Nov 14, 2021

15 min read

BEST BASKETBALL CARDS TO BUY NOW — NOVEMBER 2021

The Best Sports Cards in Buy Now — Top Basketball Card Investments November 2021

The Best Sports Cards to Invest in 2021: Investment Outlook — The Best Sports Cards to Buy in 2021. Highlighting the top basketball cards to buy — for November 2021.

Welcome back sports card collectors, investors and hobbyists to another one of our “best buys”articles. In this article, we highlight some of the best basketball cards to buy for the month of November 2021.

But before we get into our Best Buys for the month of November, let’s take a look back at some of the cards selected as our “best buys” in previous articles

See: 11 Basketball Cards That Have Sold for Over $1 Million in 2021

Read: How to Find The Value of Your Sports Cards + Tools to Track Your Collection

BEST BASKETBALL CARDS TO BUY NOW — NOVEMBER 2021

KOBE BRYANT REFRACTORS

MICHAEL JORDAN INSERTS

BEST BUYS OCTOBER 2021

In our last article we recommended picking up some of the undervalued and under-appreciated rookies from the 2017–18 NBA Draft Class — most notably Donovan Mitchell & Jayson Tatum.

DONOVAN MITCHELL

At the time we were able to find some Donovan Mitchell RPA’s at an incredible discount in the 2017–18 Panini Opulence Basketball set. Some of these are already up 30–50% since our last article.

JASON TATUM

We also recommended picking up some of the undervalued Jason Tatum rookie cards from sets like 2017–18 Panini Prizm Basketball, 2017–18 Panini Opulence Basketball & the 2017–18 Panini Impeccable Basketball Sets.

Some of these of these have already doubled in price in the last month alone, and we think that this is just the beginning.

2018–19 NBA DRAFT CLASS ROOKIE CARDS

SHAI GILGEOUS-ALLEXANDER

2018–19 Panini Contenders Optic Rookie Ticket Autograph #144

What’s not to love about the young talented duo taking the Oklahoma City Thunder’s rebuild by the reigns? The extremely talented and (admittedly) unusual tandem of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander & Josh Giddey is special to watch, and the chemistry between the two is undeniable.

In this video, J. Kyle Mann takes a look at their roster while focusing on the dynamic between fourth-year point guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey, the deft-passing rookie from Australia.

We’re buying rookie cards of both players, but certain Shai Gilgeous-Alexander rookie cards are too undervalued to pass up. Most notably, the Contenders Rookie Ticket Autograph. Grab yours while they’re still on sale.

2018–19 Panini Contenders Optic Rookie Ticket Autograph #144

Shop High-End Rookie Cards from the 2018–19 NBA Draft Class

2019–20 NBA DRAFT CLASS ROOKIE CARDS

KEVIN PORTER JR.

2019–20 Panini Prizm Kevin Porter Jr. Silver #274

2019–20 Panini Prizm Kevin Porter Jr. Rookie Signatures Silver #RS-KPJ

2019–20 Panini Prizm Kevin Porter Jr. Rookie Signatures #KPJ

2019–20 Panini Prizm Kevin Porter Jr. Blue Prizms /199

2019–20 Panini Prizm Kevin Porter Jr. Blue Prizms /299

Shop Kevin Porter Jr. Rookie Cards on eBay

Shop High-End Kevin Porter Jr. Rookie Cards

JA MORANT

Shop Ja Morant Rookie Cards on eBay

Shop High-End Ja Morant Rookie Cards

2020–21 NBA DRAFT CLASS ROOKIE CARDS

We recommend picking up rare, low-numbered parallels of the Rookies from the 2020–21 NBA Draft Class at a discount. Grab them while they’re priced low and sell when they’re hot or hold onto them for the long run and add to your personal collection (PC).

2020–21 NBA DRAFT CLASS STAND OUTS

LaMelo Ball

Anthony Edwards

Cole Anthony

Immanuel Quickley

Saddiq Bey

Patrick Williams

Killian Hayes

Desmond Bane

Kira Lewis Jr

Deni Avdija

Xavier Tillman

Kenyon Martin Jr.

Shop High-End Rookie Cards from the 2020–21 NBA Draft Class

BEST BUYS JULY 2021

In the July article we recommended picking up some of the undervalued Allen Iverson, Kobe Bryant, Carmelo Anthony & LeBron James rookies cards & refractors, some of which are still in buying range. The ones that haven’t seen a significant price increase, make our list again. There’s still ample opportunity to pick up some of these at a significant discount.

We also highlighted a specific set: The 2003 Topps Contemporary Collection.

2003 TOPPS CONTEMPORARY COLLECTION

The 2003–04 Topps Contemporary Collection LeBron James #1 — Featured in June 2021 and in several of our ‘Best Buys” articles in 2020 — The 2003 Topps Contemporary Collection made our list yet again. Not only is a great example of how scarcity and eye appeal affect demand over time.

The 2003–04 Topps Contempory Collection — upon it’s release, didn’t get anywhere near the respect or attention that some of the more recognized sets (like Topps Chrome for example) for the standout rookie class of 2003.

Keep in mind this was an incredible draft class that featured future Hall of Famer’s like LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh. That being said, key rookies from this set have already began their ascent into the stratosphere, as this is one of the best looking sets (my opinion) in recent memory.

BEST UNDER THE RADAR LEBRON JAMES ROOKIE CARD

The 2003 Topps Contemporary Collection LeBron James #1 is perhaps my favorite LeBron James Rookie card, outside of a few of the Topps Chrome Refractors and some of the more rare LBJ parallels/RPA’s. But many of those are already $100,000+ cards and completely out of my spending range.

2003 TOPPS CONTEMPORARY COLLECTION LEBRON JAMES #1

As a surprise to many — the 2003 Topps Contemporary Collection Lebron James #1 is currently worth more than the 2003 Topps Chrome LeBron James #111. Had you mentioned that this would be the case back in 2003, you probably would have been laughed out of the room by other collectors.

But, due to both the extremely low pop count (scarcity) and it’s eye appeal (demand), the Topps Contemporay Collection LBJ Rookie card has surpassed the more widely known, recognized and definitely the more respected set — Topps Chrome.

The Topps Contemporary Collection #1 will only continue to increase the gap between the two rookie sets. And in time (in my opinion, will only continue to increase in value. Eventually becoming worth considerably more than the Topps Chrome Lebron James #111 Rookie card in down the road.

MICHAEL JORDAN REFRACTORS

In another one of our “best buys” articles prior to that — we highlighted some of the Michael Jordan refractor basketball cards. In just 3 months since the article was published — Michael Jordan refractors were up over 500%. Keep in mind that this was during a significant sell off in the sports card market as a whole.

PROVEN TRACK RECORD

We never claim to be “sports card gurus” but we do have a proven track record of success — winning picks that have sold 10X even 20X the value at time of recommendation. These include some of the highest % gains on card picks in our niche. We stick to what we know best — and that is the basketball card market.

WORD TO THE WISE

Please understand that card collecting is speculative in general. The market could crash tomorrow. Selloffs happen in any market, and especially so in speculative markets like the sports card market.

Never spend or invest more than you cannot comfortably afford to lose.

THE BEST PLACES TO BUY SPORTS CARDS ONLINE

eBAY

The oldest and biggest online marketplace and auction site is a great place to start your search for whatever it is you’re looking for in terms of baseball cards, other sports cards, and sports memorabilia of all kinds.

eBAY

With thousands and thousands of sellers, it’s usually pretty likely that you can find what you need in some form or another.

Drawbacks to buying on eBay include dealing with sellers yourself, especially if something goes wrong; sometimes hefty shipping and handling fees; hassles should you need to make a return; and difficulties finding really unusual items.

Still, all in all, eBay remains the #1 option when it comes to buying sports cards online.

Check out eBay basketball card listings here

CHECK OUT MY CARDS (COMC)

COMC is a clearing house of sort, allowing collectors and dealers with cards to sell to send them to a central location (yes, COMC), and for buyers to find the cards at that same location.

In between, COMC does a lot of the heavy lifting of cataloging, storing, grading, and listing the cards for sale. They also list cards sent to them on eBay, so sellers get double-dip exposure.

Because COMC draws from a wide swath of the hobby, you’ll find a huge variety of cards available for purchase, and dealing with one large entity gives you some recourse for disputes.

Check out COMC here.

Beckett Marketplace

The oldest and most trusted price guide makers in the hobby also provide one of the biggest online marketplaces for buying, selling, and trading sports cards across the spectrum — old and new, big four sports and more, all the manufacturers.

Check out the Beckett Marketplace here.

Instagram

Instagram may be the perfect platform for showcasing the cards you have for sale since the whole shebang is based on, you know, showing things with pictures. As with Facebook and Twitter, it didn’t take collectors and dealers long to figure out how to use Instagram for buying, selling, and trading cards.

You’re sure to find plenty of interesting cards, and plenty of cardboard eye candy, but again — be careful with your transactions initiated on any social media platform.

DEALER WEBSITES

Hundreds (or more!) of card dealers maintain their own websites and most of those allow you to buy cards online.

A simple Google search will turn up tons of these sites, but here are some of the best online dealers with the most trusted reviews and least negative customer experiences.

Dave and Adam’s Card World

Blowout Cards

Larry Fritsch Cards LLC

Dean’s Cards

Kruk Cards

BEST PLACES TO BUY HIGH-END SPORTS CARDS

If you’re looking for sports trading card singles, your best best is most likely going to be on eBay.

But if you’re in the market for hobby/retail boxes or cases — then you’re probably going to want to purchase from one of the dealers mentioned below.

You don’t want to risk buying a hobby box that could have been tampered with by an individual seller.

For High-End Sports Cards — It’s better to go with an auction house or high-end seller to avoid paying a ridiculous amount in eBay fees. With that in mind, collectors looking to purchase sports cards over $5,000 — it makes more sense to deal with an auction house or High-End Sports card store. It’s much more safe than sending $5–10K+ to some random dude (or chick) on eBay.

Sellers should be aware that by using using an auction house to sell your cards, be prepared to pay hefty commissions. Another other draw back to buying from an auction house is that the wait to actually receive your purchase can be a pretty lengthy process.

For those unwilling to wait — purchase from a high-end seller.

BEST HIGH-END SPORTS CARD SELLERS

The Jordan Collection

The Jordan Collection is a High-End Basketball Card Dealer that boasts one of the largest selections of high-end and ultra premium basketball cards found online.

Here you’ll find an exclusive collection Limited Edition, Short-Print, SSP’s, Rare Refractors & Rookie Basketball Cards.

The Jordan Collection is home to some of the most rare and valuable cards from the 90’s to today’s players — including some 1 of 1’s that can’t be found anywhere else.

Many of the cards found here will be out of collector’s buying range and/or budgets. But for distinguished collectors with expensive taste and money to spend — The Jordan Collection is the #1 Seller of High-End Sports cards.

Shop High-End Sports Cards For Sale

TOP AUCTION HOUSES

PWCC

Why We Chose It: PWCC offers top-notch marketing and access to more than 250,000 bidders worldwide in monthly auctions, making it our top pick for selling your baseball cards.

Learn More

Heritage Auctions

Why We Chose It: Heritage Auctions is a trusted name in sports memorabilia and has sold some of the most valuable baseball cards ever at auction.

PROS & CONS

Pros

Live online auction broadcast worldwide

Over 1 million registered bidders

Handles consignment-to-settlement process

Free appraisals

Cons

10% seller’s fee for items under $2,500

45 days until payment

BEST PLACES TO BUY INTO SPORTS CARD BREAKS

With the popularity of card breaks, the types of breaks out there are almost anything you can dream up. For this discussion, I will give some basic breakdowns of the more popular variants out there:

TYPES OF SPORTS CARD BREAKS

PYT: The classic break is the Pick Your Team (PYT) break alluded to in the above example. You purchase a single team in the break and get all the cards that have that team on the card.

Random/Drafted Breaks: While the PYT is the more classic style of breaks, by far the most common type of break you will find are the non-PYT’s. Most times you will hear them just referred to generically as “breaks” if it is a single product (e.g. 3 boxes of Bowman Draft, etc.) or a “mixer” if it is a combination of products (e.g. 1 box of Bowman Draft, 1 box of Bowman Baseball, 1 box of Bowman Chrome).

Spots in these breaks are usually sold as a single team spot (30 spots) or a three-team spot (10 spots), although you will occasionally find other combinations. Since you are not buying a team but rather a spot, the way teams are determined for the spot purchasers is either through randomizing the teams or through a draft, usually snake style (spot purchasers are randomized for the draft order).

Personal Breaks: A fair amount of breakers offer the ability to purchase a box or multiple boxes all for yourself, referred to as a Personal break or just Personals. This is especially convenient when products are hard to come by for any number of reasons.

The breaker (a sports card dealer) opens all the packs in the box, typically live-streaming the opening, and every card goes to the purchaser. It’s a fun and exciting way of sharing a big hit (or disappointment) with an audience.

After spending well over $50,000 on personal live breaks, Dave & Adams and Layton Sports Cards are the only two i’ve never had an issue with. From the live break to receiving the cards in the same condition without any shady tactics or mistakes — these two sellers have been by far the best I’ve personally dealt with over the years.

Dave and Adam’s Card World

Layton Sports Cards