Kolek’s 53-Point Day Has Collectors Paying Attention
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On Sunday, March 22, the New York Knicks destroyed the Washington Wizards 145-113 at home in Madison Square Garden. It was the Knicks' sixth straight win, and it helped them improve to 47-25 on the season, good enough for 3rd in the East and just a half-game behind the Celtics.
In the last few minutes of the game, the Knicks subbed in Tyler Kolek, who put on a show, shooting 100% including 3-for-3 from deep. The 11-point night at MSG was on top of the 42 points he dropped earlier THAT DAY playing in the G League for the Westchester Knicks. A 53-point day in total, not too shabby.
FROM WESTCHESTER TO MSG IN THE SAME DAY 👏
— NBA (@NBA) March 23, 2026
Earlier today, Tyler Kolek erupted for 42 PTS and 11 AST for the Westchester Knicks in an NBA G League game...
He then headed to MSG and rattled off 11 PTS in Q4 for the New York Knicks 😲 pic.twitter.com/6WeCwZn8GR
Everyone at MSG was loving Kolek's performance, especially KAT and the rest of the Knicks bench.
The second-year guard is averaging 4.4 points, 2.8 assists, and 1.4 rebounds this season. He's only seeing about 12 minutes per game, but he's making the most of it, shooting 43.2% overall and 37.6% from range.
Tyler Kolek Cards Worth Watching Right Now
The three highest-selling Tyler Kolek cards combined don't clear $9K, so there are tons of great and affordable cards of his to consider.
The highest selling Kolek card to date is a non-autograph CGC Authentic 2024 National Treasures rookie logoman (/5) that sold for $4,800 on January 4, 2026. An ungraded copy of that card sold in October for $2,013. If he gets more minutes and keeps producing like he did on Sunday, this card could have more room to climb.
In addition to the horizontal logoman card, the other highest selling Kolek card was a vertical Panini Flawless logoman rookie card serial numbered to only two that sold for $2,002 in November 2025. The card (seen above) is both not graded and not autographed, which makes the $2K price a bit steep for a player who bounces between the G League and the NBA.
Budget Kolek Autos with Possible Upside
A quick eBay search reveals a ton of affordable autographed Kolek rookie cards, including game used patch cards with low serial numbers. For example, on March 25 there were two nice autograph rookies numbered to 25 or less that were both under $20. The Panini Noir autographed rookie three-color patch numbered to just 15 only had 4 bids with about 12 hours remaining and was at $5.50.
The other card was a "hot auction" featuring a National Treasures rookie auto patch numbered to 25 with a whopping 5 bids with a little over a day to go. These two demonstrate great affordable yet rare options if you think Kolek could have a bigger impact in the future.
Is Kolek Following the Pritchard Path?
There's a lot to like about Kolek. He plays hard, he's got range, and he can be a spark coming off the bench. His teammates also seem to like him. Josh Hart and Jalen Brunson have given him the nickname "the Michael Jordan of Rhode Island".
While it's unlikely the Rhode Island point guard will ever have a starting role, he might carve out a role that's similar to the 2025 Sixth Man of the Year, Payton Pritchard. They're both 6'1 guards with the ability to spread the floor with their three-point abilities.
They were also drafted under similar circumstances. Pritchard was the 26th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft while Kolek was selected 34th overall in 2024.
And both players can fill up the stat sheet when they're dialed in. It took Pritchard a few years to build his confidence and find his rhythm with the Celtics, but after a career low during his 3rd year in the league, he turned things around and nearly tripled his output just two years later in his 6MOY season.
Given the opportunity and the minutes, Kolek could be on that Prichard path. In a market like New York, even a modest role jump could quickly turn Kolek from flyer to fixture on collector radars.
Conor is a life long sports card enthusiast who started collecting in the early ’90s, inspired by hometown heroes like Larry Bird, Paul Pierce, Tom Brady, and David Ortiz. Like many ’90s hoops fans, he also started building (and continues to build) a modest Michael Jordan collection.