Panini and Dallas Mavericks start 2016-17 arena promotion
By Stephen Laroche | Beckett Basketball Editor
With the Dallas Mavericks getting ready to face the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers last night, the crowd was prepared to see their local heroes take on LeBron James and Kyrie Irving – but fans also got a special bonus as they came through the gates.
Arena promotions have always been a great way for trading card manufacturers to reach an audience that may not have thought about cards for years, or even collected at all. Panini America was in the house for the first of several trading card nights expected this season and this year’s promotion has two-card packs of cards featuring the 2016-17 Donruss design. There is also a new twist in the form of Illustrated cards that are available to those stopping by the company’s booth at each of the five games where cards are available.
The first Donruss cards given out were of Harrison Barnes and rookie A.J. Hammons and Illustrated kicked off with Barnes as well.
Fans attending the February 25, 2017 game against the New Orleans Pelicans will add basic cards of Andrew Bogut and J.J. Barea to their growing collections and can seek out the Illustrated card of Bogut. The month of March will be busy and see the promotion come to a close. On March 7 (vs. Los Angeles Lakers) will feature cards of Deron Williams and Devin Harris. Justin Anderson and Wesley Matthews are released four days later when the Phoenix Suns visit and the last two (Dirk Nowitzki and Dwight Powell) are out as the Mavs face the Golden State Warriors on March 21. The Illustrated cards coming for those games will be Harris, Anderson, and Nowitzki.
Stephen Laroche is the editor of Beckett Hockey, Beckett Basketball, and Beckett Sports Card Monthly magazines. Have a comment, question or idea? Send an e-mail to him at slaroche@beckett.com or follow him on Twitter @Stephen_Laroche.
