If you wanted to start a Michael Jordan collection from scratch where would you begin

[pgisback]

I haven't done anything in basketball, but thinking of collecting MJ. So if your budget was say $1000 every month or two, where you can't buy the high end, but can still make a decent collection... where would you begin and how would you progress?

[ThoseBackPages]

Best centered PSA/BGS 86F you can find. Worry about the centering, not the numeric grade on the flip

[imbluestreak23]

90's inserts. Focus on those with states odds of 1:96 packs or greater (invest in an old ~1999-2000 Beckett).

Unfortunately most have dried up. The ones that do surface keep exchanging hands and aren't in optimal condition.

[GC1980]

Originally Posted by ThoseBackPages

Best centered PSA/BGS 86F you can find. Worry about the centering, not the numeric grade on the flip

Could not agree more.

[pgisback]

Originally Posted by ThoseBackPages

Best centered PSA/BGS 86F you can find. Worry about the centering, not the numeric grade on the flip

So would you just wait a month or two and save up the $3k for a PSA 8 fleer Jordan instead of spending that money on 90s inserts and stuff? And I just looked on ebay... is centering the reason there is like a $1000 gap between some of the PSA 8's?

[eastbayak]

MJ/Kobe/LeBron triple auto (on-card)

[azdbacks1998]

Originally Posted by eastbayak

MJ/Kobe/LeBron triple auto (on-card)

1st rule of Jordan collecting, dont taint your collection with those other two guys.

[eastbayak]

Originally Posted by azdbacks1998

1st rule of Jordan collecting, dont taint your collection with those other two guys.

Hahahaha

[Doublexthebeast]

I probably pick out one manufacturer and start there. That way you have a nice looking collection of one type of card.

Me personally would pick out Topps and start working on getting nice grade refractors. 93-97 finest, 96-98 chrome, and maybe some inserts.

[tommywillsburg]

don't get caught in the jordan rookie manipulation like most guys

[GC1980]

Originally Posted by tommywillsburg

don't get caught in the jordan rookie manipulation like most guys

Unless he is after a PSA 10 he should be OK. The manipulation has trickled down but at their current prices, PSA 7 or 8 is still a decent buy. If OP is after Jordans to start a collection even buying in at today's prices at those grades and centered won't be too bad assuming they are staying with him for the long haul.

BackPages advice is great.

I personally don't like a lot of the game used stuff or signed stuff as they were released well after his playing days for the most part.

The 86 Sticker in PSA 9 had some suspicious activity earlier in the year but has cooled as of late and seems to typically go at auction for around $1000. I still think that's a nice value considering how hard they are to find centered. The second year in any grade outside a 10 is also still a nice card.

[ThoseBackPages]

i would worry less about what grade the card is, and more about what the card looks like.

The thing to keep in mind is this..... there will always be someone with better stuff then you, and thats OK imo, because *i* enjoy collecting. *i* enjoy the hunt involved.

i do not really follow what the 86's go for. i bought this one last year after looking for a long time for a centered "low graded" copy, and am completely happy with it.

[tmar214]

Id hold off on PSA graded early jordans for now. Market has explode recently and I dont think its to exciting to buy when the cards have increased so much over the past 6 months.

Id start with 90s refractors (finest/topps chrome), Jordan NBA uni on card auto, NBA uni jersey auto (can find some for ~800-1k) and some mid tier 90s inserts. One thing to consider is buying a lot of the inserts / refractors in BGS 9 condition if you can find them. Saves you a ton and if its for PC aesthetically theyre very similar to psa 9/10s and bgs 9.5s.

[Starman101]

Originally Posted by tmar214

Id hold off on PSA graded early jordans for now. Market has explode recently and I dont think its to exciting to buy when the cards have increased so much over the past 6 months.

Id start with 90s refractors (finest/topps chrome), Jordan NBA uni on card auto, NBA uni jersey auto (can find some for ~800-1k) and some mid tier 90s inserts. One thing to consider is buying a lot of the inserts / refractors in BGS 9 condition if you can find them. Saves you a ton and if its for PC aesthetically theyre very similar to psa 9/10s and bgs 9.5s.

Agree as well +1

[Soleternity]

Keep your eyes peeled for auctions of any slabbed Jordans. You'll get a rough feel for the price points of his stuff (be sure to cross reference all sales against previous sales via watchcount). It's fun to collect his high grade base and inserts. You'll figure out how much his raw cards should go for and perhaps wander into buying raw stuff and trying to get it graded. There are lots of ungraded Jordan inserts and refractors out there, but always have to ask yourself--why hasn't this card been graded? It's likely been around for 20 years. Perhaps it didn't grade well and it got cracked out. Or maybe the owner just doesn't like grading cards (lots of 90s era collectors who don't like grading and have high grade cards that aren't slabbed$.

At any given time there are roughly 75k cards listed in the "basketball" category on eBay that have "Jordan" in the title. Any given day there are Jordan steals to be had. A few days ago someone listed a BGS 8.5 93-94 Scoring Kings for $79 obo and it sold for $70! That's a $125+ card.

[the27guy]

I saw a really sweet Bulls ud auto jersey card for $800 in the BST section. It's probably gone but with a grand every couple of months id go there. There's not really a lot of Jordan auto patches out there when you start to do the math - wizards or Bulls. Might be best to start big with one of those.

I'd stay far away from the 86 fleer market. Notice the increase in people looking to sell this last month. People see the writing on the wall. Once those come back down, grab one with great centering as mentioned above.

Then I'd pick off one or two really cool 90s inserts a month.

[pgisback]

So it's a battle between on-card bulls jersey auto vs a well centered PSA 8 fleer rc. Is there some reason these Fleer Jordan's are being all manipulated right now and that it will stop?

[Doublexthebeast]

Also, I would avoid late 90's(98-99 & 99-00) upper deck inserts for the most part. Upper Deck put a ton of his cards in every set and created a bunch of inserts that have multiple cards of his in the same set.

There are a few great Upper Deck inserts though. 98-99 Starquest Gold is great and there are others.

[phdbeckett]

I would go for fleer and skybox. Second year Jordans are still undervalued. Acetate and Lenticular insets from the mid to late 90s are beautiful. Numbered parallels arent worth it for now.
Get a Hot Humbers, Thrill Seekers, and 1997-98 Big Men on Court.

[the27guy]

One more data point that may be interesting to you. On ebay currently there are literally hundreds of Jordan 86 fleer cards. I don't exactly how many because some are reprints etc, but it's in the HUNDREDS.

On the other hand, there are a grand total of 12 game used on card auto patch Jordan's on ebay. Now, obviously your average auto patch MJ is a lot more expensive than your average 86 fleer, but given that panini doesn't look to be giving up that license any time soon, I like the outlook of the patch autos a heck of a lot more than the fleers.

[pgisback]

Originally Posted by the27guy

One more data point that may be interesting to you. On ebay currently there are literally hundreds of Jordan 86 fleer cards. I don't exactly how many because some are reprints etc, but it's in the HUNDREDS.

On the other hand, there are a grand total of 12 game used on card auto patch Jordan's on ebay. Now, obviously your average auto patch MJ is a lot more expensive than your average 86 fleer, but given that panini doesn't look to be giving up that license any time soon, I like the outlook of the patch autos a heck of a lot more than the fleers.

That's a good point. It's not like the Fleer rookies are going anywhere, since there's so many of them. Very tough decision. I'm kind of leaning your way now and thinking of saving up for an on-card auto in bulls uni and picking up some 90s inserts from here and there. I'm trying more for quality than quantity unlike my last endeavours where I'm impatient and just pick up tons of mid range cards.

[the27guy]

Originally Posted by pgisback

That's a good point. It's not like the Fleer rookies are going anywhere, since there's so many of them. Very tough decision. I'm kind of leaning your way now and thinking of saving up for an on-card auto in bulls uni and picking up some 90s inserts from here and there. I'm trying more for quality than quantity unlike my last endeavours where I'm impatient and just pick up tons of mid range cards.

Smart to go quality over quantity. I'm a fan of that. Heck, nothing wrong with saving for a month or two or three and going big time. I just picked up a sweet MJ along the lines of what we are talking about. Wait for the mail day.

[drobfan8]

I would also hold off on the Fleer RC. Prices are steep right now and they might dip once people bave new high end to buy. Immac, Flawless and possibly Eminence still to come.

90s Jordans are the way to go, refractors and his inserts are must haves.

His 93 and 94 Finest refractors are a must. I also agree with the Hot numbers, plus Rock Stars refractor, Generations, Scoring king, then any other higher end inserts like hot shots, thrill seekers, court masters etc.

And a Jordan Auto is also a must

[Starman101]

Originally Posted by drobfan8

I would also hold off on the Fleer RC. Prices are steep right now and they might dip once people bave new high end to buy. Immac, Flawless and possibly Eminence still to come.

90s Jordans are the way to go, refractors and his inserts are must haves.

His 93 and 94 Finest refractors are a must. I also agree with the Hot numbers, plus Rock Stars refractor, Generations, Scoring king, then any other higher end inserts like hot shots, thrill seekers, court masters etc.

And a Jordan Auto is also a must

Good advice and agree 100%

For the most part I agree with Drobfan and Doublebeast's advice

With $1000 any 1993 through 1998 Topps Finest and Topps Chrome Refractors are good places to start as they are still priced reasonably and have some upside IMO

As far as higher end I would pick up any 90s Autos or Game Jerseys from 1996-1999 and though they are very expensive I still believe they have upside

As far as early Jordans Id definately go with any early BGS graded Star cards

Fleer RC and all Fleers are nice but they were way overproduced and have limited upside IMO

You can go after any Jordans you want but those are the ones I would PRIORITIZE

[Chain]

On-card Bulls autos from 2003 to 2010.