hairyangryfella
Tag Team Quads 93/94
This could be slightly linked to Gio's thread about the uses for game used jerseys, but it's something I've been thinking about lately anyway, so here is sort of a blog entry from me.
In 1997-98 the first game used jersey cards were released. At huge odds to pull, these cards were extremely valuable and still carry a premium today.
Since then we have seen the phenomenon become so commonplace that we're now getting 2-3 or even more game used cards per pack.
It's great for collectors to have so much available but I wonder if the appreciation has gone. Obviously, not many people are going to want jersey cards of 'scrub' players, but we don't seem to know how lucky we are when we own a card that has an actual piece of a game used jersey worn by Kobe, Lebron, Jordan etc. These are often just $10-40 cards now. When really, it's a piece of a real jersey worn by a legend of the game, that is so easily available to us. We really are lucky in that aspect, especially when you consider how expensive it is to acquire one of these pieces (eg Lebron Miami jersey for $10,000 from Meigray store). Even your 'scrub' or lower-end players jerseys would cost $400-800 if you were to buy it.
Which leads me to another point. Vintage players. Back in the late 90s when jersey cards were being produced I wonder how many people imagined being able to own a card with a jersey of a player from before the 90s. 'Boy, I'd love if they were able to do this with a Julius Erving jersey' they might have said. Or even beyond that. A Jerry West jersey card. That would be truly something special.
And now we have that. And very few people seem to realize how special that actually is.
Game used jerseys are easily available thesedays, with current players wearing many different jerseys during a season (some even wear two per game!). How many do you think were worn back in the 'vintage' era? Not many, I think it's fairly safe to say. So anytime you see a jersey or patch card from someone not from modern times, you've gotta know that it's so much more limited than today's players.
Jerseys of Oscar Robertson, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - these are not in unlimited supply - even someone like George Mikan who has had many jersey/patch cards in the last few years, it seems almost criminal to have cut up one of his extremely rare jerseys to put out in cards. They could be in a museum, yet they've been made available to everyone to be able to get closer to the game.
I think it's time we start appreciating that fact more.
In 1997-98 the first game used jersey cards were released. At huge odds to pull, these cards were extremely valuable and still carry a premium today.
Since then we have seen the phenomenon become so commonplace that we're now getting 2-3 or even more game used cards per pack.
It's great for collectors to have so much available but I wonder if the appreciation has gone. Obviously, not many people are going to want jersey cards of 'scrub' players, but we don't seem to know how lucky we are when we own a card that has an actual piece of a game used jersey worn by Kobe, Lebron, Jordan etc. These are often just $10-40 cards now. When really, it's a piece of a real jersey worn by a legend of the game, that is so easily available to us. We really are lucky in that aspect, especially when you consider how expensive it is to acquire one of these pieces (eg Lebron Miami jersey for $10,000 from Meigray store). Even your 'scrub' or lower-end players jerseys would cost $400-800 if you were to buy it.
Which leads me to another point. Vintage players. Back in the late 90s when jersey cards were being produced I wonder how many people imagined being able to own a card with a jersey of a player from before the 90s. 'Boy, I'd love if they were able to do this with a Julius Erving jersey' they might have said. Or even beyond that. A Jerry West jersey card. That would be truly something special.
And now we have that. And very few people seem to realize how special that actually is.
Game used jerseys are easily available thesedays, with current players wearing many different jerseys during a season (some even wear two per game!). How many do you think were worn back in the 'vintage' era? Not many, I think it's fairly safe to say. So anytime you see a jersey or patch card from someone not from modern times, you've gotta know that it's so much more limited than today's players.
Jerseys of Oscar Robertson, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - these are not in unlimited supply - even someone like George Mikan who has had many jersey/patch cards in the last few years, it seems almost criminal to have cut up one of his extremely rare jerseys to put out in cards. They could be in a museum, yet they've been made available to everyone to be able to get closer to the game.
I think it's time we start appreciating that fact more.