The Evolution Of Luka Dončić's Card Market Since The Infamous Trade
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Everyone remembers where they were for that trade. No one in the history of basketball could have anticipated receiving that notification from Shams Charania on February 1, 2025, yet here we are one and a half years later.
Throughout his entire career, Luka Dončić has been revered as a special type of player. No matter what the media thinks, what the haters say, or even any lack of individual accolades, he's always been and still is one of the best basketball players in the whole world. His nickname is Luka Magic for a reason.
If he wasn't already in the spotlight in Dallas before, he sure is center stage on the Los Angeles Lakers now. That's translated well for his sports card market, especially, with multiple high points throughout the 2025-26 NBA season further strengthening his superstar status within the Hobby.
Luka Dončić Overall Market Trend Since February 2025
CardLadder's Index Data shows the collective growth across Luka Dončić's card market, and since the February 1, 2025 trade, it's currently higher than where it started.
Luka's market peaked during the 2025-26 NBA regular season, first in October, then during the Christmas season, and finally in April once the Lakers made the playoffs.
His lack of game time, the Lakers' early exit from the postseason, and the general cooling-off period that sports cards experience once the games are over have left his market steady over the past two months with no significant changes.
Luka's Cards With The Most Sales Since The Trade
The most iconic of all Luka Dončić rookie cards is the #280 from 2018 Panini Prizm, which shows The Don taking his signature fadeaway shot. In a PSA 10 grade, this card has moved more than any other since the Luka-AD trade, with just under 1,000 deals completed.
Its market value has fluctuated a fair amount, with highs of $250 and lows close to $150. As of now, it's right in the middle at a $195 valuation. PSA 10 sales of this specific card beat out raw and PSA 9 numbers by a significant margin, and it is by far the most liquid Luka Dončić card of all time.
The raw version of Luka's rookie card from 2018 Hoops takes second place with around 750 known sales since he got traded to the Lakers. It's an inexpensive card with not a lot of upside once graded, even in a PSA 10, with the raw price around $13 and the Gem Mint label adding only $60 more.
Still, it's a Luka RC that's changed hands a whole lot over the last year and a half. Perhaps one historic run with the Lakers is all it'll take to make this card even somewhat of a grail in terms of monetary value.
With the third-most sales since the trade is yet another iconic Luka Dončić rookie card, this time from 2018 Donruss. Fully equipped with the fan-favorite Rated Rookie logo, a PSA 10 copy of this piece is worth over $100 and has been sold close to 600 times in the past year and a half.
This card reached its peak in April this year during the Lakers' playoff run, and the highest it sold for within that time period was $177.50.
Top Individual Luka Dončić Sales As A Laker
The record for any Luka Dončić card ever is $4,700,000, and that was the amount paid for his 1/1 Logoman RPA from 2018 Panini Flawless. It sold in September 2025 before the season began and is still his most prized collectible to date.
A more recent Luka grail that sold during his current tenure in Los Angeles is this 1/1 Green Kaboom! from 2023 Crown Royale, which is also encased in a PSA 7 slab. At $396,500, it's the most valuable Luka Dončić solo card that didn't come from his rookie season.
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Joaqin is a journalist with a strong passion for the Hobby. He has published work for HLTV.org, Rappler.com, and DLSU Sports. A decade-long Pokémon TCG collector, he recently shifted into sports cards to collect Lakers, Dodgers and Chargers players with growing PCs of Shohei Ohtani and Justin Herbert.