[user_3n5kp]

Its become a tradition with for my girl to get me some wax on our anniversary so I was debating the boxes below but wasn't sure what big inserts were in them and at what odds. She wanted to do a Fleer Retro because she likes them but thought going after the originals may be more fun. Plus I can maybe get 2-3 of the boxes below for the price of one retro. Any links or help would be appreciated.

98-99 thunder
97-98 zforce series 2
97-98 skybox series 1
97-98 ultra 1 and 2
97-98 metal championship

[djohn]

The odds of landing a BIG insert will be tough in any of those boxes. The reason that the BIG inserts are worth so much now is that they were case hits. For instance the 97-98 Ultra Court Masters were inserts in series 2 packs at a rate of 1 in 144 packs. Now that might not scare you away, but consider that even if you got lucky and hit one you could still manage to get a lesser collected player like Shareef Abdur-Rahim.
With that being said the old wax is still a lot of fun to break, and I don't want to deter you from going that route. A lot of the odds can be found with some simple searches on this site. Just look at the boxes you're interested in and see which inserts you want to know the odds for. Then look up the insert set on Beckett and then click on the description to see the "set information" which usually tells you the pack odds for that set if they are known. Here is an example of what to do:
If you wanted to know about the 1997-98 Ultra Court Masters inserts, you would type "1997-98 Ultra Court Masters" in the search field and it would return a listing of the set first and then all the individual cards in the set. Click on the first entry, which would be the set, and there will be a box titled "Set Information" which will tell you about the set and the odds. I have put a direct link to the set I listed so you can see what I am referring to.
http://www.beckett.com/basketball/1997-9...t-masters/

[buckunteer]

The odds of landing a BIG insert will be tough in any of those boxes. The reason that the BIG inserts are worth so much now is that they were case hits. For instance the 97-98 Ultra Court Masters were inserts in series 2 packs at a rate of 1 in 144 packs. Now that might not scare you away, but consider that even if you got lucky and hit one you could still manage to get a lesser collected player like Shareef Abdur-Rahim.
With that being said the old wax is still a lot of fun to break, and I don't want to deter you from going that route. A lot of the odds can be found with some simple searches on this site. Just look at the boxes you're interested in and see which inserts you want to know the odds for. Then look up the insert set on Beckett and then click on the description to see the "set information" which usually tells you the pack odds for that set if they are known. Here is an example of what to do:
If you wanted to know about the 1997-98 Ultra Court Masters inserts, you would type "1997-98 Ultra Court Masters" in the search field and it would return a listing of the set first and then all the individual cards in the set. Click on the first entry, which would be the set, and there will be a box titled "Set Information" which will tell you about the set and the odds. I have put a direct link to the set I listed so you can see what I am referring to.
http://www.beckett.com/basketball/1997-9...t-masters/

Yep that pretty much sums it up! I do that a lot when I'm looking for stuff. Personally if you want stuff that lands around $100-$125/box in that era I'd go for 97-98 Finest series 1 (chance at a gold MJ, I did pull a gold embossed card in the box I tried, but it only booked $15, the MJ books WAY better haha). The Skybox products would have second-year autographics in them at about one every other box, so decent odds of hitting at least one of them if you picked up 2 boxes. Incidentally that's why 96-97 Skybox products are doubly expensive: Kobe RCs AND first-year autographics!

[TBarn291]

I found links for the Thunder and Sky Box


http://www.dacardworld.com/sports-cards/...-hobby-box

http://www.dacardworld.com/sports-cards/...cgrady-rcs

[user_3n5kp]

Thanks for the input guys. I knew the odds on some of these were long but dang. The 1:300 odds are tough and the serial numbers are probably even longer odds, especially for someone I would want.

Might be thinking something like the 2011-12 retro is better considering there are so many chances at a nice MJ in there and the prices are dropping. 90s stuff is just much more fun and the allure of multiple boxes...tough call.

Already did the Chrome and finest from 97-98 and the Bowmans from 96-97, any other fan favs?

[djohn]

If you think that 1:300 odds are tough just go look at the 97-98 E-X2001 Jamabalaya odds (they were 1:720) and you will realize why some of these inserts are so high in value. By the way the E-X boxes were really fun breaks for me back in the late 90s. E-X2000 and E-X2001 are my favorites, but you will be paying around the same price as a box of 11-12 Retro if you can even find a box for sale. That being said DACardworld has the Retro boxes for $289.95 as a daily deal today.

---

Now that I got myself thinking about the E-X boxes I went to check and found this steal.
http://www.overstock.com/Sports-Toys/199...oduct.html
I wonder how long ago these were on sale at this price, as I sure wish I could have found it in time to buy some.

[TBarn291]

I agree with djohn EX products were fun to open and a lot of cool inserts. Flair Showcase was a pretty cool product from 97-98 and 98-99. I would love to find a box of 98-99 SPx Finite. That is one of my favorite products.

[user_3n5kp]

Found an EX 2001 for 400 but that is a steep buy in.

I was thinking either last yrs retro at that sale price or maybe doing the Thunder and something nostalgic like a 93-94 finest or a bunch of lower priced boxes.

[SHowley2003]

I agree with djohn EX products were fun to open and a lot of cool inserts. Flair Showcase was a pretty cool product from 97-98 and 98-99. I would love to find a box of 98-99 SPx Finite. That is one of my favorite products.

I wonder how a box of 98-99 SPx would hold up over time. It is very rare to find a single in mint condition due to chipping on the edges and in the middle of the card. I would be interested to see the condition of cards still in pack.

For my money I love anything Topps Finest, and e-x is a fun, though pricey, break.

[buckunteer]

Yeah you know I'm a 90's guy but that is pretty cheap for Retro. Cheapest price I've heard of in months. I think if they hit $250 I might even have to try it!