How Much UVA Stuff is at the National Sports Collector's Convention?
A little change of pace for our content today. Last week, I had 1 day in Chicago and I checked out the National Sports Collector's Convention. My goal was to see how much UVA stuff I could find. How much useless stuff could I add to my already growing collection of useless things that only I can appreciate? Well...stay tuned.
A little back story, like most kids in the 80's and 90s, I collected cards. During the pandemic, the card market took off and cards from the 90's sky rocketed in value. I ended up selling a few of my old cards for a few thousand dollars. My daughter began to take interest in collecting and that takes me to this.
I have no idea what to expect going into this convention. I'm hoping there is a Ty Jerome Booth and Bryant Stith Corner but, unfortunately...finding their cards is much harder than I thought. Most every booth was: Michael Jordan, Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, Micky Mantle...I have no idea who those people are. But here are some photos of cards.
After looking through hundreds and hundreds of tables. I found a De'Andre Hunter Card...
Not sure how I feel about De'Andre Hunter's card being almost twice as much as a Signed Larry Bird and Magic Johnson card...I guess it's respect? or is the cost of gold?
On a slightly UVA related note. Saw this UVA fan.
After seeing the $10k De'Andre Hunter Card...I decided to look in bargain bins...and here's what I found....
I went back in on the expensive show cases...I didn't bother asking for the prices of these...
Cards have really changed over the years. Not sure how much more crazy they can get. This one has a block of gold and some have diamonds. Eventually, their DNA?
I decided look at how much boxes of cards would be to try and get the UVA cards myself...
I was told that $1,199 was a "great" deal for these boxes as they normally go for much more. I'm a sucker for a good deal. Side note, my wife would 100% divorce me if I bought one...so I bought two.
The hunt for more UVA stuff took a little turn. Found this rack of game jerseys....
Next to the game jerseys was a place selling pins and I found this...
I couldn't decide if this was the worst purchase I've ever made or the best. Considering, I've never worn a pin...I decided to buy 2. I got the 1980 Final Four Pin that has the team photo on it and the 1991 Sugar Bowl. Why? No idea.
Back to the hunt for cards. My Biggest Score. A 1 of 1 Ty Jerome Rookie Card. I found this at CardCollector2's booth. He was a huge celebrity there, lots of people taking pictures with him while I was there.
Next up was a program Aisle. Found this Gem.
If you've heard The Lockdown Podcast. You know this game...Strange cover art for a program though. The price is also written in text (Five Dollars) at the bottom.
Found another UVA Related card...not sure if this counts.
No Dawn Staley cards...disappointed in that. Do better card people...
Meanwhile, here are a few completely random things I saw.
Back to the hunt for UVA cards. Here are a few I found. National Treasure is the Cream of the crop. This De'Andre Hunter Card was $4000
Overall, it was a really cool experience. Seeing little pictures of people on cardboard is somehow satisfying. If you've ever collected cards or had any interest, this is an amazing conference. I saw in person a $200k purchase of a Wilt Chamberlain card. I saw numerous $20k purchases of cards. The market is incredible. Next year it'll be in Atlantic City. If you are into collecting and want to see more. Let us know in the comments below and we'll start posting more. On a related note -I submitted Ty Jerome, De'Andre Hunter, Kyle Guy cards to PSA to get graded. So be on the lookout for those cards soon.
I'll leave you with a few more photos I took. Enjoy!
