Washington (United States) (AFP) – The lucky buyer of a one-of-a-kind basketball card featuring NBA star Cooper Flagg has a choice to make: put it up for auction for potentially millions of dollars or accept 32 years of season tickets from his team, the Dallas Mavericks.
The coveted trading card was unveiled by a sports card shop in Rhode Island on Monday during a livestream in which the store opens up packs of cards for collectors who have made blind bids on the packs. The card features a jersey patch worn by Flagg in his first NBA game and is also signed by the former Duke University star, who averaged 21 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists to earn the 2025-26 season NBA Rookie of the Year award.
The Dallas Mavericks offered up a trade package in exchange for the card that includes two premium season tickets for 32 years, a signed game-worn Flagg jersey, a photo opportunity with the player, and other perks. A New Jersey-based company that specializes in sports collectibles offered a $1.5 million cash advance to the buyer for the rights to put the Flagg card up for auction and estimated that it could go under the hammer for up to $5 million.
A similar debut patch rookie card featuring Major League Baseball pitcher Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates sold for $1.1 million last year. Sports trading cards are big business in the United States, with collectors paying north of $10 million in recent years for cards featuring former NBA stars Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, and MLB’s Shohei Ohtani.
© 2024 AFP
