{"id":144023,"date":"2025-12-01T11:51:57","date_gmt":"2025-12-01T16:51:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ripped.topps.com\/?p=144023"},"modified":"2025-12-01T11:52:02","modified_gmt":"2025-12-01T16:52:02","slug":"basketball-card-guy-has-over-4000-jordan-cards","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ripped.topps.com\/uk\/basketball-card-guy-has-over-4000-jordan-cards\/","title":{"rendered":"Basketball Card Guy Has Over 4,000 Jordan Cards"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Building Hobby Community Through Basketball Cards<\/h2>\n\n\n
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Date:<\/span> Dec 1, 2025<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
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John, AKA Basketball Card Guy, has been in The Hobby for years. A lifelong passion led him to build a presence online, particularly on Instagram (@basketballcardguy<\/a>). He’s dedicated to collecting and creating content to engage collectors of all levels, and to educate the next generation of about the joy of The Hobby. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We had a chance to talk to Basketball Card Guy to get his thoughts on collecting and the state of The Hobby.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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RIPPED: Can you tell us your focus in The Hobby as Basketball Card Guy, and your origin story \u2014 how you got into The Hobby? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BCG: <\/strong> I’ve been collecting forever. My main platform is Instagram, but I also have a website (basketballcardguy.com<\/a>) which shares a lot of my personal collection. Occasionally I put a card up for sale \u2014 usually if I have too many of a certain player.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like a lot of people, my dad collected cards when he was a kid. When I was seven or eight, he gave me his vintage baseball cards. He had a couple of Mantles in there, Topps from \u201959 to \u201963. It was really neat, and watching him glow when he talked about the players and the memories \u2014 I saw something in there that was more than just cardboard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That still resonates today. These are not just pieces of cardboard. They let you access a memory \u2014 the moment pictured, or a moment in your own life from when you pulled or found the card. Or the emotion of a player you saw in person.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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RIPPED: How did you get started?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BCG: I was a huge Jordan collector. I still have over 4,000 Jordan cards. Most of them I pulled or traded for in the \u201990s. At 15, I got my first job at a card shop in Mount Kisco, New York. There were three card shops there at the time. This one was in a small mall \u2014 my first retail job. I was the night manager. Tons of fun. My focus quickly became basketball.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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My dad gave me the baseball cards, but once I realized they made basketball cards \u2014 and since I was a much bigger basketball fan \u2014 that became my focus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I started collecting seriously in 1992 at age 11. I had every Shaq card known to man. By the time I got the retail job in \u201996, it was the Iverson, Kobe, Ray Allen rookie class. I collected a ton. I didn\u2019t have the kind of money kids have today at shows. Every paycheck I got became store credit. I never left the shop with money. I always spent it on packs or singles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RIPPED<\/strong>: What is Your Favorite Topps Basketball card?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BCG: That\u2019s super hard to narrow down. Probably one of my Jordan Refractors<\/a>. I love the Michael Jordan Finest Refractors. I set out to get every one of them. It\u2019s a long process that gets harder by the day!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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RIPPED: What’s the focus of your collection?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BCG: My main collection now is autographs<\/a> and memorabilia. Game-used and autographed stuff became more available, which I was drawn to. I’m also a huge set collector. Tons of Topps, from the \u201990s especially. Beam Team was a major one. Also the entire 1993\u201394 Finest Refractor set \u2014 the very first Refractors ever in basketball. Then the 1996\u201397 bronze Refractors, including the Kobe rookie. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve built a lot of Refractor sets. I gravitate toward sets that became templates for future design, like the 1993 Finest paving the way for Chrome.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I love one-of-one-style items \u2014 not just serial-numbered one-of-ones, but things that become unique because of how I participated in creating them. When I met Dennis Rodman, I had him inscribe a quote I could display in my office: \u201cDon\u2019t let other people decide who you are.\u201d That\u2019s personal. That means something.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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RIPPED: What do you do in The Hobby and online as Basketball Card Guy?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BCG: I try to get people to appreciate cards for what they are<\/em> \u2014 not just their value. My fear is the commoditization of The Hobby. Too many kids come up to me and ask about value before anything else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I collect these instead of stocks because I enjoy looking at them. They hold memories. And I want young collectors to see that side of it, too. Online, I model that: I post meaningful cards, unique stories, not transactional content. I’ve made real friends through Instagram. I answer every DM.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A post shared by Basketball Card Guy (@basketballcardguy)<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/blockquote>\r\n