1950s Minneapolis Lakers Jim Pollard & George Mikan
 

Picked these up tonight, but haven't found out really much of any info on them. They are photographs and they measure 3 1/2" x 5". Stamped on the back is the name of the studio "Newburg Studio" on 4th Street in Minneapolis. Photos are facsimile signed on the front. Players I have are Jim Pollard and George Mikan. A seller on ebay has a bunch of these that are autographed, but didn't offer much additional knowledge in the listing and has a Jim Pollard for sale. I have never seen another George Mikan.

Does anyone know what exactly these are? Approximate year? Value? Scarcity? Thanks in advance.

Attachment 475548
Attachment 475549
Attachment 475550

These appear to be from a 1949-50 Minneapolis Lakers team set. I found a full set with envelope that sold quite a few years ago on ebay. Unfortunately I wasn't able to see a price. They seem to be quite rare. Anyone else have any info?

I have a Pollard also. The pose is the same one used in the 1950-51 Lakers yearbook. Per David Kohler at SCP, who I contacted about it a few years ago, it is a team issue.

Thanks Adam. Do you have any idea how many of these could exist or how many were printed? Any idea of value?

I found a Mikan example from ebay that sold in 2018 for cheap. I think it was under $50. That seems so cheap compared to what the Scott's Potato Chips issues sell for.

They are rare but also obscure, unfortunately.

These early NBA Team Issue and oddball items are soooo hard to price. I love 'em and collect 'em but I usually just have to go with what feels about right rather than hard data. For a major HOFer pre-rookie, it just depends on the venue and promotion. I will buy early TI's of major HOFers all day at $30-$50, which is where you could often find them several years ago when I started. I thought, why not, here's a card from before the accepted RC in an era where the mainstream sets were few and far between, so they fill gaps in collections where it seems kinda stupid to discuss a RC otherwise. I mean, we are supposed to ignore the Condors TI and call the 1969 Topps Hawkins his RC, or the Jack In The Box Rockets and call the 1970 Topps the Riley RC? Seems counterintuitive. Lots of uncertainty, though, so lots of room to grow. I know it's been magical for some obscure issues like the Bell Brand Lakers. I wish I'd jumped on those damn things a decade ago, but they are so rare that I wasn't aware of them and by the time I saw them even the commons trimmed of the coupons were hundreds of dollars. Since then I've been grabbing other obscurities whenever I can. Probably would be a good thread subject...

But I digress.

I haven't seen any of these Lakers TI's sell so I am really not sure on value but my SWAG would be $200+ for Mikan and $20-$50 for other players, based on what early TI's sell for in other contexts and what Mikan's 'off brand' early cards go for, but who knows where it goes in a really strong basketball auction. It's a nice piece and I would certainly welcome it into my collection if I came across it.