Jalen Brunson Cards catching fire

Collectors didnt know what they had back in 2018 if they got Brunson over Luka Donic in Dallas sports card breaks.

Oct 25, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) reacts during the second quarter against the Indiana Pacers at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The two National Championship teams Brunson played on while at Villanova were filled with future NBA players. The Knicks attempted to rekindle some of that chemistry by bringing a few of those Villanova alumni to play in New York. While it didn’t entirely work out as planned, Brunson remains one of the key leaders on the team.

The 2018 Prizm set is likely to go down as one of the most important products in sports card history. At the time, if someone drew the Mavericks in a group break, they were probably thrilled because they’d be pulling Luka Doncic cards. Little did some of them know they’d also be getting Brunson cards, which would later prove valuable.

With many collectors focusing on Luka Doncic and Trae Young, some opted to invest in Brunson, and for many of those collectors, the decision has paid off significantly. While some may have been disappointed at not landing Luka in their breaks, they couldn’t have predicted that Brunson would later become the star player in one of the biggest markets in all of sports.

Chris McGill, co-founder of CardLadder—a sports card tracking website—shared information about a Brunson card that recently sold for a record $96,660.

ALL-TIME PUBLIC SALE FOR ANY JALEN BRUNSON CARD! 💸

Final Sale Price on this 2018-19 Panini Prizm Nebula Choice Prizm #250 Jalen Brunson Rookie Card (#1/1) - PSA MINT 9: $96,661

Email sell@goldin.com to consign your Basketball Collectibles for one of our upcoming auctions. 🤝 pic.twitter.com/UNatpDXk8f

— Goldin (@GoldinCo) November 3, 2024

According to a post on the Blowout forum, this card was originally listed for just $300 back in 2019. This shows one of the interesting parts about the sports card market, even though they knew they had one of his best cards, they still didnt know one day this card would sell for almost 6 figures.

In an auction that ended tonight with Goldin, the highest sale to date of a Jalen Brunson card was recorded at $96,660.

The card was once posted for sale on the Blowout forums with an asking price of $300 back in September of 2019. pic.twitter.com/VNSRjpE03o

— chris_hoj (@HouseOfJordans) November 3, 2024

One of the keys to making smart purchases in the sports card market is to buy players you believe in, not necessarily because someone else tells you to.

There’s also an element of luck involved, especially with prospects. No one back in 2018 could have predicted that Brunson would leave Dallas and make the Knicks relevant for the first time in nearly a decade. That’s where luck plays a role.

The narrative around Brunson was that he’d probably serve as Luka’s sidekick and help lead Dallas to a championship. Instead, New York has built a team around him that will now take aim at the Celtics—a challenging task, no doubt.