Balling Out: A Cardpocalypse Challenge, Day 4

Today's challenge: write about your favorite basketball card in your collection. I don't actively collect basketball anymore, but I was happy to accept this challenge because it gives me a chance to show off a couple of basketball cards from my collection, which I have only ever done a couple of times since this blog was born.

As was the case with football, my mind immediately turned to BYU and the greatest player I've ever seen take the court for the Cougs. Jimmer-mania was huge ten years ago. I remember seeing "You've Been Jimmered" and "Shoot It From Here, Jimmer" t-shirts all over the state. My Jimmer collection is pretty small, however, so I don't have much to choose from. I identified this as my favorite Jimmer card, but I quickly realized this wasn't my favorite overall basketball card.

So I turned to my favorite basketball set. I own exactly one complete basketball set, and it is 1996-97 UD3. This set is awesome! I remember building it when I was 14 and it was quite an achievement for me because it felt so high-end. Everything in this set looks nice, and the rookie class is one of the best ever. We're talking Allen Iverson, Ray Allen, and, of course, Kobe Bryant. But Bryant wasn't the guy I always enjoyed watching through his career. I'm a sucker for a play-making point guard, so this beautiful Steve Nash rookie card got some consideration as my favorite. But it still wasn't quite there.

And this is where I ended up. I can't choose between these two. Back in 7th and 8th grade, Grant Hill was my world. Both of these cards have nostalgic value for me. I remember going to a Jazz game when I was 12 and buying a pack of Upper Deck from the team store. Surrounded by my friends, I pulled the hottest rookie at the time, and a guy who was quickly becoming my favorite player. I was stoked. It's a really good-looking card, too. The next year, I pulled this Reign Men insert from Stadium Club. It seems like I remember the odds on this set being kind of steep, so when I pulled my idol for myself, it was huge. Plus, this card booked for something like $25 back then and it was the most expensive card in my collection. I couldn't choose between the two, so you get to see both as my favorite basketball card.