[Econteachert205]

So it has been a while since I've posted about star basketball. My opinion is quite strong that these cards are the best current value in the hobby. The depressed prices relative to 1986 fleer is totally due to lack of understanding of the product and the current refusal of PSA and SGC to grade these issues. It is my personal belief that this will at some point change. Here are my reasons why:

1. There are some issues (the 5x7's) where no fakes/ repros exist.
2. Like other fakes, a trained eye can easily spot a star fake when in hand. I have had fakes in hand that looked good with pictures but in hand it was pretty obvious
3. The timeline for re-issues, subsequent HSN issues and type 2's are now well understood and known thanks to collectors and experts.
4. With the rising popularity of basketball cards and private equity entering into the picture, it is hard to imagine these cards being continued to ignored long term.

One example of the incredible disconnect between 1986 fleer and star is the Dominique Wilkins slam dunk card below. I picked this up as a BIN for 40 dollars with tax. The psa 9 fleer Wilkins is currently a 1300 dollar card. These star cards were usually limited to about 5000 sets, a much smaller run than fleer. I know 5x7's are not everyone's cup of tea, but these cards display beautifully and are condition sensitive even if sealed in the original bag. Another example is this Charles Barkley 1984 Court Kings, about 70 on a BIN, thought to be his, MJ's and Hakeem's first cards.

These are cards I intend to own long term. Long term basketball is a global growth market. It is a sport of individuals and icons. These are some of the most attractive cards produced in the 1980's.