Collecting focus question: NBA MVPs, All-Stars, etc.

sdkcp

Here's a question for everyone.

I'm trying to organize my personal collection a bit better, with more focus on specific players and teams.

Now, I'm also a big NBA fan. I'd like to collect the MVPs from each year, of which I have a bunch already.

Here's the scenario:

For a good example, Derrick Rose just won the NBA 2010-2011 MVP award.

What card(s) makes most sense to represent his MVP year?

A card from the 2010-2011 season,

or a card from the 2011-2012 season that specifically references the MVP award?

Or would I need both cards to really capture that MVP set?

And this would be true of all kinds of awards, including All-Stars.

All-Stars seem a little simpler because of the dedicated All-Star cards that you usually find in the following season's set.

So how does anybody else handle this kind of focus? Thanks!

VitoCo1972

Fun project and as a fellow major NBA fan I wish you luck. My initial reaction was that you could do a rookie card of each player plus the major issue card from his MVP year. That would be:

48 Bowman
57 Topps
61 Fleer
69-81 Topps
86-92 Fleer
93-Pres Topps

Because there are not major issue cards for 49-56, 58-60, 62-68 and 82-85 I think you'll be surprised how many (especially) the early rookie cards will solve that issue for you so you make sure you have at least one card per player. For example, Wes Unseld's MVP year of 68-69 has no card. But he does have a RC in 69-70 Topps so you'd have a card for him. Same for Wilt. You'd need his 61 Fleer RC and there is no other card issued for his MVP years (60, 66, 67, 68). For Jordan, you'd need 86 Fleer RC plus 88, 91 and 92 Fleer and 96 and 98 Topps.

Just one man's opinion. Good luck! Keep up a thread on the project. Could be fun.

ThoseBackPages

<< <i>Fun project and as a fellow major NBA fan I wish you luck. My initial reaction was that you could do a rookie card of each player plus the major issue card from his MVP year. That would be:

48 Bowman
57 Topps
61 Fleer
69-81 Topps
86-92 Fleer
93-Pres Topps

Because there are not major issue cards for 49-56, 58-60, 62-68 and 82-85 I think you'll be surprised how many (especially) the early rookie cards will solve that issue for you so you make sure you have at least one card per player. For example, Wes Unseld's MVP year of 68-69 has no card. But he does have a RC in 69-70 Topps so you'd have a card for him. Same for Wilt. You'd need his 61 Fleer RC and there is no other card issued for his MVP years (60, 66, 67, 68). For Jordan, you'd need 86 Fleer RC plus 88, 91 and 92 Fleer and 96 and 98 Topps.

Just one man's opinion. Good luck! Keep up a thread on the project. Could be fun. >>



Vito is spot on. Youv've gotta go the rookie card route.

sdkcp

Thanks for the replies Vito and thosebackpages.

From my research, Derrick Rose was the 56th NBA MVP,

but only the 29th different player to win the MVP (because of the 12 multiple award winners).

Obviously the modern cards will be so much easier to deal with.

But if I went the rookie card route, that is only 29 different rookie cards to worry about, not bad!

I think what I will do is this for each MVP:

1. Rookie card IF possible (29 cards at most)
2. Individual card from the MVP year (56 cards at most)
3. Individual card from the season after the MVP year (56 cards at most)
4. Any other cards (such as inserts) which are MVP related or branded (??? cards)

I am most interested in the period from 1980 on, but would still like to have all of them for historical purposes.

What do you think?

VitoCo1972

I like it. How are you going about it? Graded? The only thing is "year after." Why not "year of?" Just curious.

sdkcp

Well, the season after the MVP should have their MVP statstics on it, and maybe even wording referencing the MVP.

I'm also as interested in a player's "final season" card as well as rookie cards, because I love seeing all the stats for their careers once they're over.

As far as grading, I will go raw at first, since I have a bunch of the ones I need already raw.

As you mentioned already, there are going to be some problem cards because some players don't have real rookie cards, or don't have cards at all for a number of years.

Everything post-1989 should be covered pretty easily, it's just the 80's and prior which will prove to be adventerous for me.

On a side note,

I'm also looking back at some insert sets I liked, such as Hoops Supreme Court, or some of the Skybox stuff like Center Stage or Dynamic Dunks just for fun!

VitoCo1972

Get a hold of member CDsNuts. He's really into those insert sets and can probably give you some advice.