Topps Announces Rookie Debut Patches, Gold Logomen Coming to the NBA
Topps will bring two of its most popular baseball card innovations from recent years to the basketball card industry during the 2025-26 card calendar.
Fanatics announced Wednesday it would bring the Rookie Debut Patch to NBA jerseys and later to Topps basketball cards this season, following a pattern the company has used for Major League Baseball since 2023, Major League Soccer since 2024, WWE wrestling since April 2025, and UFC since May 2025.
Cooper Flagg’s NBA Rookie Debut Patch / Topps image
The company did not disclose which product would be home to the NBA Rookie Debut Patch cards. Since 2023, collectors have been able to pull baseball’s Rookie Debut Patch Autographs from Topps Chrome Update.
The Rookie Debut Patch is a special patch affixed to a player’s uniform for only the game in which they make their professional debut. The patch is later authenticated and put into a 1/1 trading card that can never be replicated.
The most expensive Rookie Debut Patch card belongs to Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes, whose card was purchased by Dick’s Sporting Goods for $1.1 million. Rookie Debut Patch cards of other prominent players have commanded five and six figures.
A strong NBA Draft class, led by top overall pick Cooper Flagg, is expected to draw immense collector interest once the first basketball Rookie Debut Patch cards are released.
In addition, Topps also announced that major award winners from the 2024-25 NBA season will wear special Golden Logoman patches on their uniforms this season, and some of those Gold Logoman patches will later go into Topps cards.
Players participating in the program are Oklahoma City’s Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (MVP), San Antonio’s Stephon Castle (Rookie of the Year) and Cleveland’s Evan Mobley (Defensive Player of the Year).
Fanatics first had baseball players wear Gold Logoman patches during the 2025 season, and Topps released the first Gold Logoman patch cards – including dual and autographed versions – in 2025 Topps Chrome Baseball.
There could be another expansion of this program in 2026 after Fanatics and Topps take over licensing rights for NFL cards.
