NBA Playoff Risers and Their Cards
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What is a playoff riser? It's a player who is not afraid of the moment, one who sees the high stakes and chooses to raise. While the NBA has a long history of superstars who rise to occasion, think Playoff Jimmy Butler, or New York Knicks clutch hero Jalen Brunson, a playoff riser doesn't have to be a team's primary option, or best player. That's part of the beauty of it - anyone who wants it, can go get the moniker.
AARON GORDON 3 FOR THE WIN!!!@nuggets take Game 1 in a THRILLER 🤯 pic.twitter.com/fxV2ReRPZA
— NBA (@NBA) May 6, 2025
This year, we've seen a few playoff risers already, players who have stepped their games up to help their teams win big games, and enhance their reputations under the bright lights of the postseason. Let's look at some of the role players who have got some shine, and some of their cards.
Aaron Gordon, Denver Nuggets
The talented and versatile Gordon has been responsible for two of the biggest moments of the NBA Playoffs so far. Already a champion with the Denver Nuggets, the forward plays an essential complementary role to Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. In the regular season, Gordon averaged 14.7 points. Through eight playoff games, that's up to 19.3 PPG. Gordon recorded the first-ever game-winning, buzzer-beating dunk in the pivotal Game 4 of Denver's first-round win over the Los Angeles Clippers. Last night, Gordon was at it again, hitting a go-ahead three-pointer with less than three seconds left to steal Game 1 at Oklahoma City.
The top Aaron Gordon card sale of all-time, per Card Ladder, is $5,000 for a 2014/15 Panini Immaculate Collection Auto 1/1.
Since his game-winning dunk on April 26, Card Ladder registers 321 Gordon sales, up from 194 from April 15 - 25. This 2023/24 Immaculate Auto /10 sold for $117 on May 4. His Panini Donruss Rated Rookie RC Auto 1/1 sold for over $600 on May 4 as well.
OG Anunoby, New York Knicks
Anunoby has scored at least 20 points in four of New York's seven playoff games. Last night, he was sensational, scoring 29 points on 10/20 shooting, including some huge buckets late in the fourth and in overtime to help the Knicks to an upset win in Boston.
Card Ladder registers 313 sales of Anunoby cards since the playoffs began.
The top sale in this time frame was for Anunoby's 2017 Panini Prizm Rookie Signatures RC /10 for $1,290 on May 4.
His 2017 Panini Prizm Gold Prizm RC /10 sold for over $2,000 in 2023. An Orange /49 is currently listed on Ebay for $299.99. A Rookie Signatures Auto is listed on Ebay for as low as $25.
Andrew Nembhard, Indiana Pacers
Nembhard averaged 10 PPG this season. In six playoff games, that's risen to 16.3. Last year, over 17 games during the Pacers surprise run to the Eastern Conference Finals, he averaged 14.9 PPG after scoring only 9.2 PPG in the regular season. In Indiana's Game 1 win over Cleveland, he played 37 minutes, scoring 23 points and hitting five of six three-pointers.
Nembhard's 1/1 2022 Panini Prizm Black Prizm RC last sold in April 2024 for $2,500. Card Ladder registers 351 Nembhard sales since the postseason began. There were 240 such sales listed from April 1 - 18.
Nembhard's cards themselves have been playoff risers. Last season, there were 480 Nembhard sales registered in the month of March. In the month of May, as Nembhard showed out during Indiana's run to the conference finals, there were a total of 1,788 sales registered. A PSA 10 Prizm Gold RC /10 sold for $1,100 in late May 2025. Less than a month previous, one sold for $800. In June, just a few weeks after the Pacers had lost to Boston, the card's top sale went for over $2000.
After Game 1 of each of these playoff risers team's second-round series, each of these players are in with a real chance of causing an upset, and heading back to the Conference Finals. Can their cards rise along with them?
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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