best shooters of all time, he was a key member of two Championship teams (2008 Celtics & 2012 Heat), and he was in an awesome Spike Lee movie: He Got Game. That movie is a must watch and if you don’t love Ray now, you might change your mind after you see the movie.

High quality ungraded copies of this card keep eluding me and the autograph quality can vary dramatically, but generally non-graded copies sell for around $150.

This card is extremely difficult to find in high grades, so don’t get your hopes up for getting one on this $500 budget. Even PSA 7s are now selling for about $1,000 for blue ink copies. However, targeting a black ink PSA 7 should be manageable for $300, thus keeping us within that $500 budget.

Here is a great example of a PSA 7 with an 8 black ink auto. Hopefully they’re willing to negotiate a bit on price since they’re asking for $500!

Thanks for reading. If you like my stuff please subscribe and/or share with another collector. I’d also love to know what on your list of Must Own basketball cards, especially in the $50-$250 range.

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The below list was compiled from publicly listed sales on Card Ladder. All 11 players below have at least one solo basketball card sale at or above $1,000,000. Several players, like LeBron, Jordan, and Kobe also have other cards paired with legends, but the below list focuses on solo cards.

Plus, a bonus (or two!) at the end, including the highest selling sports card of all time!

11. Nikola Jokic

Card: A PSA 8 2015 Panini Immaculate Collection Autograph Logoman Rookie (1/1)

Price: $1,012,600

Sale: 5/9/2026

10. Anthony Davis

Card: A BGS 9 2012-13 National Treasures Autograph Logoman Rookie (1/1)

Price: $1,020,000

Sale: 2/1/2021

9. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander

Card: 2025-26 Topps Chrome Gold Logoman Autographed Relics #GLM-1 Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (#1/1) Unused Redemption Card

Price: $1,061,400

Sale: 6/6/2026

8. Steph Curry

Card: A PSA 9 2009 Panini Playoff National Treasures Autograph Jersey Century Platinum Rookie (4/5)

Price: $1,080,000

Sale: 8/6/2022

7. Wilt Chamberlain

Card: A SGC 10 1961-62 Fleer Wilt Chamberlain Rookie #8

Price: $1,700,000

Sale: 9/4/2024

6. Giannis Antetokounmpo

Card: A BGS 9 2013-14 National Treasures Autograph Logoman Rookie (1/1)

Price: $1,812,000

Sale: 9/22/2020

5. Kobe Bryant

Card: A PSA 5 1997-98 Metal Universe Precious Metal Gems Emerald (09/10)

Price: $3,150,000

Sale: 4/23/2026

4. Michael Jordan

Card: A PSA 6 1997 Upper Deck Game Jersey Autograph (11/23)

Price: $4,250,000

Sale: 10/20/2025

3. Luka Doncic

Card: An ungraded 2018-19 Panini Flawless Autograph Logoman Rookie (1/1)

Price: $4,700,000

Sale: 9/26/2025

2. Victor Wembanyama

Card: A PSA 10 2023 Panini Prizm Black Rookie (1/1)

Price: $5,110,000

Sale: 5/26/2026

1. LeBron James

Card: A BGS 9 2003-04 Exquisite Collection Autograph Patch Rookie (07/23)

Price: $5,200,000

Sale: 4/26/2021

Bonus: Michael Jordan & Kobe Bryant

Card: A PSA 6 2007-08 Upper Deck Exquisite Collection Dual Autograph Logoman (1/1) - The most expensive sports card sale of all time

Price: $12,932,000

Sale: 8/23/2025

Double Bonus: Jalen Brunson Logoman

Note: This card has never been sold publicly, so its unclear what its worth, but after some analysis for a recent SI article about Mr. Wonderful’s 1-of-1 Jalen Brunson card, this card is worth well over $1 million.

Card: A PSA 10 2023 Panini Immaculate Collection Autograph Logoman (1/1)

Price: $1.3M+

Sale: N/A

Thanks for reading! Please subscribe for more basketball card news, insights, cards to watch, and hot takes!

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1. Opening Tip-Off

• PSA graded 183K basketball cards in May, down 11% compared to April

• Wemby’s market absolutely exploded, roughly doubling in May

• Kevin Durant market cools

• Record Wembanyama sale of $5.1 Million

• PSA pauses grading due to massive backlog

Fun Fact: This report contains a LOT of Wemby, but I learned Wemby is a huge Star Wars nerd. Who knew?

2. Graded Card Trends 📈

Total Grading Volume

According to the latest GemRate Report, volume dipped back below 3 million to 2.95 million but was still up 5% on a per business day basis

Key Takeaways

• PSA graded 2.07 million cards, down 7% vs April but up 25% year over year

• Basketball share for PSA was 8.8% with 183K cards graded

• 2025 Topps (51.4K) and 2025 Topps Chrome (46.1K) were the most graded basketball sets

• Most graded athletes were Michael Jordan (27.2K), Cooper Flagg (26.8K), Victor Wembanyama (8.6K), and Kobe Bryant (8.2K)

3. Top Basketball Card Sales 💰

Top 3 Sales in May

• $1,012,600 - A PSA 8 2015-16 Panini Immaculate Collection Rookie Patch Autographs (RPA) Logoman Nikola Jokic (1/1)

  

• $1,260,000 - Ungraded 2025 Topps Chrome Autographed Superfractor LeBron James 1/1

  

• $5,110,000 - PSA 10 2023-24 Prizm Black 1/1 #136 Victor Wembanyama

  

4. Player Trends: Hot & Not 🔥❄️

A look at who popped and who dropped last month.

HOT 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

Victor Wembanyama 🔥🔥🔥

+101%

Driven by the NBA Finals and global appeal, no player has been hotter in the last month than Wemby! In my humble opinion, his market has gotten WAY too hot and I expect things to cool off soon. In the words of Jim Cramer, “SELL SELL SELL!”

John Wall 🔥🔥🔥

+90%

Surprised seeing John Wall here? Me too! This is probably one of those stats anomalies since his highest selling card is a 2013 Panini Kaboom that sold in November 2025 for $9,100. However, I’m a big believer in the first Kaboom set so I wouldn’t be surprised to see any/all first edition Kabooms move higher every year - more on this later.

With such small numbers, even a few bigger sales can juice the John Wall data and make it look like his cards are hot when its more noise than signal. Don’t let the data (positive or negative) cloud common sense.

Karl-Anthony Townes 🔥

+33%

Knicks making their first NBA Finals appearance since 1999 with KAT going up against Wemby. This is one of the biggest matchups for this Finals and if KAT can keep Wemby in check and have a few good games of his own expect the KAT market to pop.

Jalen Brunson 🔥

+33%

The Brunson Burner market, with KAT, is soaring with the 2026 NBA Finals. The Knicks just need 3 more wins to do what the franchise hasn’t done in over 50 years. Especially if Brunson has a clutch moment in these playoffs, as he’s known to do, expect to see his cards move higher.

NOT ❄️❄️❄️❄️❄️

Kevin Durant ❄️

-25%

After another strong season but a disappointing first round playoff exit, the Durant market cooled off in May. If you’re a fan, now is a great time to look to add KD to your PC.

Adrian Dantley ❄️❄️

-41%

The market for Dantley cards is pretty thin, with only 31 cards in the Card Ladder database. So my initial take is that this is noise and not anything substantial, unless there’s some Dantley dirt that I’m unaware of.

The highest Dantley sale in May was a PSA 10 1986 Fleer sticker #3 that sold for $2,130. It was the only Dantley card to clear $1,000 in May compared to two over the $1,000 mark in April.

For those who don’t know who Dantley was, he’s slept on but he once dominated the NBA in the early 80s with four consecutive seasons scoring 30+ ppg.

Be it signal or noise, now looks to be as good a time as any to pick up an Adrian Dantley card if you’re a fan of 1970s and 80s HOFers.

5. Industry News 📰

The biggest story in May was …

The PSA Pause

The TLDR is PSA announced they are temporarily pausing Value, Value Bulk, Value Plus, and Value Max submissions starting June 2, to reduce a 10M-card backlog.

6. Buy / Sell / Hold 🎯

BUY

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander rookies and rare Panini inserts like Kabooms.

Why now? SGA has literally done it all and yet his market severely lags others with fewer credentials. That’s great if you’re an SGA fan or looking for value. Plus, all eyes are on the Knicks and Spurs at the moment, so look to grab Shai whenever you can this summer.

And the Panini moment in time may never be back with Fanatics owning all NBA product licenses for the foreseeable future.

However, Panini will forever represent a moment in time when the hobby absolutely exploded. You’ll hear me say this again and again, but buying rare Panini inserts and parallels of your favorite player will be a smart move.

SELL

Wemby - Any and all Victor Wembanyama Cards

Why? We are seeing absolutely peak Wemby hype right now and his market can’t go up much from here but it can and will tank if the Spurs don’t win it all. Plus, I’m nervous about Wemby’s health and long term sustainability for a 7’4 string bean.

Until he has multiple championships under his belt, I’m a seller. Grab Tim Duncan instead if you’re a Spurs fan.

HOLD

Michael Jordan Inserts and late-90s base cards like Metal Universe #23 (working on an SI piece now for this card which is selling for $10K+ consistently)

Why? Jordan is always one of the most graded athletes and his market continues to trend in the right direction. His cards are up roughly 7% in the last month and an insane 94% year over year. Once basketball season is over and everyone shifts their attention to football in the fall there may be opportunities to add Jordan to your collection but for now just enjoy whatever Jordans you have in your collection.

I’ll likely forever be a Jordan buyer and holder and I think there are many basketball card collectors like me (but hopefully with more disposable income)!

7. What I’m Watching 👀

• Vintage NBA Stars - So many of the greats look undervalued compared to the mega hype around players that really haven’t done anything yet. The 1957 set has some incredible Celtics (my team) players and when I was writing about Pistol Pete I really loved the design of some of those early 70s cards. Just watch out for the non-traditional sizes, they won’t fit in your top loaders.

• Oversupply comments and junk comments on social media - Have modern products been watered down too much?

• [Non-basketball] - One Piece has been super hot for the TCG market and I’m still obsessed with the idea that the Shoeless Joe Jackson market will pop next year!

8. Hidden Gem of the Month 💎

2001 SPX Tony Parker #91A Rookie Jersey Auto Card

Like Wemby, Tony Parker is from France and played for the Spurs. Unlike Wemby, Parker has won 4 NBA Titles: 2003, 2005, 2007, and 2014. You won’t find a much better graded card featuring a key player with 4 rings for under $100!

• Most Recent Sale: $80 on May 31, 2026

• Why collectors ignore it - Everyone on that fundamentally sound Spurs squad is undervalued, lets just start there.

  But Tony Parker may be one of the most undervalued HOFers in basketball card collecting because four championships, a Finals MVP, and nearly 20K career points somehow can’t compete with the hobby’s endless appetite for flash, hype, and razzmatazz. But if you’re a fan of the game and love what THAT Spurs team did during the Kobe and LeBron era, you’ll appreciate this card.

• Potential upside - Not much in the near term, but the Wemby attention and the hype in France could bump the value of this card by 25%-50% in the next year or so. Longer term I expect the Parker market to do fairly well, and if there’s ever a documentary on French basketball players or that very strong and slept on Spurs team, this card and other Parker rookies could easily shoot up in value.

Final Buzzer ‼️

Wemby mania reached ludicrous levels, PSA hit the brakes on subs, and Durant dropped. As summer heats up, keep one eye on the headlines and the other on the overlooked corners of the market (like vintage) because that’s often where the real value lives. If you enjoyed this recap, share it with a fellow collector and subscribe so you don’t miss next month’s biggest basketball card stories, trends, and hot takes.

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I’ve spent close to $60 to own a Todd Day Topps Chrome refractor that was also a Michael Jordan cameo card, by far the most I’ve ever spent on a Todd Day card! It’s a clean shot of Jordan, though, and an early Topps Chrome refractor, so I stand by the purchase.

One of the earliest articles I wrote for Sports Illustrated Collectibles was titled Top 10 Michael Jordan Cameos, so I know a thing or two about these cards.

It’s not just Jordan, many athletes, celebrities, and other famous (and sometimes infamous) individuals can really juice a card’s value. Another famous example of this is Mark Jackson’s 1990 Hoops basketball card (#205) featuring the Menendez brothers sitting courtside. It’s crazy what sometimes gets captured on cardboard!

Appealing to the Swifties Out There

Anyone watching Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Knicks and Cavs probably saw Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift featured at various points during the broadcast. It was even a little odd to me that Richard Jefferson kept referring to Swift as Travis’ “girlfriend” rather than just saying her name.

Maybe he’s not a fan? Who knows.

It made me wonder: could there be some really cool cameo cards featuring Kelce chugging a beer or Taylor Swift hanging out in the background? And then my mind started wandering thinking about how anyone on the Knicks or Cavs could see their cards explode in value simply because the queen of Country Pop is captured somewhere on the card.

It could make a one-of-one bench player’s card into a five-figure or possibly even six-figure card with the right shot!

It also broadens the appeal of sports cards to non-traditional sports fan, like Taylor Swift fans who might discover a sparkling (or bejeweled) refractor card. Maybe Travis would even put a bounty on the right card to show off the next time Taylor makes an appearance on the New Heights podcast.

The Legal Ramifications of More Cameo Cards

Could there be legal ramifications? Aren’t there always?

I asked my on-demand legal counsel (aka ChatGPT with a legal council persona) and here is what it said:

“A cameo card could create legal risk if a company like Topps uses a celebrity’s image, name, or likeness without permission. Celebrities often have “right of publicity” protections that control commercial use of their identity. If the card suggests endorsement, sponsorship, or profits from their fame without a license, the company could face lawsuits, financial damages, or demands to stop selling the card.”

So there’s that to contend with, but I imagine the benefits are worth the costs, especially if there’s a little plausible deniability or if a celebrity like Swift and she’s cool about it and gives her permission… or even gets involved and takes a cut. That seems more like the Swiftian way.

You can say anything you like about Taylor, but you can’t say she isn’t a savvy business person.

Just Do It!

I, for one, want to see more fun, culturally relevant, or even weird cameo cards. Especially since they can make for some memorable happy little ‘accidents’ and are thrilling when fans spot them and they start to blow up on social media.

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BTOT #1 focuses on two absolutely fantastic Michael Jordan cards.

First up, we have the 1986 Fleer Michael Jordan rookie card #57. This card is ICONIC and is the most recognizable basketball card ever. There are thousands of graded copies and it’s also one of the most faked cards in the hobby, so don’t ever buy one online that isn’t authenticated.

The challenger to the MJ rookie is the 1998 Fleer Electrifying Michael Jordan #6E. This is from the stunning 10-card 1998-99 Fleer Tradition SP insert set which features other superstars like Kobe Bryant and Kevin Garnett.

Below we are going to compare the PSA 8 Jordan rookie with the PSA 10 Jordan Electrifying, both of which are currently priced around $15K.

2-Year Price Change

PSA 8 1986 Michael Jordan #57

• Price Appreciation = 118.2%

• Population = 9,303

• Sales per month = 28.1

  

As you can see, the PSA 8 Jordan rookie is a fantastic card that keeps rising in value. With about 28 sales per month and a total population nearing 10,000 its also plentiful and if you have $15K, its something that you can pick up without much trouble and without having to wait very long.

PSA 10 1998 Michael Jordan Electrifying #6E

• Price Appreciation = 229.3%

• Population = 98

• Sales per month = 1.9

  

The Jordan Electrifying on the other hand has absolutely exploded due to scarcity and the stunning electric-gold design. With a population of under 100 and only about 2 sales per month, this card is a lot harder to get your hands on plus the way it keeps climbing, it may not stay below $20K much longer.

And the BTOT #1 winner is…

Easy - Its the PSA 10 Jordan Electrifying. You honestly can’t go wrong with either, but if you can only choose one and you have a budget of ~$15K (with hopefully a little wiggle room) you have to go for the shiny gold Electrifying insert.

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But having said that, I think there’s also an opportunity for those interested in the ‘Buy, Borrow, Die’ strategy to use collectibles to your advantage.

Let me explain.

What Is the Buy, Borrow, Die Strategy?

I’m not an estate planner (although I do have a few estate planning friends), so let me just explain in simple terms what this strategy is and how collectibles fit in.

“Buy, Borrow, Die” is basically a high net worth money hack. You buy appreciating assets like stocks, real estate, or high-end collectibles, watch them compound for years, then never actually sell them so the tax man stays in the dark.

Instead of cashing out and eating capital gains taxes, wealthy people borrow against those assets, using their growing portfolio like an ATM while the underlying investments keep climbing in value. The key thing to point out here is that borrowed money IS NOT taxed. So as long as you borrow less than the value of your assets, you’re good.

Once the owner of the assets passes away, his or her heirs inherit those assets with a stepped-up cost basis, meaning decades of gains can essentially get wiped clean from a tax perspective.

Let’s say you bought a Mickey Mantle card in 1990 for $5,000 and it was worth $250,000 when you pass away. Once you die your heirs receive a “stepped-up” cost basis of $250,000 instead of the original $5,000. That means if your kids immediately chose to sell the card for $250K, they would owe ZERO capital gains tax because, for tax purposes, the asset’s value was reset at the time of your death.

It’s one of those strategies that feels almost unfair once you understand it.

Ben Franklin once famously said, “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”

While death is unavoidable, with the “Buy, Borrow, Die” strategy and the right mix of assets, the bit about taxes could be a lot more avoidable. The key is getting it right with assets, and that’s where collectibles come in.

Can Sports Cards and Pokémon Cards Be Estate Planning Assets?

With the right underlying collectible asset, like a Michael Jordan 1986 Fleer rookie card, a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle, any of the playing days Joe Jackson cards, a rare Tom Brady rookie, and the most iconic Pokémon cards, you have the collateral to borrow against. Basically, the sports and Pokémon (and other collectible) portfolio takes the place of traditional art, real estate, or any of the old school assets that were used traditionally as backing for this strategy.

But using sports cards, Pokémon, and other collectibles is a far more enjoyable way to achieve the same goal. It also has some potential benefits, like absolutely zero maintenance costs and being more collaborative in the sense that it’s something you could do with your kids and tie it to their interests. There aren’t many assets that can bridge the generational gap like that.

My Dream $3M Buy, Borrow, Die Card Portfolio

If someone came to me with $3 million to spend on collectibles and a 5-10+ year horizon, this is how I’d set them up for success. I’d diversify as best I can, but as a mostly basketball collector I’d really lean into the space I know best.

My #1 choice would be a PSA 10 1980 Topps Scoring Leaders Larry Bird, Dr. J, and Magic Johnson card. Grabbing one for ~$650K seems reasonable and with a PSA 10 population of around 25 and three NBA legends on the same card, this feels poised for a breakout very soon.

My basketball card hot take (with a little bit of Bird/Magic bias) is that this PSA 10 should be worth more than Jordan’s PSA 10 Fleer rookie.

My #2 choice would be a PSA 10 copy of the wildly iconic 1986 Fleer Michael Jordan card. Despite what I just said, you honestly can’t go wrong with this card and it will keep rising in value. It has a population of around 340 and I’d hope to secure one in the $400K-$500K range.

My #3 pick would have to be a Shoeless Joe Jackson playing days card. There are a few to choose from and they’re all extremely scarce so I wouldn’t be too picky, but if I could own either a Cracker Jack card or one of the Old Mill cigarette cards I’d be thrilled. No SJJ card has sold for over $700K so I’d hope to grab one for around $300K.

I’m still obsessing over how strong the demand will be for Shoeless Joe cards by late 2027 and I think his playing day cards have enormous potential to potentially dethrone Honus Wagner. We’ll see.

Pick #4 would be either a PSA 10 2000 Playoff Contenders Autograph Tom Brady (/100) rookie or a PSA 10 Bowman Chrome Gold (/99) rookie card. My hope would be to grab one of those for around $400K-$500K. Brady is the football GOAT and his 7 Championships will be insanely hard to tie, let alone beat, so I expect his market will keep climbing.

Picks 1-4 are mostly safe with a little speculation with Shoeless Joe, but the way I see this market for players like Bird, Magic, Jordan, Brady, and Shoeless Joe there is very little downside risk with incredible upside potential so those all feel strong, especially with where the market is today. My final picks would be dipping my toe into a space I don’t know nearly as well but one that is insanely hot - I’m talking TCG cards like Pokémon and One Piece.

With the remaining $1 million or so, I’d focus on Pikachu, Charizard, and take a wild swing at Monkey D. Luffy from One Piece.

The thesis becomes clearer when you look at the one-year returns for Pokémon and the One Piece market has been heating up, so I’d allocate a little there. As you can see, there is a lot of TCG at the top with the basketball market being the only one of the “Big 4” US sports to crack a 50% return.

With pick #5 I’d go big with a 1998 Japanese Promo Pikachu Illustrator card. This card set the record for highest card sale of any kind including sports when Logan Paul and Ken Goldin sold the bedazzled Pikachu Illustrator card for $16.5M on February 16, 2026. I’d try and get an 8.5 or a 9 for between $500K-$700K.

The other Pokémon that’s a safe bet but also offers major upside potential is Charizard, and the card I’d focus on is the 1999 Pokemon Base Set Shadowless 1st Edition Holo Charizard #4. If I could get a PSA 10 for under $400K I’d be thrilled, which would leave me with ~$100K left for One Piece.

The market for both Pikachu and Charizard is up over 150% year over year. For reference, Michael Jordan’s market is up 90% and Brady’s is up 55%. But all of that pales in comparison to Monkey D. Luffy whose cards are up over 200% in the past year!

You may be thinking bubble and that’s absolutely fair. I don’t know. But it could also be the start of a huge trend so I’d put the remaining $100K into some Monkey business. The card I’d choose would be a PSA 10 2023 One Piece Promos Serialized Top Prize (/700) #001, which has been selling for $50K-$75K.

With any money I had remaining to put into my card portfolio, I’d just look for the best and rarest Michael Jordan inserts I could find. The market hasn’t caught up to how scarce some of his inserts are and there’s a lot of big potential to see a $15K card turn into a $50K-$100K card in no time.

But the beauty of all of this is that my picks don’t have to be your picks. If you’re from San Antonio and you want to focus on the Spurs and maybe some broader Texas collectibles, you absolutely can. It can be a fun way to sit down with your heirs and work through one more layer of diversification.

If you need any help or want an expert to review comps, trends, and give you a sanity check, just let me know. I love this stuff and know a wide range of other experts and estate planning pros that can help.

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As I was doing my research looking for high-end copies from the 2007 Topps Chrome variant that pays tribute to the 1957 design, I came across a wild card flipping success story.

The TLDR is that a someone purchased a one-of-one Topps Chrome Superfractor of Tim Duncan through Goldin for $11,590, posted it on eBay shortly after the purchase for $50K, and sold it withing a few days for $48.5K. That’s absolutely nuts.

What the Tim Duncan Superfractor Flip Indicates

I believe it indicates a few things. For one, there are still plenty of deals to be found even on major auction houses like Goldin.

It also shows collectors are starting to appreciate the greatness that was Tim Duncan. I did something fun using AI a while ago and merged points, rebounds, and assists into one category and then compared Tim Duncan’s stats and accolades (Championships, All Star appearances, etc) to Kobe Bryant and they were wildly similar. And yet the Kobe Bryant hobby market dwarfs Duncan’s.

Over a long enough period of time I think that difference shrinks with Duncan rising and maybe Kobe shrinking some.

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Meanwhile, GameStop offered eBay $56 billion (with a B) in the form of a cash and stock deal but the online auction giant promptly rejected the offer.

But that didn’t stop GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen from earning over $150K thanks to eBay. On May 6th he trolled the internet when he posted on X, “I’m selling stuff on eBay to pay for eBay”.

His top sale was the Halo 2 Master Chief statue seen below, which went for $15,100. Not sure of his relationship status, but I’m sure his significant other was happy to see that one go.

All in all, Cohen earned $168,421.39. So he didn’t walk away from the deal completely empty-handed.

eBay Announces Enhanced Features

Meanwhile, eBay had some cool new features they just announced that are geared at collectors like you and me. These features make it easier to understand a card’s rarity and value at a glance, and look to solve the wildly frustrating total population problem.

According to a statement from May 1, “Collectors can now view grading and population data from both PSA and CGC through the platform’s card-scanning tool and directly on select US listings. This means buyers can instantly see how rare a card is, how it stacks up across grades, and what it’s worth—without leaving the app.

eBay is also introducing new “price across parallels” insights, helping collectors compare different versions of the same card in one place. The feature makes it easier to explore rarity and value and understand the broader relationships of a card set.

eBay is continuing to innovate for collectors, offering tools such as its price guides for sports trading cards and collectible card games, helping enthusiasts navigate the trading card market with confidence, and making it easier than ever for collectors to price, buy, grade, sell, authenticate, and store trading cards.”

How eBays New Features Work

CGC Pop Report data:

• When a CGC-graded trading card is listed on eBay, eBay will check the certification number and aspects against CGC’s data and if there are enough matching points of data, eBay will provide that data and card insights directly in the listing.

• CGC information for eligible cards should display within a few hours of the card being listed.

• If eBay isn’t able to find or confirm the information, this data will not populate in the listing.

• If a certification number is deactivated, it won’t show any available data.

• If listing data is inaccurate and doesn’t match the data CGC provides, eBay will not show the certification details.

  

Price Across Parallels:

• Parallel data can be accessed by opening the eBay app, going to My eBay, and tapping “Scan cards” in the Shortcuts menu.

• Parallel data will be displayed in a new ‘Parallels” tab.

• eBay is also testing the availability of parallel data directly on the View Item page of sports trading card listings, which buyers may begin seeing over the next few weeks.

Pretty cool stuff and certainly a value add coming from eBay.

I was writing an article for Sports Illustrated on 1914 & 1915 Cracker Jack cards, which feature the legends of the era like Ty Cobb, Honus Wagner, and Shoeless Joe Jackson. Those cards are truly stunning. If I had an extra million or so to toss around, it would be incredible to own one or two of them.

The point I was trying to make in that article was that those Cracker Jack cards look undervalued compared to others from that era, especially considering the legendary players featured.

However, in doing my research, I stumbled upon a very interesting MLB rule change that flew under the radar last year. Long story short: deceased players are no longer banned from the Baseball Hall of Fame. That means Joe Jackson and others (most notably Pete Rose) will be eligible for consideration in 2027.

Why Joe Jackson Cards Could Explode in 2027

If you’ve seen the movie Field of Dreams (like I have… a few times), you likely have a soft spot in your heart for Shoeless Joe. I’m guessing the HOF voting committee in 2027 feels the same way. If Jackson gets 12 of the 16 members of the Classic Baseball Era Committee to vote in his favor, he’s in.

However, if he gets fewer than 5 votes, he can’t appear on the next ballot cycle, which happens every three years. This voting element is important, and I will come back to this in a bit.

Whether he gets in or not, hype will build leading up to voting. Along with that hype will come significant demand for Joe Jackson collectibles, which will raise the value of nearly everything tied to Shoeless Joe, especially his vintage cards.

Personally, I hope and believe that he will get in. Maybe I’ve been brainwashed by Kevin Costner, James Earl Jones, and Ray Liotta, but when you look at the big picture, I honestly can’t see why anyone would deny Jackson this, thus righting a wrong made nearly a century ago.

And it’s already started. I was closely tracking a Heritage Auction sale where a Joe Jackson card just set the record for highest SJJ card ever (which I also covered for Sports Illustrated).

A Strong Case for Joe Jackson

There are a number of key details that make Joe Jackson a shoe-in for the Hall of Fame class of 2028. Without getting too deep in the weeds, let me just share the two biggest: acting under duress and his 1919 World Series stats.

I believe that Joe Jackson was likely “acting under duress” which is a legal term for performing an act due to unlawful pressure or threats, which negates true consent. When you consider that his teammates were heavily involved, that Jackson reportedly wasn’t present at the meetings, and that Arnold Rothstein was allegedly involved, it’s fair to say Jackson was under an enormous amount of pressure.

Rothstein, nicknamed “The Brain”, was the New York City mob mastermind who mentored a frightening number of future crime bosses including Lucky Luciano, Meyer Lansky, and Frank Costello. So you wouldn’t want to be on the wrong side of a Rothstein deal.

In fact, some sources say Rothstein sent thugs to threaten Lefty Williams and his family before the 8th and final game of the series. The thugs made it clear that if Lefty didn’t ensure a Cincinnati victory there’d be trouble. As a result, Williams gave up 4 earned runs in the first inning and was pulled, but the damage was done and the White Sox would lose that final game 10-5.

Then there’s the finances. The deal was the the players involved would get $5,000, which is roughly equal to $95,000 today. While that doesn’t seem like a lot by modern standards, that was a good chunk of change back in 1919.

When you look at the salaries of the players on that team and you adjust for inflation, the average player from the infamous 8-man squad was only making $83K. That’s roughly 10% of what the MLB league minimum is today.

When you look at those salaries, and then you consider other factors like how the Chicago White Sox management was allegedly known to cut corners to avoid paying player bonuses (like the famous scene from ‘8 Men Out’), its pretty clear that these guys were not living the high life and had some extra motivation to not play their best in the World Series.

So, when you factor in Rothstein and consider that five of the involved players were making less than the modern equivalent of $75,000, that feels like a pretty stressful situation for Joe Jackson.

I’m guessing Joe Jackson felt stuck between a rock and a hard place: do you screw over your teammates and potentially put yourself in very real danger or do you maybe swing at a few bad pitches, make an error or two, and help to throw the series.

And this leads to the next critical point: statistics. Joe Jackson was statistically better in that World Series than he was during both the regular season and his overall career.

In the 1919 World Series, Joe Jackson batted .375 with 12 hits, one home run, and 6 RBIs. He also had zero errors, unlike some of his teammates.

He was also one of the most critical players to push the series to extra games. For example, in Game 6, with the game tied up 4-4 in the top of the 10th and one man on, Jackson laid down an excellent bunt to advance the runner AND make it to first. The White Sox would go on to score in that inning and win the game 5-4.

If Jackson was truly trying to throw the series, that plate appearance would have been a perfect time to NOT help his team, but instead he helped push the game to a seventh game.

Joe Jackson Will Get The Votes…

According to the voting rules, Jackson needs 12 of 16 votes. So even with 4 curmudgeons voting against him, he’s still good. But I don’t think there will be more than two or three voting against him.

There’s also a major psychological element at play here. Recall the other rule that if he gets 5 or fewer votes, he won’t be eligible for the next voting cycle, meaning the committee would have to wait another six years before Jackson’s name is back on the ballot. This matters because while I think most people will see things the way I see them, I know there are going to be a few members on the fence.

But assuming they all know the rules, I don’t think anyone voting would really loathe Jackson enough to push him off the 2030 ballot. There’s also something undeniably cool about being part of the group that helped right a centuries-long wrong and got Joe voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.

As a result, I’m extremely confident our guy gets voted in. If I had to throw out a number, I’d say there’s a 90%-95% chance he gets in the first time his name appears on the ballot.

… Or So I Thought Until I Spoke With One of the Leading Shoeless Joe Experts

On April 29, 2026 I had the incredible pleasure to speak with Mike Nola, a Black Sox Historian as well as a board member for the Shoeless Joe Jackson Museum in Greenville, South Carolina.

Mike’s knowledge of Joe Jackson goes way back to the stories he heard from his father who actually got to see Jackson play. Mike and I covered a lot of ground, but let me summarize while incorporating a few of Mike’s best one-liners.

Mike started off by telling me about his childhood and how his father had the opportunity to see Joe play, at least on one occasion. Mike’s father believed Jackson was guilty of throwing the series along with the rest of that crew. However, Mike one day realized that Joe Jackson “had been sinned on far more than he sinned himself” and took the opposite view from his father, believing Joe to be innocent.

Mike’s reflections paint Joe Jackson as a figure trapped between historical judgment and human complexity. After his ban, Jackson didn’t disappear from the game altogether. Instead, he played “outlaw ball” throughout south Georgia, including for the White Cross team in 1924, where his father was able to see him play.

As Mike and I spoke, it was clear that his mission has been to clear Jackson’s name not by denial, but by context. For decades, Mike has been trying to understand what actually happened amid pressure, secrecy, and an extremely rigid baseball establishment.

According to Mike, Jackson almost certainly knew something was going on, even if he didn’t attend the planning meetings. Manager Kid Gleason had been told by Comiskey to watch his players closely, which suggests the organization sensed trouble but failed to act decisively.

Mike confirmed my earlier view that the pressure on Jackson was enormous, and while the strikeouts in the Series raise eyebrows, Mike stopped short of declaring them proof of guilt. It’s also unclear how closely strikeouts were recorded during the regular season, since the data from the dead ball era looks wildly off by modern standards.

Mike also said the threats rumored against teammates like Lefty Williams may or may not have been real, and the oft-cited “bonus” grievance has largely been debunked; despite Comiskey’s reputation as a skinflint, the White Sox players were generally paid as well as or better than their peers.

Mike Nola also believes Joe Jackson was innocent

What ultimately shifted Mike’s thinking was Jackson’s performance during the series itself. When he broke down the statistics, the narrative got murkier. Jackson accounted for 11 of the White Sox’s 20 runs, with surprisingly few opportunities coming with runners in scoring position. The Reds, often dismissed in popular retellings, were actually a strong and unfamiliar opponent.

It’s important to recall interleague play didn’t exist then, and the American League teams had never faced the Reds. Factoring in those realities, Nola concedes that he may never truly know the full truth. “I may find out when I get to heaven that Joe was 100% guilty,” he says, but until then, the numbers and circumstances leave ample room for doubt.

Beyond the scandal, Nola’s personal stories reveal the reverence Jackson inspired among baseball’s greatest hitters. Ted Williams not only petitioned for Jackson’s Hall of Fame reinstatement but flatly told Nola that Shoeless Joe was a better hitter than he was. Williams even recalled trains stopping in Greenville near Jackson’s home, later regretting that he’d never stepped off to talk baseball with his idol. Nola’s own tangible connections—Jackson’s liquor store business card found in his wallet when he died, his fragile, pattern-mimicked “signature,” letters from his sister Gertrude—underscore how rare and human Jackson has become. With only a few dozen authenticated autographs in existence, Jackson remains elusive. And while Nola believes a Hall of Fame ballot in 2028 is possible, he suspects purists will once again stand in the way—at least on the first vote.

Ted Williams Once Campaigned for Shoeless Joe

You read that correctly, legendary hitter Ted Williams (the last MLB player to bat over .400) famously campaigned to clear the name of Shoeless Joe Jackson. At 81, Williams was interviewed about his views on Joe Jackson and said, “Out of baseball for life, he’s [Joe Jackson] served his sentence, he died while under that penalty.”

Williams went on to declare that after doing his own research and speaking with Eddie Collins, who had played with Jackson, he was confident that there was “never once any indication (of Jackson wrongdoing).”

Mike Nola also shared some insights from an in-person meeting he had with Williams to discuss Joe Jackson. One of the most surprising things Mike shared was that Williams felt that Jackson was a better hitter than he was.

Why I’m Buying Shoeless Joe Jackson Cards

From my Cracker Jack article and the 2025 rule change to all my Joe Jackson research and my awesome conversation with Mike, it’s all led me to get a little crazy with my recent eBay purchases. I also want to be transparent, my collection will hopefully increase in value in the next 18 months. If you feel similarly, there’s still plenty of time to hop aboard before the broader market notices and catches up.

To date, I’ve purchased over 50 Joe Jackson cards. Many are common, like the 2025 Panini Prizm Pandora /199 below, but a few are numbered to 25 or fewer. I don’t have the budget for any of his playing days cards from the 1910s (or even his Play Ball card from 1940), but I recognize I’ve quickly accumulated an obsessive amount of Joe Jackson cards. And honestly, I’m OK with that.

My Shoeless Joe Jackson Dream Card List

Just for fun, I put together my Dream List of Joe Jackson cards:

• 2026 Topps Black Crackleboard (/10) #T91-27

• 1915 Cracker Jack #103

• 1910 Old Mill Series 8

• 1916 M101-4 Gimbels #87

The only one I own of the list above is a 2026 Topps Black Crackleboard (/10) card, but I think all of his earliest cards plus a few of the more notable modern cards will see tremendous gains in late 2027 when the Joe Jackson start starts to pick up some steam.

If the Hall of Fame momentum builds the way I think it will, today’s prices could look wildly inexpensive in hindsight.

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