2008-09 Upper Deck Basketball
Product Details
With the slew of ultra-premium sports card products now available in the marketplace, it could sometimes be difficult for the budget minded sports card collector to find a strong product in his or her price range. This year Upper Deck really stepped up to the plate and delivered a viable and affordable option for collectors that provides good bang for the buck. Upper Deck's Flagship Baseball and Football Card Brands have both been well-received in the marketplace by collectors. Featuring excellent photography and design, as well as a slew of exciting and well thought out insert sets (Yankee Stadium Legacy and Presidential Predictors to name a few), Upper Deck has gone a long way in reestablishing their base brand as a viable contender in the marketplace.
Over the last few years Upper Deck's standard Basketball Card brand has arguably taken the biggest hit in the marketplace of all the major sports for which Upper Deck issues their flagship Upper Deck Releases for. It would be safe to say that expectations for Upper Deck's 2008 - 2009 Basketball release were not very high. Lucky for Basketball Card Collectors, it appears that Upper Deck has over delivered with this well orchestrated, value-packed release.
Unless you were a living under a proverbial rock during the NBA playoffs, chances are that you watched (or at least heard about) the meeting of two of the NBA's most celebrated dynasties in the finals. The Boston Celtics faced off against the Los Angeles Lakers in an epic battle for the coveted Larry O'Brien NBA Championship Trophy. It had been 21 years since these two rival dynasties faced off in the finals. Released last Wednesday (9/3/08), 2008 - 2009 Upper Deck Basketball pays homage to the rich and storied traditions of these two dynasties with a special insert set, appropriately named “NBA Dynasty". In addition to the Celtics and Lakers, the Chicago Bulls are also represented in this insert set. Collectors can expect an impressive checklist of players from each of these three powerhouses. Lakers fans can look forward to pulling inserts of Laker Legends Magic Johnson George Mikan, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and James Worthy. Some of the Celtic greats making an appearance in the set are Bob Cousy, Bill Russell, John Havlicek, and K.C. Jones. The Bulls round out the set with a flurry of big name representation from Chicago greats such as Michael Jordan, John Paxson, and Dennis Rodman.
In case old school basketball greats aren't your bag, 2008-09 Upper Deck Basketball also features a number of additional insert sets that look quite intriguing as well. "Star Signings" will feature an incredible assortment of autographs, including autographs from NBA Superstars Jason Kidd, Lebron James, Carmelo Anthony, and Chris Paul. Each of the autographed cards in "Star Signings" will have a parallel card numbered serial numbered to 5. Another compelling insert set making an appearance in the set is “Emulation Dual". These dual memorabilia cards will include some interesting player combinations - LeBron James and Julius Erving, Tim Duncan and David Robinson, and Larry Bird and Ray Allen to name a few.
Last but not least, we would be remiss if we did not touch on the impressive checklist of high profile NBA Rookies that will be making an appearance in this year's release. Official NBA rookie cards of O.J. Mayo, Michael Beasley, Brandon Rush, and Derrick Rose will lead the Rookie Checklist. Collectors can expect to find an average of 18 Star Rookies in every 16-pack box. Of these 18 Rookie pulls, at least 3 will be Short Printed Rookie Cards.
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Product Breakdown:
RIP CARDS - INSERT 1 PER HOBBY BOX!
- Rip Card Exteriors(50) - Seq. #'d.
- Rip Card Interiors(50)
Exteriors and Interiors are featured in the parallels below:
- Platinum - All one of one.! Hobby Exclusive!
- Gold - Seq. #'d to 10.
- Silver - Seq. #'d to 25.
- Bronze - Seq. #'d to 99.
Autographed Mini(20) - 2 per Hobby Case!
Logoman Mini(30) - One of one! Hobby Exclusive!
"THEY'RE MONEY" RIP CARDS
"They're Money" Rip Card Exteriors(10) - Seq. #'d.
- Parallel Version - All one of one! Hobby Exclusive!
"They're Money" Rip Card Interiors(429 cards) - $10, $20, $50, $100, $500, and $1000!
FRAMED PRINTING PLATES - HOBBY EXCLUSIVE! ALL ONE OF ONE!
- Veterans/Retired(70 subs/280 plates)
- Autographed Veteran/Retired(30 subs/120 plates)
- Rookie(20 subs/80 plates)
- Autograph Rookie(20 subs/80 plates)
BASE CARDS
Veteran/Retired(100)
- Platinum - All one of one! Hobby Exclusive!
- Gold - Seq. #'d to 50.
- Silver - Seq. #'d to 199.
- Bronze - Seq. #'d to 999.
Rookies(20)
- Platinum - All one of one! Hobby Exclusive!
- Gold - Seq. #'d to 50.
- Silver - Seq. #'d to 199.
- Bronze - Seq. #'d to 2008.
Autographed Rookies(20)
- Platinum - All one of one! Hobby Exclusive!
- Gold - Seq. #'d to 10.
- Silver - Seq. #'d to 25.
- Bronze - Seq. #'d to 50.
14K GOLD ROOKIE MEDALLIONS - HOBBY EXCLUSIVE!
Rookie Medallions(15) - Seq. #'d to 25.
- Gold - All one of one.
ALL-ROOKIE TEAM AUTOGRAPHED CARDS - HOBBY EXCLUSIVE! INSERTED 1 PER CASE!
- Magic's All-Rookie Team Dual Autographs(10) - Seq. #'d to 50 or less.
- Bird's All-Rookie Team Dual Autographs(10) - Seq. #'d to 50 or less.
- Magic and Bird's All-Rookie Team Triple Autographs(5) - Seq. #'d to 10.
All-Rookie Team Autograph Cards Parallel - One of one! Hobby Exclusive!
