Where To Go?

Currently the Cleveland Cavaliers are sitting in the #3 spot with 18 games left for them, so they will make the playoffs and should be facing the 76ers in the first round (based off of the current standings). But bigger news is the state of the Cavs, they are no longer cohesive like they once were. Gone is Kyrie Irving, Kevin Love has opened up about his mental health (anxiety) and soon LeBron James may be up for The Decision II.

It is rumored that LeBron has whittled his selection down to four teams, Cavs, Lakers, 76ers and Rockets. There is no question that any team he is on becomes significantly better and they become an automatic contender for the Finals, but which team makes the best sense? Personally, I feel that if he does leave the Cavs I would love to see him play in Philadelphia, the “Trust the process” has seemed to work and adding LeBron would put them over the top.

Remember, you saw it here first, my prediction is he heads to Philly.

LeBron + Cleveland = Collectors $$$?

Will LeBron’s move back to Cleveland make big waves in the hobby?

 

 

The Closing Gavel Falls On LeBron!

Last week 2012-13 UD Exquisite Collection Basketball was released and one of the two biggest hits (the Jordan version is the other big hit) was pulled on the first day, the 16-time LeBron James autograph booklet. It was posted up for auction on 11/19 with a 99 cent opening bid but that did not last for long, within 24 hours it had jumped to over $3,500. Now the 6 day auction comes to a close with the final price of… $7,500

 

That breaks down to $468.75 per signature, is that a reasonable price for a LeBron sticker autograph? I wonder what the Michael Jordan 16-time autograph booklet would go for if it were put up for auction?

Upper Deck.... WTF?

Today’s “WTF?” Moment goes to Upper Deck and their Michael Jordan and LeBron James 16-autograph booklet cards. That is one booklet with 16 autographs of Michael Jordan! Jordan and LeBron’s autographs have some of the highest value in all of sports but will 16 sticker autographs equate 16x the value?

 

Upper Deck teased these images on their blog yesterday along with other images from the upcoming Exquisite Collection Basketball set scheduled to come out in two weeks.

 

My first thought, besides OVERKILL! was what if some unscrupulous person gets a hold of one of these books, removes the 16 stickers and affixes them to 16 regular Michael Jordan (or LeBron James) cards and advertises them as “Proof” or “Unreleased Test” cards. Sure it will cost them some good money upfront for the 16 signature card but if they can make significantly more back on 16 fake 1/1 cards then the ends will justify the means. Sure the autograph will have value but it is still just a sticker attached to a $5 card that you just paid thousands of dollars to add to your collection.

My second thought was, is Upper Deck liquidating its autograph sticker stock for a reason? Could Upper Deck be long for this world or are they anticipating loosing player contracts?

LeBron At The National

Beckett has reported that Panini will unveil LeBron James’ first card with him in a Heat jersey, additionally Chris Bosh cards with him in a Heat jersey will also be released. Collectors who open 5 packs of Panini NBA or NFL cards at Panini’s booth will receive a pack of cards made specifically for the National. There are a total of 50 athletes from the NBA, NFL, hockey and college baseball that will be available in these special National packs. The list of 50 athletes includes James and Bosh in their new Heat jerseys as well as others I have listed below.

NBA:
LeBron James
Chris Bosh
Brandon Jennings
Carmelo Anthony
Dwyane Wade
Kevin Durant
Kobe
Larry Bird
Magic Johnson
Tyreke Evans

NFL:
Adrian Peterson
Brett Favre
C.J. Spiller
Colt McCoy
Dez Bryant
Drew Brees
Joe Flacco
Peyton Manning
Ray Rice
Ryan Matthews
Sam Bradford
Tim Tebow
Tony Romo
Tom Brady

NHL:
Sidney Crosby
Ryan Miller
Jonathan Toews
Henrik Sedin
Alex Ovechkin
Jose Theodore

#23

In 1997 Major League Baseball retired #42 to honor Jackie Robinson, new players are no longer able to wear that number. Last night following the Cavaliers/Heat game LeBron announced that he will be switching from #23 to #6 after this season ends and is asking the to NBA retire #23 league wide.

He explains his reasoning as his way of showing respect to Michael Jordan, which seems pretty humbling: As LeBron put it “There would be no LeBron James, no Kobe Bryant, no Dwyane Wade if there wasn't Michael Jordan first.” On the surface this seems as a respectful offering from one of today’s top players, he sees how the history of the game has set the standard for today’s stars. LeBron wore #6 during international play and it has been rumored that he wears #6 in practice on occasion.

According to NBA rules LeBron has until March to formally request the jersey number change if he remains with Cleveland. If he signs with a new team he will be able to select any jersey number at that time. There are only about a dozen players in the NBA that wear #23 and so far one of them, the Suns Jason Richardson, has come out in full support of LeBron’s suggestion.

Would this be a wise decision for the NBA? History says, “Yes”. When Jordan came back wearing the #45, jersey sales increased, the same thing happened when Bryant switched from #24 to #8. This could turn out to be a positive for the card companies too. Collectors will be racing to pick up the new releases to get LeBron in his new jersey number. Upper Deck having the exclusive with LeBron could profit as well.