Caitlin Clark, Michael Jordan, Anthony Edwards Among Five Favorite Basketball Card Sales of the Week
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It's been another big week at the top-end of the basketball hobby, with some intriguing sales of some of the sport's most iconic cards, and interesting auctions of some of the game's brightest young stars. Today, we're looking back at last week's auctions on Fanatics Collect and Goldin, to bring you five of our favorite basketball card sales of the week.
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It's an oldie, but a goodie. Jordan's beautiful 1986 Fleer Basketball RC sold for $348,000 last Friday. While we've seen plenty of sales of one of the basketball hobby's finest, this is the first PSA 10 sale, per Card Ladder, this is substantially higher than the two PSA 10 versions of the card that sold in March, which went for $168,000 and $204,000. This is also the highest sale of the card since January of 2024.
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This isn't a card sale per se, but it's a fun one regardless. A sealed box of the 1986 Fleer Basketball set from which Jordan's legendary rookie was born. Sure, picking up this box (if you dare to open it) means crossing your fingers for that Jordan, but there's some other beauties to be pulled as well. One of the greatest sets in the history of the hobby, a gap in product releases meant this set came with perhaps the greatest rookie class of all-time. There's Jordan sure, but Charles Barkley, Karl Malone, Clyde Drexler, Chris Mullin, Dominique Wilkins, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Patrick Ewing all have RC's to go after. Opening a box of this set is a bucket list item for many a basketball collector. This box sold for $180,000.
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Caitlin Clark's rise in The Hobby has been well-documented. The Indiana Fever superstar's meteoric rise has captivated audiences and collectors across the country. One of the biggest Clark sales of all-time came on Sunday, when a 2024 Panini Prizm WNBA Throwback Signatures Gold Prizm 1/1 went for $244,000 through an auction at Goldin.
Plenty has been said about Jayson Tatum over the last couple of years. At first, he had to win before he could assume the mantle as the face of the league. Then he won, but it still seems like pundits, fans, and collectors are hesitant to crown him King. In the meantime, Tatum just keeps on winning, scoring at least 35 points in the last three games of Boston's first-round win over Orlando. He hasn't hit the Hobby heights some of his biggest fans had hoped or projected, but he looks ready to seize the opportunity to go back-to-back. Would this make Tatum undeniable? His 2017 Donruss Optic Gold Vinyl 1/1 sold for $40,800 through Fanatics. The card sold in June of last year for $26,840.
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While Tatum hasn't fully taken the torch, many believe it will be Anthony Edwards who climbs to the top of the mountain. The electric guard has been phenomenal in building a 3-1 series lead over LeBron, Luka, and the Lakers. He has a chance to further enhance his reputation by sending those two superstars packing tonight.
This Panini One and One is just a phenomenal Anthony Edwards card. The action image sums up the fear Edwards puts into the defenders, his otherwordly athleticism and his preposterous power. The card sold through Goldin for over $40,000.
With the increased attention and eyeballs on the league as the NBA heads deeper into the 2025 playoffs, we're sure to see more huge cards move in the weeks ahead.
Michael Terry is a writer based in Brooklyn. He specializes in sports, culture, and collecting. His work has appeared at Topps RIPPED, ESPN, Grantland, Vice Sports, and more.
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