Card is Extremely Difficult to Find in High Grade
Wilt Chamberlain’s 1961 Fleer rookie card has been an iconic card in The Hobby for six decades.
With print defects being a common flaw on the Chamberlain, it’s extremely difficult to find the card in a high grade. The industry’s top two grading companies have proved that. Out of the 2,139 examples PSA has graded, only three (.0014%) have achieved Gem Mint 10 status. SGC has graded 607 copies of the card, and only one (.0016) has been deemed 10 worthy.
Remarkably, SGC’s lone 10 was just recently graded. SGC President Peter Steinberg made a video announcement about the historic card on social media today.
“I am honored to be introducing to all of you to one of the most impressive trading cards that The Hobby has ever seen,” Steinberg said in the video. “This card absolutely blew our team away.”
Perfectly centered with crisp white edges and corners, the colors on this Chamberlain pop out of the cardboard. The image of Chamberlain is bold. The back of the card is just as impressive with crystal-clear statistics of the “Big Dipper.”
“Finding a dead-centered copy is nearly impossible,” Steinberg said. “Even if you do, you could turn the card around only to find a gum stain on the back.”
The Philadelphia Warriors’ center was just 25 years old when this card was released. The legend of Chamberlain continued to grow as he tallied the only 100-point game in NBA history on March 2, 1962.
“To be clear, you will never find an example nicer than this one,” Steinberg said. “It is the true definition of Gem Mint.”
