The Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball program boasts one of college sports' richest traditions, built on a legacy of winning that includes eight NCAA championships, the most all-time victories, and a passionate fan base known as the "Big Blue Nation". This enduring success, shaped by legendary coaches and players, has made Kentucky a perennial "blue blood" of the sport.
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The 1991-92 set marks Upper Deck's debut in the basketball card industry. The set contains 500 standard-size cards. The set was released in two series of 400 and 100 cards, respectively. High series cards are in relatively shorter supply because high series packs contained a mix of both high and low series cards. High series lockers contained seven 12-card packs of cards 1-500 and a special "Rookie Standouts" card. Both low and high series were offered in a 500-card factory set. The fronts feature glossy color player photos, bordered below and on the right by a hardwood basketball floor design. The player's name appears beneath the picture, while the team name is printed vertically alongside the picture. The backs display a second color player photo as well as biographical and statistical information.
Bowie is an American former professional basketball player. He was a national sensation in high school and outstanding collegian and Olympic team member too. In 1979 he was named National Player of the Year. Bowie, along with fellow "Twin Tower" Melvin Turpin (as the Kentucky frontcourt duo was called), and Kenny Walker led Kentucky to the SEC championship, the SEC Tournament Championship, a top-three national ranking, and a 26–4 season record.
In 1984, having beat the Blazers in a coin toss for first pick, the Rockets chose Houston Center Hakeem Olajuwon. Unable to choose him, yet still seeking a center, the Blazers chose Bowie. Choosing third, the Chicago Bulls then drafted North Carolina shooting guard Michael Jordan. During his rookie season, Bowie played 76 games and averaged 10 points and 8.6 rebounds, earning a spot on the NBA All-Rookie Team. This rookie card was hand-signed by Bowie and received a Beckett 10 grade as well.
In 1993, Jamal Mashburn had a stellar junior year at the University of Kentucky, earning Consensus First Team All-American honors and being named the SEC Player of the Year. He then entered the NBA draft and was selected by the Dallas Mavericks as the fourth overall pick. In his final college season with the Kentucky Wildcats (1992-93), Mashburn led his team to the NCAA Final Four and averaged 21.0 points and 8.4 rebounds per game
This 421-card standard-size set was issued in separate series of 300 and 121 cards. Cards were distributed in 13-card foil (12 basic cards plus one gold card) and 26-card jumbo (24 basic and two gold cards) packs. Cards feature full-bleed glossy color player photos on the fronts. Each player's name and team logo appear in team colors along a ghosted band at the bottom. The back presents a color head shot of the player in a small rectangle bordered with a team color in the top right corner. Alongside is his jersey number and position within a team-colored bar. The player's name and a short biography are printed on a hardwood floor design at the top. Below, the player's college and NBA stats, displayed in separate tables on a white background, round out the card. The cards are numbered on the back and listed alphabetically within team order. Subsets are Coaches (230-256), All-Stars (257-282), League Leaders (283-290), Boys and Girls Club (291), Hoops Tribune (292-297), and Checklists (298-300/419-420). Rookie Cards of note include Vin Baker, Anfernee Hardaway, Jamal Mashburn, Nick Van Exel and Chris Webber.
In 2003, Keith Bogans concluded his decorated collegiate career at the University of Kentucky, earning All-American honors and being named the SEC Player of the Year, before being drafted into the NBA by the Milwaukee Bucks. He was traded on draft day to the Orlando Magic and began his professional career that fall. As a senior (2002-03 season) with the Kentucky Wildcats, Bogans led the team to an undefeated 16-0 record in the Southeastern Conference (SEC) regular season and the SEC Tournament title. He was recognized as the SEC Player of the Year by coaches and earned several All-American team selections. His college career ended in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament with a loss to Marquette. While Bogans wore #3 with the Magic, he wore #10 at Kentucky and signed this card with the number 10 (next to his signature) as a nod to UK.
Released in December 2003, Black Diamond boasted a 198-card set including: Single Diamond veterans are featured on card numbers 1-84; Double Diamond veterans, card numbers 85-117, are inserted at the rate of one in two; Double Diamond rookies, card numbers 118-126, are inserted at the rate of one in two, Triple Diamond veterans, card numbers 127-147, are inserted at the rate of one in eight; Triple Diamond rookies, card numbers 148-168, are inserted at the rate of one in eight; Quadruple Diamond veterans, card numbers 169-183, are inserted at the rate of one in 48; and Quadruple Diamond rookies, card numbers 184-198, are inserted at the rate of one in 48. Two players, Kyle Korver and Kerry Kittles are featured on two different cards in the set. All cards are printed on foil, feature full-color player action photos. Black Diamond was packaged in 24-pack boxes of five-card packs and carried a suggested retail price of $3.99.
Released in January 2006, SP Authentic consists of 157 cards where early cards feature veteran players, middle set cards feature rookie cards serially numbered to 1299, and last in the set are featured rookie autos serial numbered to 999. This card is numbered 132-of-999 and features an on-card autograph. Base cards had white backgrounds with color accents set to match team colors.
The point guard who only played two years of basketball as a Kentucky Wildcat, Rajon Rondo was drafted 21st overall by the Suns in the 2006 NBA draft. He was subsequently traded to the Boston Celtics in a draft-day trade, but has since become a two-time NBA champion and a four-time NBA All-Star.
Under-appreciated to some, Patrick Patterson was a great player and more significant to Kentuckians than many realized. We all wish he’d stayed for his senior year, as he’d have left a top scorer (accumulated) and rebounder in history, and that would have netted him more post-basketball playing days money. But to some, like myself, it seemed as those Ppat is one of the last, true, players that knew he was playing for the name across his chest. It’s hard to hate a player that developed as much as he did at UK. John Wall gets a lot of credit for bringing Kentucky back to prominence- but without Patterson- the brand might have been damaged to a point where Wall didn’t even give us a look. Patrick was a critical bridge piece beyond just being a great player.
Patterson helped lead Huntington High School to three straight State Championships. Considered a five-star recruit by Rivals.com, Patterson was listed as the No. 3 power forward and the No. 17 player in the nation in 2007, and was named a McDonald’s All-American. During his Junior season, Patterson helped the team win the SEC Tournament and achieve a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2004. On June 24, 2010, Patterson was selected in the NBA draft by the Houston Rockets with the fourteenth overall pick. On November 10, he was assigned to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers of the NBA Development League. In nine games with the Vipers, Patterson averaged 18.3 points, and 10.3 rebounds in 35 minutes per game. Two days after being recalled by the Rockets, he made his NBA regular season debut on December 15, 2010.
2010-11 Rookies & Stars is a solid basketball card offering that gives collectors a chance to grab the latest rookie autographs of big names like John Wall, Evan Turner, Derrick Favors and Wesley Johnson among others. Rookies & Stars is essentially "Prestige Plus", meaning it does everything Prestige does only better. The value of Rookies & Stars is excellent thanks to the hottest rookie in the entire hobby, Wizards' rookie point guard John Wall. The Rookies portion of the product offers an excellent value to collectors, it's the Stars part that struggles to establish any meaningful value. A relatively low price-point, solid rookie auto checklist, great prime patches and the fabulous team patches rookie autographs mean these will hold their value for a long time.
Nicknamed “Boogie,” Demarcus Cousins played college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats, earning consensus second-team All-American honors in 2010. Leaving Kentucky after only one season, he was selected with the fifth overall pick in the draft by the Sacramento Kings. In his first NBA season, Cousins was named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team, and from 2015-2018, he was named an NBA All-Star four times.
NBA Hoops, the brand that helped revive the basketball card market, including a massive base set and two autographs per hobby box, 2011-12 NBA Hoops from Panini appealed to set builders looking for solid value. The base set is huge. At 279 cards plus a short-printed Mavericks NBA Championship card, the lineup goes deep into every team's bench. The autograph list has 179 players and is highlighted by Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant and Blake Griffin.
A Raleigh, North Carolina native, John Wall was chosen with the first overall pick of the 2010 NBA draft by the Washington Wizards. He only played one year of college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats. The point guard was a five-time NBA All-Star from 2014 to 2018 and was named to the All-NBA Team in 2017.
2013-14 Panini Immaculate Collection Basketball returned for a second season with some of the most high-end hoops cards of the year. Once again, the product focused on unique memorabilia combinations and autographs. While many products can make similar claims, it's the quality of hits and limited print run that make these so expensive. The Immaculate basketball collection had lots of cards that come with big patch and prime memorabilia pieces that are distinct and easy to recognize. Logos, letter, numbers and insignias were all in play. The Rookie Patch Autographs set checklist includes only 40 players, serial numbered to 99 or less.
On January 29th, 2013 Noel set the Kentucky single-game record with 12 blocks in a 87-74 victory over No. 16 Ole Miss. Five of the blocks happened while Noel had four personal fouls, and two of them were denials on slam dunk attempts. The UK school record was previously nine blocks, set by Sam Bowie in 1981 and was then tied by Andre Riddick in 1993. Noel was honored with many awards, including SEC Freshman of the Year, SEC Defensive Player of the Year, SEC First Team, and SEC All Freshman Team. In addition to earning All-SEC first team honors by the league's coaches, Noel earned first-team honors from the Associated Press, continuing a four-year streak of UK players earning first-team AP honors. Nerlens Noel was drafted sixth overall in the 2013 NBA draft by the New Orleans Pelicans. His rights were later traded to the Philadelphia 76ers. Playing center and power forward, he was one of the top high school basketball players in the class of 2012. Rated the No. 1 player by ESPN and Scout.com, he was selected to play in the 2012 Nike Hoop Summit and the 2012 Jordan Brand Classic.
It shouldn't be a surprise that 2013-14 Panini Signatures Basketball focuses heavily on autographs. As a result, base cards take a break for the release. Instead, everything is either a signed card or an insert. The Rookie Signatures set checklist includes 35 cards only serial numbered to 199 or less. In his only season of college basketball with the Kentucky Wildcats, Julius Randle was named a third-team All-American. He was named one of the 10 semi-finalists for the Naismith College Player of the Year. He went on to help Kentucky reach the National Championship game. He ended the 2013-14 season with 24 double-doubles, the second most double-doubles by a UK player in school history.
He was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the 2014 NBA draft as the seventh overall pick. A three-time NBA All-Star and a two-time member of the All-NBA Team, he was awarded the NBA Most Improved Player Award in 2021. After the end of the regular season, he received 98 of 100 first place votes.
Once the ultimate option in the collecting world, 2015-16 Panini National Treasures Basketball is still one of many high-end hobby options. Nevertheless, NT still carries plenty of clout with collectors and offered the top rookie cards of the year. Limited from top to bottom, 2015-16 Panini National Treasures Basketball was a detailed release but with a focus on quality. Base cards and parallels combine to average one per box. The main draw for most, Rookie Patch Autographs (#/99 or #/49) feature top 2015 NBA draftees with a horizontal design, large patch and on-card autograph. RPA parallels include Silver (#/25) Gold (#/10), Emerald (#/5) and one-of-one Logoman.
Considered a four-star basketball recruit by Rivals.com, Cauley-Stein was listed as the No. 9 center and the No. 40 player in the nation in 2012. He earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors twice, and in 2014–15, Cauley-Stein was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year. He was also selected to the All-SEC First Team, the All-SEC Defensive Team and the USA Today first-team All-American Team. He was selected by the Sacramento Kings with the sixth overall pick in the 2015 NBA draft.
Branching out from the multi-sport National Treasures release, the 2016-17 collegiate basketball set solely covers the NCAA hardcourt stars. Colossal signatures and die-cut signatures showcased hard-signed rookie content that was highly-sought after.
Jamal Murray played only one season as a Kentucky Wildcat before being selected by the Nuggets as the seventh overall pick in the 2016 NBA draft. However, in only on season, he helped a Wildcat team become SEC regular season and tournament champions, and travel as far as the Elite Eight in the NCAA Tournament.
Collectors were given plenty of premium options when it came to NCAA products from Panini America, and 2016-17 Panini National Treasures Collegiate Basketball looked to take that segment of the hobby to new levels. Keeping it to just 45 subjects, the 2016-17 Panini National Treasures Collegiate Basketball base set managed to focus on big names in their school colors. Each card was only limited to 99 copies each.
Collectors found plenty of prime memorabilia cards with small print runs in 2016-17 Panini National Treasures Collegiate Basketball. The action started with College Game Worn, which included pieces of game-worn jerseys that stars wore during their collegiate careers. But for an even bigger slam, Team Quads were a strong hit and combine four players from the same school or four stars. This National Treasure collegiate stars some of Kentucky’s hottest basketball players including Devin Booker, Jamal Murray, Karl-Anthony Towns and Tyler Ulis.
2017-18 Panini Spectra Basketball packaged the Optichrome shine and wild colors for another NBA season. The set averaged three autographs and three relics per box. However, just because the base set has rookies, it doesn't mean those are the only first-year cards in play. The hard-signed Rookie Jersey Autographs line is numbered to 299!
Adebayo played college basketball for the Wildcats before being selected by the Heat with the 14th overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft. He is a three-time NBA All-Star, a five-time NBA All-Defense Team honoree, and helped the Heat reach the NBA Finals in both 2020 and 2023. He would go on to win a gold medal with the 2020 and 2024 U.S. Olympic teams as well.
2020-21 Panini Prizm Draft Picks Basketball provided the start of the chromium collecting season for NBA/NCAA fans. While the cards mainly feature players in their collegiate gear, the focus is on the incoming NBA rookie class. The “Downtown” set checklist is short, featuring only 20 players in 2020, and they are typically called a “case hit,” meaning you’d only pull one per hobby case.
Tyler Herro was selected by the Miami Heat with the 13th overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft. When the Heat defeated the Bucks in the second round of the 2020 playoffs, Herro became the first player in NBA history born in the 2000s to appear in an NBA Conference Finals game. In game 4 of the 2020 Eastern Conference Finals, he scored a career-high 37 points, becoming the fourth player in playoffs history to record 30-plus points before turning 21 and the second-highest scorer under 21, with only Magic Johnson scoring more. He also set Conference Finals records for the youngest player (at 20 years) to score 30-plus points and the most points by a rookie. After an Eastern Conference Finals victory against the Boston Celtics, Herro became the first player born in the 2000s to play in an NBA Finals.
The basketball card collecting season started fresh with 2020-21 Panini Contenders Draft Picks Basketball. The collegiate release showcased some of the top names from the 2020 NBA Draft. The prospect ticket sticker autos set checklist featured only 59 players. The cracked ice ticket parallel is only numbered to 23. Changing it up, the incoming rookies no longer had College Ticket cards. Instead, the rookie ticket autograph subset was called Prospect Ticket, but the RC logo remained. Seemingly getting away from the NBA component of recent years, 2020-21 Panini Contenders Draft Picks Basketball featured a 50-card Prospect Ticket base set.
Richards was named to the First Team All-SEC while a Kentucky Wildcat. In the 2020 NBA draft, he was selected 42nd overall (by the New Orleans Pelicans) and immediately traded to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for a 2023 second-round pick.
The annual product visited top players during their NCAA days with a particular focus on the 2022 NBA Draft class. Hobby boxes offered four autographs along with a mix of inserts and parallels Covering multiple schools, the base set for 2022-23 Panini Prizm Draft Picks Basketball includes 100 cards. Each Hobby box contained four base silver prizms and eight additional parallels. Inserts fall one per pack and pulled from several different sets. The “Freshman Signatures” set checklist was short, featuring only 9 players, but full of beautiful prizm parallels. This card, the Blue Ice parallel, was numbered to only 75 examples.
Wallace was a consensus five-star recruit, and a Top 5 player in the 2022 class. He started 32 games for the Wildcats, averaging 11.7 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.3 assistss and 2 steals per game. His highlight would be the 21 points, four assists, two steals and a career-high nine rebounds against Kansas State in the NCAA Tournament. The Dallas Mavericks would select Wallace with the tenth overall pick in the 2023 NBA draft, then trade him (along with Bertans) to the Oklahoma City Thunder in exchange for the 12th overall pick, Dereck Lively II.
The 2022-23 Bowman Inception University checklist brought together college prospects from both basketball and football. Like other Inception releases dating back more than a decade, there was a big focus on autographs. Consisting of 100 cards, the base set wasn’t a huge one. When you take into account that it covers multiple sports, the concentration of key names is even more apparent. This is a product that is licensed so players are in uniforms and school logos are used. This is also the first product to have Victor Wembanyama and Caitlin Clark autographs.
Chris Livingston was a consensus five-star recruit, and one of the top players in the 2022 class. He was a McDonald’s All-American in ’22, and played college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats. In 2023, he made the SEC All-Freshman Team, and was also drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks as the 58th pick of the NBA draft.
2024 Bowman U Now NCAA March Madness highlighted some of the top names vying for college basketball superiority. The online-exclusive release included an autograph and numbered parallel in every pack. The mini set had just 20 cards covering key men’s and women’s players. Unlike other Bowman U Now cards, these don’t highlight specific moment. It’s more of a player preview designed for a timely, streamlined release.
Reed Sheppard grew up in London, Kentucky and attended North Laurel High School. He became their shooting guard as a freshman averaging 20.6 points per game. He led the state of Kentucky in scoring during his sophomore season after averaging 30.1 points per game in 28 games played. He was named the Kentucky Gatorade Player of the Year as a junior after averaging 25.5 points, 7.6 assists, 6.8 rebounds and 4.4 steals per game. Sheppard was selected to play in the 2023 McDonald’s All-American Boys Game during his senior year. He was named Kentucky Mr. Basketball, and finished his high school career with 3,727 points, 1,214 assists and 1,050 rebounds. He was named SEC Freshman of the Year by conference coaches at Kentucky, and by the end of the season, he was named the National Freshman of the Year by both Basketball Writers Association and the National Association of Basketball Coaches. He was a consensus four-star recruit and one of the top players in the 2023 class while playing for the University of Kentucky. He was drafted as the 3rd pick in the 2024 NBA draft by the Houston Rockets.
Collectors can trace the origins of Crown Royale back to the 1990s when the brand was introduced by the now defunct Pacific Trading Cards. This particular line was known for its die-cut crown-shapes, something that continues today with the base set. Memorabilia themes included several carryovers, with Coat of Arms, Heirs to the Throne, Knights of the Round Table and Monarch Memorabilia among them.
Shai played one year of college basketball for the Kentucky Wildcats, and was selected 11th overall by the Charlotte Hornets in the 2018 NBA draft before being traded to the Los Angeles Clippers. He is a three-time NBA All-Star and two-time All-NBA First Team member.
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