Topps Chrome Basketball adds MVP Buyback program for Collectors

With the release of the much anticipated Topps Chrome basketball set right around the corner, Topps has announced that they will be bringing the MVP Buyback program to their NBA cards. This program will be familiar to collectors of Topps baseball cards.

Topps created the Buyback program back in 2022 for chrome cards of baseball's AL and NL MVP. A base card could be redeemed at select hobby shops for $20, with the value of the card going up with the rarity of the parallel. For example, a refractor is worth $40. Now those NBA collectors get a chance to take advantage of the Buyback as well.

OFFICIAL: MVP Buyback is coming to basketball.

When the 2026 NBA MVP is announced at the end of the season, you’ll be able to trade in your Topps Chrome base cards & parallels of that player at your local participating hobby shop for store credit! 🔥💸

If the MVP is not in… pic.twitter.com/7G2rLZzcUq
— Topps (@Topps) December 12, 2025

According to their site, Topps Chrome Basketball is slated to drop on December 18, just in time for Christmas. It's the first time since the 2009-10 season that collectors can buy Topps Chrome Basketball. However, even those Chrome basketball cards were limited to insert-type inclusions in the base 2009-10 Topps Basketball set.

Who will you be chasing for your NBA Buyback cards? Odds makers have Nikola Jokic and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander as the top two, with Victor Wembenyama getting some attention too. | Topps | https://tinyurl.com/yc6z82xr

Now bodes the question, who do you chase? As early as mid-afternoon on December 12, Fox Sports had Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are the odd on favorite. Not surprisingly, right behind him is big man Nikola Jokic. Others listed include Luka Doncic, Cade Cunningham, Tyrese Maxey, Victor Wembenyama, Jaylen Brown, Donovan Mitchell, Jalen Brunson, and Anthony Edwards.

Topps does a nice job on their website of laying out the Buyback program and also giving you a map where you can search for participating hobby shops. After the MVP announcement, collectors will have roughly three months to redeem their cards.

Since Shohei Ohtani has won back-to-back MVP awards, his previous year's chrome cards are stamped with a special mark, those become very valuable for trade-in. | Topps |

Topps, in previous years, has used some of the redeemed cards to stick in future products with a special stamp indicating it's a buyback. Those cards are not only desirable on the open market, but generally they've been included in future Buybacks if the player happens to win the MVP in consecutive years.

Now collectors just have to wait for December 18 for the product to drop. The next wait for the summer of 2026 will be the MVP announcement.