Tyler Hansbrough's 2009-10 Topps Prestige rookie card is a good value for collectors on a budget.
BY NEIL FULLER
Progress-Index Sports Reporter
The NBA season has arrived — without two key rookies.
A broken kneecap has put top-overall draft pick Blake Griffin on the shelf for at least six weeks. The Los Angeles Clippers are currently 0-3 without the former Oklahoma All-American in their lineup.
Griffin averaged 13.7 points and 8.1 rebounds per game in the preseason, giving Clippers fans — if they actually exist — reason for optimism.
But as so often happens in Los Angeles, those high hopes for the Clippers are fading fast.
Indiana Pacers fans are still waiting for Tyler Hansbrough, the 2007-08 national player of the year at North Carolina, to make his debut.
Hansbrough, the No. 13 pick in the 2009 NBA draft, has been sidelined with a familiar problem — a bum shin.
Collectors are being patient with both players.
Griffin has four cards listed in the basketball hot list in the November edition of Beckett Sports Card Monthly.
Griffin’s 2009-10 Topps Chrome rookie card [No. 96, listing for as much as $30] trails only LeBron James’ 2003-04 Exquisite Collection autographed jersey rookie card [No. 78, listing for as much as $11,000] on the hot list.
Hansbrough, North Carolina’s all-time leading scorer, checks in with two cards on the hot list. His 2009-10 Topps Chrome rookie card [No. 108, listing for as much as $25] has landed at No. 6.
Hansbrough also holds down the No. 8 spot with his 2009-10 Topps rookie card [No. 328, listing for as much as $6].
The Pacers are currently 0-2. Indiana is banking that Hansbrough, who helped lead North Carolina to the NCAA championship as a senior, will help provide a strong push over the .500 mark once he returns.
Call Hansbrough anything you like, Duke fans. But you have to call him a winner.
It’s a simple fact collectors seem to be grasping.
Griffin’s Topps rookie card [No. 316, listing for as much as $8] is No. 3 on the Beckett hot list. He also shows up at No. 12 with his 2009-10 Bowman 48 rookie card [No. 101, listing for as much as $12] and No. 14 with his Topps Chrome Refractors rookie card [No. 96], which currently commands $40 on the national market.
Expect to pay a bit more if travelling through Oklahoma.
Second-year Chicago Bulls point guard Derrick Rose remains popular with collectors. Rose has two cards listed on the hot list.
Rose’s 2008-09 Exquisite Collection Autographs rookie card [No. AUTODE] is fetching up to $160 and checks in at No. 9. His 2008-09 Ultimate Collection autographed jersey rookie card [No. 125, listing for as much as $160] is ranked No. 16.
Former Kansas State All-American and current Miami Heat forward has taken a hit on the hot list, falling 15 spots to No. 18 with his 2008-09 Exquisite Collection autographed jersey rookie card [No. 91] — which still commands a top-dollar fee of $600 in mint condition.
A NEW DAY: The sports card industry is a different beast than it was 20 years ago — when Upper Deck first began producing its baseball product.
The vast changes are not lost on Upper Deck CEO Richard McWilliam.
“When Upper Deck debuted in 1989, we revolutionized the industry,” McWilliam told Beckett. “And we’ve continuously brought innovation and unique content to it over the past 20 years. Times are tough for everyone right now and our industry is no different. Hobby shops are hurting and collectors simply don’t have as much disposable income to spend on trading cards anymore. We understand the economic climate — and we’ll continue to produce cards that are worth collecting.
“I believe these challenges are new opportunities for Upper Deck to revolutionize the industry again.”
Topps now has exclusive rights to the major leagues and Panini own the exclusive rights for producing NBA cards.
Upper Deck has emerged as the sole licensee in the hockey card industry.
Upper Deck has a tradition of producing beautiful NHL products — including the 2008-09 factory set which currently lists for as much as $350.
Upper Deck has also reached a deal with the NCAA to begin producing college sports cards. According to the company, football; men’s and women’s basketball; lacrosse; and baseball will be among the first sets to hit shelves at hobby stores.
