30 Day Card Challenge 2: A card with more than one person on it

For the second day of the challenge, the concept was a card with more than one person on it. That's a pretty wide variety of subject matter. Does it mean a card set up to be more than one person? Or one made for one specific person that other people appear on prominently? A team card? A League Leaders card? A lot of options! However, I knew instantly when I read the chart what card I was going to showcase.

My first Trio Sticker insert from 1971-72 Topps. This was the first standard size insert card in NBA history. I got this one a card show sometime in the 1990s and when I got it I didn't even know what it was. I knew it was old based on the players but it would be several years before I learned what it actually was. I don't actually remember that story of how I found out. But from whenever I got it in the 1990s until late 2016 it was my only card from the set.

I detailed the new additions to the set I got in late October in this post. It was not the first insert in NBA history. 1969-70 Topps had fold-out rulers, which I don't have in my collection, and 1970-71 Topps had posters, which also came folded. I do have one of those- Willis Reed- but the paper is very brittle. I don't like to handle it much for fear of damaging it. Topps used newsprint for it, but not good newsprint. They probably didn't think there would be anyone trying to collect it more than 40 years later, but there are. I show a scan of my poster in my all-time most popular post, my New York Knicks Uniform History.

Thanks for reading!

Look and see Look 'N See!

Hope that title doesn't confuse anyone, hah! You aren't seeing double! There's a lot more than that in this post, but I thought it was funny.

Yesterday morning, around 2AM, I wrote up a post about some 1956 Topps Jets cards I had acquired. In it, I mentioned that 1952 Topps Look 'N See now held my #1 most wanted non-sport slot. Wouldn't you know it but later that same day, my family took an unexpected trip to the antique mall where my favorite vintage dealer is set up, and he had brought in some Look 'N See since the last time I saw him!

What are the odds of that? I never know what he is going to have new, but I didn't expect it to work out that way. I'm not complaining at all!

As you can see, they are in rather poor shape, but I don't care. I am thrilled to have them!
The backs feature orange writing with a blueish-purple design that tells the answer the trivia question. I know that the cards came with a sheet of red "something" that you put over the card back to reveal the answer, but I don't know exactly what it was. The scanner kind of pulled the blue image enough that you can see it is a swan.

After thinking about it overnight, I think my most wanted non-sport set now is 1996 Batman Holo Series, which is entirely made up of holograms. I'm all over the map.

Now, of course when I go there I make sure to visit all the card dealers. There are 4 set up full time and occasionally more will set up in the seasonal outdoor section they have. This time, there was a dealer I've never met before outside, and he had some great stuff.

Oh yeah! 1971-72 Topps Stickers! These were 1-per pack in the 1971-72 Topps set, but they are MUCH rarer than the base cards. I've completed the base set, years ago, but until yesterday I only had one from this set.
But wait, there's more!

The team logo stickers! These are the keys to the set in my opinion. These are the first time ABA logos EVER appeared on a trading card, and the first time since 1961-62 for the NBA...much different since then, and they were not in color on the Fleer cards. Also, it's interesting because Topps lore has always been that they had the Player's Association licensed, but not the NBA itself, which is why the teams that had their name, not their location, on the jersey front, were worn backwards. Yet here are all the team logos in bright, unmistakable colors. In the very same packs. Makes you think.

1973-74 Topps stickers! An insert into the 1973-74 set, these are in great shape, with almost no adhesive discoloration. I love these. I love team logos and they are rare on cards before the 1980s. Check out that Denver Rockets logo. Is that not great? They changed their name to the Nuggets after the season these were issued in and were one of four teams absorbed by the NBA after 1975-76.

These may be the rarest vintage I got from him, though...

1974 Fleer Cloth Stickers! These are so rare that I could not find a single one for sale on Ebay, and only one on COMC. These are from the 1974-75 season, which was the first year of the Washington Bullets. Most places list them as "1974" only but they are unquestionably 1974-75. These were the first Fleer issues for the NBA since 1961-62, but the adhesive has damaged all of them...which probably is why they are so cheap when you do find them. (I paid less than a dollar each). I am not sure if they were white borders originally but they are yellowish tan now. Each team in the NBA got one, but these are the first ones I have. Fleer also issued glossy paper team logo stickers from 1977-82 that are also missing from my collection currently.

While most of what he had was vintage- not all of it was.

 This Kanter is SN 49.

 This Deng is SN to 99. Both of these cards are the first I have from the parallel set.

 A multi-sport card, this is the largest set in my collection...it is card #1127. I know there are some baseball sets that are larger but this is only the second card in my collection where the card number is quadruple digits. The other is from the same set.

 A Magic Johnson promo. Note the career Laker is wearing an Orlando Magic shirt. I have no idea where this one came from but it's clearly from 1993-94.

 Gold parallel of 2007-08 Sweet Shot. This is only my third card from the set.

I don't even know where this LeBron came from!

This was the first card I actually found yesterday. I always go for the rare teams when I can. You can tell this insert was designed with an autograph parallel in mind.

This one has pretty much everything going for it: It's a 1990s parallel, it's die cut, and it's serially numbered! It's also my first from the Final Cut parallel in my collection.

After paying the new dealer, I went in and saw my regular dealers. The vintage guy doesn't ONLY do vintage, though...I also picked up two decidedly vintage 1957 Topps Planes cards...

...and this 1989-90 Hoops 100 Superstars Michael Jordan card. I remember the first time I saw this set, I was already familiar with the 1989-90 Hoops design, and when I got my first one I was SURE that somebody had colored the border with a highlighter. Eventually I leaned better. I think I realized it wasn't the case when I got the regular card of the same player and it was a different number. It was Scottie Pippen...I don't know why but I remember getting it in 1996. This MJ is not in great shape but I'd rather have a damaged card than no card, you know?

He also had this card, which is totally unlike pretty much everything else he has ever had since I've known him for the past few years.

It's the first autograph I've seen him have in the about 3 years I've known him. It's also the first relic. Autographed rookie jersey cards were a staple in SPx beginning in 2000-01. This card is from 2001-02.

After paying him, I went to another dealer, that mostly has unopened boxes of late 80s and early 90s baseball and hockey. I found a set of Knicks Pogs that I had never seen before there, and promptly added them to my collection. The dealer, who it turned out I knew from Facebook and didn't realize it, thought there were two different versions but all of them in the stack were the same. I think they are from 1994-95. I need to look and see when Charles Smith left the team.

I actually was big into Pogs for a little while, back in the day I would have purchased two sets, one to keep as a unit and one to punch out and use. That was a long time ago, although I do still have my pog collection I have not done anything with them in quite some time.

I looked it up, it was 1994-95. There is nothing on the back, so I have no idea where they came from. My guess is that they were handed out at a game. 

Then I visited the final dealer, who has a ton of cards, but finding what you want is kind of akin to prospecting. All the cards are in boxes, but they are not sorted in any way, shape or form. Sure, you'll find runs of various sets or sports, but mostly it's just a total jumble...and I actually kind of like that. It takes longer to go through, but it's kind of fun seeing all kinds of different cards. I've found some really good stuff in those boxes, and I wrote up a post about the first visit I had to that dealer, but I never actually posted it. I usually take home more than 100 cards but this trip I "only" took home 60. Now, I'm not going to post them all but I will post some highlights.

 7 cards from 2012-13 Panini Brilliance, 2 of which were base, the rest insert. This Anthony Davis card was one I guessed on. There were several I guessed on whether I needed or not...I thought I already had this one, and I figured if nothing else a RC of him would be good trade bait. As it turned out, all the others I guessed on were duplicates, but THIS one turned out to be one I needed! I wish I had a better memory, but in this case it's kind of funny.

 1995-96 SP Premium Collection Holoview of Grant Hill. The last time I got a new insert from 1995-96 SP was 2004. That's been a while!

 The 2014-15 Prestige set was a Target exclusive, and I don't really like how it was done. The base version was normal card stock, the medium priced version was called Prestige Plus and was mirror foil (this card) and the highest price version was called Prestige Premium and was printed on thick holofoil stock. I got lots of the basic version, and I got a Premium box for Christmas that year but I never got any of the Plus cards. I nabbed one on COMC when I finished off the missing sets, but that was an insert. This is my first base card from the Plus set.

 I got 2 base, 1 Prism parallel and 1 insert from 2013-14 Prizm. This is my favorite Prizm design. He had more but I have a lot of them and didn't want to spend money on duplicates.

 Quite a few 2015-16 Select. 10 base and 4 Prizm parallels!

 8 2012-13 Marquee base cards and 1 Champions insert.

 This is probably the best card I got from him. Turner is a great player and this one is SN to only 49! I'm not sure if it's an parallel or a base card. I don't know much about Limited. I've never opened even a single pack of the brand.

 Three inserts from 2003-04 Topps. I didn't realize I was buying three, a Ricky Davis from the same insert was stuck to the back of this one. (no damage to either). Luckily, I needed the Davis too.

4 rookies from 2003-04 Standing O. Last time I went through his boxes, I saw a handful of RC from this set, but I didn't get them. When I got home, I checked my listings and saw I didn't have many from the set, but the only one I remembered him having was Maciej Lampe, who I did have in my collection. When I found them again yesterday they were all still there...except the Lampe!

This one threw me at first...I have a lot of 2012-13 Prestige, but this one as you can see is missing the white strip that's on every veteran base card.

So what is it?

A Starting 5 contest card! I should have known, as this dealer has been the only place I've seen these Panini contest cards, which they have done since 2010-11 and still did as recently as 2015-16. This is the first I've seen from the 2012-13 Prestige set. I didn't know it existed before yesterday.

Then, when I got home, I had a PWE from CrazieJoe waiting for me, but that will be covered in my October trade recap, which I may get posted tomorrow...

Thanks for reading!

2015 Basketball Hall of Fame Inductees

Today marks the 2015 Basketball Hall of Fame Induction ceremony, and it's the first class to go in since the launch of Cardboard History last November.

The biggest name going into the Hall is Dikembe Mutombo, one of the greatest centers to ever play the game.
Mutombo was born in Kinshasa, Zaire, which is now the Congo, and by time he came to the NBA, he was fluent in 7 languages- an amazing feat.
He is most well known for his blocked-shot finger wag, He also was an excellent rebounder.

He entered the League in 1991-92 as the 4th overall draft pick, by the Denver Nuggets. He also played for the Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets, New York Knicks and the Houston Rockets, retiring at the conclusion of the 2008-09 season, during which he played only 9 games. He ranks second all-time in blocked shots and 19th all-time in rebounding. He was an 8-time all-Star and 4 time Defensive Player of the Year. His number #55 jersey- the only jersey number he ever wore in the NBA- will be retired by the Hawks later this coming season.

Perhaps his greatest, lasting legacy is the hospitals he has founded in Africa, and paid for out of his own pocket, however.

1992-93 Upper Deck McDonald's #P10

1997-98 Bowman's Best Best Techniques Atomic Refractor #T1

2002-03 Fleer Genuine Global Warning

Dikembe was also one of the first two players to have an autograph issued, along with fellow 1991 draft pick Larry Johnson, both in 1991-92 Fleer.

1991-92 Fleer Dikembe Mutombo Autograph #8

Jo Jo White had a relatively short career, only 12 years, 10 of which were with the Boston Celtics, where he wore #10, in a funny coincidence. He also played half a season with the Golden State Warriors and ended his career with 13 games for the Kansas City Kings. He entered the League in 1969-70 and his final season was 1980-81, his entire career taking place before I was born. He won two NBA titles with the Celtics, and was named Finals MVP during the 1975-76 season. He earned 7 All-Star appearances and the Celtics have retired his #10- one of 22 numbers they have hung in the rafters.

1975-76 Topps #135

Spencer Haywood is very important to the world of sports- not just basketball- as before he came along, players were forced to be 4 years removed from graduating high school- essentially, if you didn't go to college, you were discriminated against. He took the NBA to court, and it was a vicious battle- but he won, thus paving the way for hundreds, if not thousands of players who came later, and were not forced to toil away during their prime for the NCAA's exploitation. He still faces reprisals from that- the length of time it took him to get into the Hall of Fame, which places undue gravitas on the college game- being the most visible. His NBA career lasted only 13 seasons, and he played for several teams. His most lasting fame came when he led the Seattle SuperSonics- now the Oklahoma City Thunder, although his one Title came when he was a member of the Los Angeles Lakers in 1979-80. He also won both Rookie of the Year AND League MVP during his sole season in the ABA, 1969-70.

2012-13 Panini Preferred #189, AU SN 60/74

Louie Dampier accrued his fame in the ABA, playing his entire career in that league with the Kentucky Colonels. He is in fact probably the greatest ABA player that no one ever talks about. He leads the ABA annals in: Points scored, Games played, minutes played, shots taken and made, assists, 3 point shots taken and made, as well as shots missed (both 2 and 3 point attempts). He played in 7 ABA All-Star games as well, and led the Colonels to the championship in the ABA's penultimate year. When the ABA folded at the conclusion of 1975-76, he was drafted by the San Antonio Spurs, one of the four former ABA teams that the NBA absorbed, and played three seasons with that franchise in the NBA. He is one of only two players to have played in every year of the ABA's existence with one team. (I do not know who the other is)

1971-72 Topps #224

One of the greatest Women's basketball players of all time, and one of the players that built the foundations of the WBNA, is Lisa Leslie. The first WNBA player to dunk during a game, she has accomplished so much more than that. At the time she retired in 2009, she was the all-time leader in points and rebounds in WNBA history. (I do not know if that is still true, but it was then.) Furthermore, she was an 8-time all-star, two time Defensive Player of the Year, three time League MVP, two time Champion with the Finals MVP award both years as well. She also won four Olympic Gold Medals, beginning in 1996. My only cards of her are from her Olympic days.

2000 Topps USA #63

Becoming the 4th person in the Hall of Fame enshrined twice, as both a player and a coach, is Tom Heinsohn. He has spent his entire career with the Boston Celtics, playing for the team from 1956-1965, and then coaching the team from 1969-78. He is currently the color commentator for the team, a staple of the Celtics for 60 years now.
While no cards were issued of him as a coach, he has had several as a player. Only three were issued during his playing career, and I have none of them.

1984-85 Star Schick NBA Legends #14

There are also several people being inducted who have no cards.

Dick Bavetta was a long-time NBA referee, serving the league for nearly 40 years.
Lindsay Gaze is an Australian coach who I know nothing about, other than the fact that he is an Australian coach (I will learn more as I watch the induction). Apparently he's a big deal in his home country, and it is possible he does have cards- the NBL had card sets issued in the 1990s when he was coaching there, but I don't have any of them.
John Isaacs I know absolutely nothing about. He was a player from the Pioneer days before the NBA even existed.
George Raveling is a college coach, and as I don't follow college sports, I had never heard about him before the Hall of Fame class was announced, but the most interesting thing I see in his biography paragraph on NBA.com is that he got an original copy of Martin Luther King Jr's "I have a Dream" speech, in my opinion one of the greatest of all time.
John Calipari is another coach, primarily known for college although he did coach the New Jersey Nets for a short time. He does have a card- in 1996-97 Hoops- but I don't have it. He has at least 1 college card and several issues in the mostly baseball Allen & Ginter releases but I don't have any of them, either. As he is still an active coach, I personally don't believe he should be in the Hall of Fame as yet. His NBA career was certainly not-Hall worthy but I can't comment on his college career.

I'm very much looking forward to watching the Hall of Fame induction ceremonies tonight, at 6:30 PM EST on NBATV. They are always fun to watch, not only for the vintage footage that is shown though that is a big part of it, but also for seeing the people being enshrined have a chance to tell their own story in their own way.

As an aside, I saw when I pulled up Blogger that Cardboard History had hit 20,000 total views since I last logged in around midnight on September 10th. Thank you, readers! I've only been doing this for 10 months so that is a lot more than I expected at this time. Most of my posts average around 50 views so I don't know where these hits are coming from, but I shall not complain.

Throwback Thursday #1 - 1971-72 Topps #121 Gail Goodrich

Throwback Thursday is something that, while I have no idea where it came from, is fun, so I take part occasionally.

I have decided to post a (sometimes) random vintage card on Throwback Thursday. For the NBA, the cutoff will be 1985-86 or older. For non-sports, the cutoff will be 1984 or older. That's the year I was born so I am setting the breakline at my birthday...older than me is vintage, younger than me is not. NASCAR didn't get cards in the vintage era so they will not be included. I have some vintage hockey, baseball and football so they likely WILL be included.

I will try and show one vintage card every week, if I remember and if I have nothing better to post about that day.

Today I begin with the first vintage card I ever purchased, I believe, back in 1996, when I discovered the NBA. A small shop in Fishkill, New York had several vintage cards in the case, and I got three of them all around the same time, but unfortunately I didn't keep records yet at the time. I THINK this one was the first, but it may be the second or third. There's no way to know. However, this is the only one I've scanned of the three possibles so we're going to go with it being the first.

The 1971-72 Topps set is a bright one, and I eventually completed it. Goodrich played for the Lakers, Suns and Jazz,  and was a large part of the Lakers team that set the NBA record 33 consecutive wins, which still stands after more than 40 years. The Lakers retired his #25 and he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1996. The reason I chose this card as my (possible) first vintage card? Because it was there, and I could afford it. (I was 12 at the time I added it to my collection!)

Thanks for reading, and stay tuned for next week's Throwback Thursday!