1996-97 SkyBox Autographics Basketball, near 1998-99 set up for bid
By Ryan Cracknell | Hobby Editor
When it comes to basketball autograph inserts, Autographics is a classic. The checklists are known for both running deep and including a lot of marquee signers who don’t have a lot of autograph cards. Singles can be found here and there, but a complete set of 1996-97 SkyBox Autographics and a near set from 1998-99 are up for bid in Goldin Auction’s Winter Auction.
Both lots have an impressive list of players. The 1996-97 set, which has the blue ink versions, includes a rookie signature from Steve Nash along with Scottie Pippen, Kevin Garnett, Alonzo Morning, Grant Hill, Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler, Ray Allen and more than 80 other players. In all, the set has 95 cards.
The lot of 1998-99 SkyBox Autographics has 122 of the 139-card set. Included are Karl Malone, David Robinson, Jason Kidd and Tracy McGrady. Among the missing cards are Allen Iverson, Tim Duncan, Vince Carter and Dikembe Mutombo.
When SkyBox launched the Autographics line, the cards were spread across several products. For example, to build the 1996-97 set, you’d have to chase Hoops Series 1, Hoops Series 2, SkyBox Series 1, SkyBox Series 2, SkyBox Z-Force Series 1, SkyBox Z-Force Series 2 and SkyBox E-X2000. Needless to say, even at it’s most basic these sets were tough to put together. Today, many of the top stars in these sets don’t surface very often. Combine that with their sporadic signing habits, particularly for cards from their playing days, and you can see why the set is so popular.
Besides the scope of these lots, it’s also worth noting the cards’ condition. It’s not uncommon for early Autographics to not look like they’re in the best of shape. Chipping and corner dings are common sights. Overall, the condition of the cards in these lots look strong. The auction descriptions site them as being “NM to NM/MT.”
Bidding on both the 1996-97 SkyBox Autographics set and 1998-99 near set closes on January 30.
I completed the 96-97 autographics set and it is one of my favorite pieces of my card collection. Even after almost 20 years the cards are in great condition with only a few autographs faded over the years. It is important to note that the autographs will fade if exposed long term to any sort of light source.
I own the full 139 card set from 98-99, have had it from 1999. Wonder how much it would auction for.
@Joseph – Condition would be key, particularly for the top players. You may want to consider looking into have some graded, although you’d need to be careful balancing potential gains with cost of have cards graded. Price guide access is available here (subscription required): https://www.beckett.com/price-guides/basketball
Thanks for the info Ryan. They’ll all pristine, having been touched just once in 1999 to put them in sleeves and top loaders. Kept in a safety deposit box since then, so no fading. Never got into grading cards, because I reside in the Bahamas and have always thought it be risky to send cards of value in the international mailing system.
The top 12 autos in the set are awesome, big names, then it kind of tails off into role players, but an awesome set design and heritage set.