It's All In The Details

1998 Upper Deck SPx ProMotion Warrick Dunn (Front)

1998 Upper Deck SPx ProMotion Warrick Dunn (Back)

It's true what they say, "…it's all in the details". Check out this 1998 Upper Deck SPx ProMotion card of Warrick Dunn. The foiling, hologram and die cut details are nice, but look at the football helmet shaped Upper Deck hologram in the bottom right corner. If you look closely, you can even see an earhole. There was some definite thought put into the detail of this card.

The detail of these SPx ProMotion cards is why I am currently trying to put together four SPx insert sets from the late 90's that feature similar diecut and hologram designs. Here's a little more background on these Upper Deck SPx inserts I'm collecting.

As many of you know, I currently have what seems like a thousand collections going. I can't help it. There're just so many great cards, magazines, kicks and posters out there to collect. One of the first actions that got me back into the hobby several years back was the rediscovering of late 90's SPx inserts. Mainly, the '98 SPx Duo View hockey cards, '97 and '98 SPx Pro Motion basketball cards, the '97 SPx Cornerstones baseball cards and the '97 and '98 SPx Pro Motion football cards. With the exception of the '98 Pro Motion cards, these sets are all very similar featuring cool die cut designs and crystal clear holograms. Because of those design attributes, I've always liked them.

So far, I have a few cards in five out of the six SPx sets listed above. The first set I started building was the '97 SPx Pro Motion basketball set. In my humble opinion, it's highlighted by one of the best looking Michael Jordan cards in the hobby (click here). Ironically, that's the only card I need to complete that five card set. Even without the Jordan, I'm pretty excited to be 80% done with the set. Unfortunately, I'm not as far with the other five sets. I have a few cards in each set and am slowly building each set. I would like to complete two out of the six sets this year as they are my highest collecting priority.

If anyone has any SPx insert cards from the six sets I'm collecting, let me know. I'd love to get these collections jump started with a few trades. You can look at my want lists and trade album by clicking here. There are a few jersey and auto'd football, baseball and basketball cards in there now. I'm always open to trades with fellow bloggers as well as anyone who is a member of Collectors Card World and Sports Card Forum. Thanks for reading and… "Enjoy Every Bounce of the Ball".

The Jordan Collection (Part 8): '91 Sports Illustrated Michael Jordan Sportsman Of The Year Hologram Proof

In this 8th installment of The Jordan Collection post series, I'm featuring this commemorative printer's proof of the Michael Jordan hologram featured on the 1991 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year cover. The proof is exact in every way to the hologram on the cover of the magazines, with the one exception of the proof being double sided. You can read an earlier post I did on the actual Sportsman of the Year Sports Illustrated magazine by clicking here to get a background on the item.

The printers proof hologram featured in this post is rare. How rare you might ask? I've only seen three of these on eBay in the three years I've been searching for one of these. So although I don't have an exact number to provide you, I'm assuming there aren't too many of these out there. That makes this approximately 5' x 3'' Jordan hologram a very unique item. I was lucky to grab this item several months ago.

The slide show above includes 18 images of the hologram in which I tried to capture as many of the images in the hologram as possible. Hopefully you can see the clarity, detail and vivid colors this awesome Jordan hologram possesses.

For those of you who read my blog regularly, you probably recognize this post from a few months ago. I am reposting some of my favorite posts from The Jordan Collection series prior to a new video post of a Jordan item that I am pretty excited about. I just got a new item in and I hope to have it posted this weekend.
Happy collecting and… "Enjoy Every Bounce of the Ball".

Have You Seen Me???

'98 Upper Deck SPx ProMotion Football & Basketball

As many of you know, I'm putting together the late 90's Upper Deck SPx ProMotion, Cornerstones and Duo View sets for all four of the major sports. The design of these sets are very similar featuring die cuts and holograms. I have been doing well with the sets from '97, but have not had much luck with the basketball and football cards from '98. So I'm putting an all points bulletin out for these cards. If anyone out there has ANY of the cards from the 1998 basketball or football Upper Deck SPx ProMotion sets and would like to work a trade out, let me know. You can view my trade/want list here. Thanks and… "Enjoy Every Bounce of the Ball".

Pudge Rodriguez and Mike Piazza In The Hoopography House: '97 Upper Deck SPx Cornerstones

'97 Upper Deck SPx Cornerstones Rodriguez/Piazza

I know it's been about a week or so since my last post. I've been extremely busy with work and family. I actually became an uncle this past weekend which I'm very excited about. With as busy as I've been though, don't think I'm not collecting or staying up to date with the hobby happenings. I just got in a few new items in recently and I'm posting today about what I think is a pretty sweet addition to my late 90's Upper Deck SPx Pro Motion and SPx Force sets. As many of you probably know, I'm currently putting together all of the SPx Pro Motion, Cornerstone, Duo View and Force sets from '97 and '98 for football, baseball, hockey and basketball. It's a tall order, but I'm a huge fan of the die-cut and hologram designs from these sets.

Jeter/Rodriguez

This Ivan Rodriguez and Mike Piazza card is the second card from the '97 baseball Cornerstones set I've been able to add to the collection. The first one I got was the Derek Jeter and Alex Rodriguez you see to the right. These cards are beautiful. The set name is Cornerstones, but they are basically the same design as the basketball and football Pro Motion sets. I'm not quiet sure why Upper Deck decided to call the baseball and hockey (Duo View) sets by different names. No matter what the name, one thing is for sure. The gold foiling in the backgrounds, die-cut designs and crystal clear holograms make these inserts standout. I paid $5.00 including shipping for the Rodriguez and Piazza. It's not that the baseball Cornerstones cards sell for exorbitant prices, but that was a Rickey Henderson type steal.

I apologize for the lack of posts last week, but I needed some time to focus on a view other things. No worries though. I have a number of new items that I just added to my collection that I'm excited to post about over the next few days. Happy collecting and… "Enjoy Every Crack Of The Bat".

Super Joe Montana In The Hoopography House: '97 Upper Deck SPx ProMotion

'97 Upper Deck SPx Promotion Joe Montana

I know it's been about a week since my last post, but I'm back with what I think is a pretty sweet addition to my late 90's Upper Deck SPx Pro Motion and Force sets. As many of you probably know, I'm currently putting together all of the SPx Pro Motion, Cornerstone, Duo View and Force sets from '97 and '98 for football, baseball, hockey and basketball. It's a tall order, but I'm a huge fan of the die-cut and hologram designs from these sets.

This Montana is my fourth card from the '97 football Pro Motion set and I think really the best. The Barry Sanders is a nice card and so is the Dan Marino, but I hate Marino. So therefore, the Montana is the winner. At least it is for me. I remember him playing for the Chiefs and going to a Bills game here in Buffalo with my dad just to see the legend himself. Also the price on this card wasn't too bad either. I paid $13.00 which really is very reasonable. I once tried to buy this card two years ago at a card show for $25.00, but the seller wouldn't go any lower than $35.00. So for $13.00, I'm a pretty happy collector.

I apologize for the lack of posts last week, but I needed some time to focus on a view other things last week. No worries though. I have a number of posts lined up for this week. Happy collecting and… "Enjoy Every Sparkle on Super Joe's Super Rings".

3 Sports... 3 Cards

Apparently, Blogger has had some issues the past couple of days. I'm not sure how this has affected other blogs, but I haven't been able to post for about 24 hours and my last post was deleted. Maybe somebody over at Blogger wasn't a hockey fan. Anyways, everything seems to be working just fine now. Since I got out of work an hour early, I figured I'd type something up quick.

I've been getting out sniped on eBay pretty regularly over the past few weeks. I've been so close on a number of cards I need for several of the sets I'm putting together, but just haven't been able to close the deal. As frustrating as that's been, there's always another poster, trading card or piece of memorabilia on my Watch List for me to bid on. Here are a few recent eBay wins:

'10 Upper Deck The Cup
Chris Butler Rc

My hockey fever continues with this 2010 Upper Deck The Cup Chris Butler RC. UD's The Cup has been the premier hockey product in the industry for sometime now. I know 2011 will be out soon, and I'm pretty excited about that. Also, Panini has just released a preview on The Knight's Lance for their high-end hockey product called Dominion Hockey. Both will feature on-card auto's and great patches. I'm pretty excited to see these two products go head-to-head.

The Butler card isn't autographed or anything fancy like that. It's just a well designed RC that is limited to only 25. Butler is a young defensemen for my Buffalo Sabres. He started the season as a healthy scratch most nights, but was often paired with Tyler Myers as the Sabres' top defensive duo by season's end.

I'm glad to add this super thick card to my ever growing hockey collection. It really didn't set me back too much either. I think I paid under $10 including the shipping. Well worth it for an up and coming player in the Sabres franchise. Hopefully Butler will be here in Buffalo for a longtime to come.

'97 Topps Finest Anfernee Hardaway
 Gold Refractor

I'm sure many of you know by now that I'm a huge "Penny" Hardaway collector. I was a fan back in his playing days and there are just a ton of great inserts and auto's out there of Hardaway to collect. Plus, who didn't like those Lil' Penny Nike commercials from the 90's? He is just a fun player to collect.

This 1997 Topps Finest Gold Refractor is a Hardaway card I've been going after for sometime. For some reason, I've gravitated to these Finest Gold Refractors. I have about 10 different ones right now. I'm not actually trying to put the set together… I swear. I've seen this Hardaway card sell for $30.00 bucks before and one also sold for $18.09 recently. However, I was somehow able to steal this one for $9.99. I can certainly deal with a half-price auction win!

It's been awhile since I've picked up a nice Hardaway card. Hopefully this Gold Refractor will get me back in the Hardaway swing of things. Especially if I'm able to pick one or two up for a few pennys. Gotta love a cheesy play on words.

'97 Upper Deck SPx Pro Motion Troy Aikman

The '97 Upper Deck SPx Pro Motion set is one of those sets I'm attempting to put together. Actually, I'm putting together all the SPx Pro Motion sets across all four major sports for both '97 and '98. This Troy Aikman is a great addition to the '97 Football set. I unfortunately scanned the card in a top loader, so the scan didn't turn out too great. Although I'm certainly no Dallas Cowboys fan, not bitter at all about Super Bowls XXVII and XXVIII, I love the card's design. I'm getting close with both the '97 basketball and football sets, but the baseball and hockey are a struggle. Also, my '98 Pro Motion sets are coming along even worse, but I'll keep working on them. The chase is all apart of the fun. Happy collecting and… "Enjoy Every Bounce of the Ball".

Barry Sanders In The Hoopography House: 1997 Upper Deck SPx Pro Motion

Here is my most recent eBay conquest and addition to my four sport Upper Deck SPx insert collection. As I'll outline below, I am currently trying to put together four SPx insert sets from the late 90's that feature similar diecut and hologram designs. This Barry Sanders is the second football card to the collection thus far and is pretty sweet if I do say so myself. Here's a little more background on these Upper Deck SPx inserts.

As many of you know, I currently have what seems like a thousand collections going. I can't help it. There're just so many great cards, magazines, kicks and posters out there to collect. One of the first items that got me back into the hobby several years back was the rediscovering of late 90's SPx inserts. Mainly, the '98 SPx Duo View hockey cards, '97 and '98 SPx Pro Motion basketball cards, the '97 SPx Cornerstones baseball cards and the '97 SPx Pro Motion football cards. With the exception of the '98 Pro Motion cards, these sets are all very similar featuring cool die cut designs and crystal clear holograms. Because of those design attributes, I've always liked them.

So far, I have a few cards in four out of the five SPx sets listed above. The first set I started building was the '97 SPx Pro Motion basketball set. In my humble opinion, it's highlighted by one of the best looking Michael Jordan cards in the hobby (click here). Ironically, that's the only card I need to complete the five card set. Even without the Jordan, I'm pretty excited to be 80% done with the set. Unfortunately, I'm not as far with the other four sets. I have the '97 Jeter/A-Rod Cornerstones card pictured above, the '97 Karim Abdul-Jabbar Pro Motion card pictured below and the Barry Sanders card pictured at the beginning of the post.

If anyone has any SPx insert cards from the five sets I'm collecting, let me know. I'd love to get these collections jump started with a few trades. You can look at my want lists and trade album by clicking here. There are a few jersey and auto'd football, baseball and basketball cards in there now. I'm always open to trades with fellow bloggers as well as anyone who is a member of Collectors Card World and Sports Card Forum. Thanks for reading and… "Enjoy Every Bounce of the Ball".

The Jordan Collection (Part 6): The '91 Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year Jordan Issue

Sports Illustrated: Dec. 23rd, 1991 Sportsman of the Year

One of the coolest looking Sports Illustrated issues and pieces of Michael Jordan memorabilia of all-time is the above December 23rd, 1991 “Sportsman of the year” issue featuring a hologram of Michael Jordan and a bright red background. Oddly enough, for as neat as this item looks, and the fact that "His Airness" himself is featured, it's not too pricey. Not too pricey relative to the original Jordan S.I. cover from 1984 that has sold for upwards of $175 in mint condition. I know because I once, and let me reiterate once, bid on one of those rare mint UNC 1984 S.I magazines (once is enough to realize the damage a click of a mouse could do to the old wallet).

Hologram technology was fairly new at the time this issue came out, and it was especially interesting for a magazine to utilize the holographic technology. This issue can be had for right around $6 to $15 (click here) depending on condition. Here's a current eBay auction with one day remaining (click here). The issue looks to be in nr-mint condition and for a fair price.

The early UNC 1984 Jordan S.I. issue is certainly a nice piece to add to any collection. However, considering the disparity in price and cool look of the hologram, the "Sportsman of the Year" issue is more than a great substitute. This is without question one of the best Michael Jordan pieces of memorabilia a collector can add to their collection.

Happy collecting and… "Enjoy Every Bounce of the Ball".

Yet Another 90's Insert Set: Upper Deck SPx Pro Motion, Cornerstones and Duo View

Here is my most recent eBay conquest and addition to my four sport Upper Deck SPx insert collection. As I'll outline below, I am currently trying to put together four SPx insert sets from the late 90's that feature similar diecut and hologram designs. This Barry Sanders is the second football card to the collection thus far and is pretty sweet if I do say so myself. Here's a little more background on these Upper Deck SPx inserts.

As many of you know, I currently have what seems like a thousand collections going. I can't help it. There're just so many great cards, magazines, kicks and posters out there to collect. One of the first items that got me back into the hobby several years back was the rediscovering of late 90's SPx inserts. Mainly, the '98 SPx Duo View hockey cards, '97 and '98 SPx Pro Motion basketball cards, the '97 SPx Cornerstones baseball cards and the '97 SPx Pro Motion football cards. With the exception of the '98 Pro Motion cards, these sets are all very similar featuring cool die cut designs and crystal clear holograms. Because of those design attributes, I've always liked them.

So far, I have a few cards in four out of the five SPx sets listed above. The first set I started building was the '97 SPx Pro Motion basketball set. In my humble opinion, it's highlighted by one of the best looking Michael Jordan cards in the hobby (click here). Ironically, that's the only card I need to complete the five card set. Even without the Jordan, I'm pretty excited to be 80% done with the set. Unfortunately, I'm not as far with the other four sets. I have the '97 Jeter/A-Rod Cornerstones card pictured above, the '97 Karim Abdul-Jabbar Pro Motion card pictured below and the Barry Sanders card pictured at the beginning of the post.

If anyone has any SPx insert cards from the five sets I'm collecting, let me know. I'd love to get these collections jump started with a few trades. You can look at my want lists and trade album by clicking here. There are a few jersey and auto'd football, baseball and basketball cards in there now. I'm always open to trades with fellow bloggers as well as anyone who is a member of Collectors Card World and Sports Card Forum. Thanks for reading and… "Enjoy Every Bounce of the Ball".

The "Dominator" Dominates This Cool Card On The Cheap

1997 Upper Deck Dominik Hasek Holoview Collection

One of my favorite Buffalo athletes of all-time is former Buffalo Sabres net-minder Dominik Hasek. The "Dominator" was just that, dominant. The six-time Vezina Trophy winner and two-time Hart Trophy (League MVP) winner has a minuscule career 2.02 GAA and .925 career SV%. As much as I like current Buffalo Sabres goalie Ryan Miller, he's got nothing on Hasek.

Here's a recent Hasek pickup I made on eBay for just under $3.00 including shipping. This 1997 Upper Deck Holoview Collection card combines two of my favorite card attributes with the vivid holoview surface and die-cut edges. I'm also digging the late 90's Buffalo Sabres uniforms. I love getting cool cards on the cheap. Happy collecting and… "Enjoy Every Bounce of the Ball".

Who Remembers Big Bad Gheorghe Muresan?

'97 Gheorghe Muresan Upper Deck SP

Alright, maybe Gheorghe wasn't such a bad, tough, shut your mouth kinda player, but he sure was big. At 7 ft. 7 ins., you could say that Muresan towered over the competition (look closely at the card for the reference). The former 30th pick in the second round of the '93 NBA Draft was certainly a fan favorite because of his size, but he was also a contributor on the court. Muresan was the NBA's Most Improved Player for the '95-'96 season averaging 14.5 points, 9.9 rebounds and 2.26 blocks/game. He finished his NBA career with averages of 9.8 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.48 blocks/game. Those are solid career averages, but it's what Muresan did away from the court that might be more memorable.

Muresan has appeared in every-thing from an Eminem music video, a film with Billy Crystal called My Giant and numerous television commercials. Here's one of Gheorghe's funny ESPN commercials.


- Cool Card Attribute: The '97 Upper Deck SP set featured an ultra cool holo-foiling on the front surface of the card that made for a very nice looking base card.

- Fun Fact: Big Gheorghe wore number 77 in honor of his height.

Should Card Companies Bring Holograms Back?

1997 Upper Deck SPx Great Futures

The hologram is a technology used in trading cards primarily in the 90's, but should this card technology be used in trading card design today?

I'm a big fan of any trading card technology used in 90's card design, and holograms add so much to the overall look of basically a piece of cardboard. The obvious mirrored shinny aesthetic is very impressive, but holograms also allow card designers to incorporate multiple images in essentially one spot of that pieces of cardboard we so covet.

I'd certainly like to see holograms back in the hobby, but what do you think? Do you want to see holo's back in the hobby?

What's Your White Whale?

1996 Upper Deck SPx Anfernee Hardaway Tribute Auto 239/300                                         Upper Deck Authenticated COA

The endless pursuit of that elusive item referred to as a "White Whale" is what gets a collector's heart pumping. I recently ended my nearly three year search for this '96 UD SPx Anfernee Hardaway Tribute Auto'd card, and thought it would be fun to find out what are some of the white whales that other collectors have and/or are currently chasing?

As for my white whale, "it's a beaut Clark". Yep, Thanksgiving is over and I just watched National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. I'll spare you from anymore Christmas movie quotes for now and get right to the card. With a print run of only three hundred, this card is fairly rare. Also, once a Hardaway fan gets a hold of the Tribute Auto, they rarely let it out of their collection. There's good reason for this. Upper Deck's SPx line debuted in '96 and the early SPx card designs are highly regarded by collectors. These were die cut sets that featured hologram technology on every card. No matter what the sport, it's always fun to bust open a box of the '96, '97, or '98 SPx products.

During the mid to late 90's, Hardaway was one of UD's most important spokesmen. Behind The G.O.A.T., no one was more important to UD's basketball product than Mr. Hardaway. Because of this, UD and UDA featured Hardaway in many sets and UDA products. One of those featured cards was the '96 UD SPx Hardaway Non Auto'd Tribute card inserted into pack at a rate of 1:95. UD also inserted a Michael Jordan Record Breaker card into packs at a rate of 1:75. Since it's such a cool looking card, I included it here in the post for your viewing. UD also inserted trade cards into packs that could be redeemed for the corresponding Jordan or Hardaway auto. The Hardaway Trade auto is an auto'd version of the SPx base card and can be seen here. Although the Trade auto is nice, the Tribute auto is a bit different.

The Tribute auto was not available from packs. Actually, the only way you could obtain the card was through Upper Deck Authenticated. UDA is simply UD's memorabilia division. These three hundred Hardaway Tribute auto's were sold to collectors through UDA catalogues and the scarce brick and mortar stores. As previously mentioned, I've been searching for this card for almost three years. Since that time, I've only seen three of these for sale. The first did not have the matching COA. The second sold for well above my price limit. The third is the card you see in this post. Like I said, Hardaway collectors don't let go of this one. It's been at the top of my wish list for a longtime, and I was finally able to add it to my collection recently. I'm certainly excited about catching my whale, but that also means the next whale is being hunted.

So that's my white whale story, what's yours? I would love to hear about any white whale you've caught or are currently chasing? Happy collecting and… "Enjoy Every Bounce of the Ball".

Hoopography Top 25 PC Countdown: #9

Hi collectors! We're finally in the top 10 of the Hoopography Top 25 PC Countdown with this 1996 Upper Deck SP Holoview Michael Jordan. This isn't the rarest card ever. The SP Holoviews were inserted into packs at a rate of 1:7. This isn't even the most expensive Jordan insert ever either. It has a modest book value of only $25. So why is this card in my PC Top 25 Countdown? Three simple points: 

1. Checkout those Nike Air Jordan XI's. The Jordan XI's might not only be the best Jordan kicks ever, but they might just be the best basketball sneakers of all time.
2. The 90's featured some great trading card technologies, but UD mastered the art of the hologram and subsequent holoview. The background on this card is truly awesome.
3. That's one cool picture of "His Airness"!

Trading cards really don't get too much better than this Jordan Holoview for me. Ok, maybe there are eight or so other cards that might be a little better. I have a few more Jordan Holoviews from the 90's that I'll post sometime this week. Stay tuned for those and the next Hoopography Top 25 PC Countdown post.

12th National Sports Collectors Convention Michael Jordan Promo Card

                        (Front)                                           (Back)

The 1991 Sports Collectors Convention was held in Anaheim, California and I'm sure featured some great memorabilia items. Fortunately, if you missed the 12th National Convention, you can still pickup some great memorabilia given out at the event on today's secondary e-markets.

This Michael Jordan card is part of a four card set that I believe was handed out at the entrance of the event as a promo. The three other cards in the set featured Wayne Gretzky, Joe Montana and Nolan Ryan (click here). The fronts are the same on all four cards with the hologram baseball and home plate, and the back has a sports ball to correspond with the player featured.

I have an extra Jordan from the set that can be found in my Trade Bait Album. Hope you enjoyed this piece of sports memorabilia and of course… "Every Bounce of the Ball".

Another 90's Insert Set: '94 UD Triple Double

The card industry in the 90's was filled with creativity and innovation. As many of you know, I'm a huge fan of the 90's insert sets. Don't get me wrong, I collect cards from many sports and many eras, but 90's basketball inserts are my passion. Unfortunately, many of those great sets come with a hefty price tag. I'm currently piecing together a few sets, but one that I've been able to complete is the 1994 Upper Deck Triple Double insert set.

This is not one of the most acclaimed sets of the 90's, but it features some really cool design elements and some of the biggest stars from the mid 90's NBA. The set was fairly easy to complete as I had a few of the cards already. Also, the set has a very manageable $20 book value. The Jordan is the only card that really sells for more than $1 (click here). It has a book value of $15, but never even comes close to that number. Aside from the Jordan, the Scottie Pippen is the other "big" value card in the set at a whopping $4. I'm sure you could pick it up for $.99, if so inclined.

There are ten card in the entire set and they were inserted in to Series 1 packs at the rate of 1:20. They were also inserted one in every Series 1 Green Jumbo pack. The checklist of players that were included in this set include, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Kenny Anderson, Larry Johnson, Dikembe Mutombo, Charles Barkley, Detlef Schrempf, Rumeal Robinson and Michael Williams. Any insert set with Detlef Schrempf in it is good in my book.

Upper Deck really utilized the fairly new hologram technology extensively during the early and mid 90's. This card features both the tradition cardboard and hologram technologies. There is a thin sheet of traditional paper that covers the hologram in the areas that the hologram is not visible. This may look archaic today, but way back in 1995 this was cutting edge stuff. No doubt though, the best part of these cards is the vibrant colors UD used in the backgrounds to match the players uniforms. The use of color in the design of these cards really makes them standout.

It's tough to really appreciate how cool the hologram part of these cards looks, but hopefully you can get a good look at this Charles Barkley UD Triple Double insert.