Why isn't Shaquille O'Neal's market better

[SleepyWill]

Bored this morning and just looking at his rookies and certain refractors and I just feel like he is criminally undervalued.

Given that he's such big presence on TV currently, figured his cards would be higher overall.

[nbahobbyaddict]

I agree, it's crazy.

[mfw13]

Because kinda like KD, he never won anything on his own.

Had to force his way to an already successful team to get his rings.

[Chris P]

Originally Posted by mfw13

Because kinda like KD, he never won anything on his own.

Had to force his way to an already successful team to get his rings.

I wouldn't say the Lakers were successful in the way the Warriors were before Shaq got there. Yes, they had all stars but they never did anything in the playoffs before Shaq got there. The Warriors had proven they could win titles without KD, The Lakers hadn't. Plus nobody at the time knew Kobe waa gonna be who he turneed out to be

[hermanotarjeta]

People in general can’t relate to big men and their style of play.

Grab puny ball and throw in puny basket just isn’t sexy.

Plus, he underperformed for what god-given tools he was born with, like another unpopular nba star. Shaq should have won at least 6 rings with his toolbox.

Lazy and unmotivated are terms that have followed him since he was drafted - not inspiring attributes that people want to collect.

[Scottish Punk]

I think part of it is his game. He was dominant big man without any flash in his game. Elbow to the left dunk, elbow to the right dunk. Unstoppable due to having quick feet at a massive size. Jumping to teams doesn't help. If he stayed in Orlando and won a chip with Penny, his popularity may be better. Still he is still an "era" guy, so not sure how much more it could be. "Era" guys are players that describe a decade of the NBA. Bird/Magic, Jordan, Shaq/Kobe, etc.

[cms11]

Originally Posted by SleepyWill

Bored this morning and just looking at his rookies and certain refractors and I just feel like he is criminally undervalued.

Given that he's such big presence on TV currently, figured his cards would be higher overall.

He was lazy, got fat, never tried to improve his free throws, and his personality - which was fun at first - got annoying. To sum it up, someone can't be as arrogant as Shaq and not put in the work if they want to remain respected by people.

[Scottish Punk]

Originally Posted by hermanotarjeta

People in general can’t relate to big men and their style of play.

Grab puny ball and throw in puny basket just isn’t sexy.

Plus, he underperformed for what god-given tools he was born with, like another unpopular nba star. Shaq should have won at least 6 rings with his toolbox.

Lazy and unmotivated are terms that have followed him since he was drafted - not inspiring attributes that people want to collect.

Originally Posted by cms11

He was lazy, got fat, never tried to improve his free throws, and his personality - which was fun at first - got annoying. To sum it up, someone can't be as arrogant as Shaq and not put in the work if they want to remain respected by people.

I am happy to see other posters have this opinion. I got roasted years ago on here for stating Shaq wasn't that "skilled" of a player and didn't really improve. His numbers were always good, so i guess motivation wasn't there.

[duron]

If you think it’s bad now, you should’ve seen the last decade or so.

As a Penny insert guy I consistently saw Shaq go for less time and time again. That’s not the case anymore.

[cms11]

Originally Posted by Scottish Punk

I am happy to see other posters have this opinion. I got roasted years ago on here for stating Shaq wasn't that "skilled" of a player and didn't really improve. His numbers were always good, so i guess motivation wasn't there.

Exactly.

I thought of another thing - he didn't live up to the hype. He was the most hyped player until LeBron. His expectation was that he would not only become a HOFer, but the best center of all-time. He didn't even outplay the best center of his era (Hakeem) IMO.

On top of that, there's was an entire strategy named after him - Hack a Shaq - because he was such an embarrassingly poor FT shooter. That alone leaves a taint on his career.

[Noles939913]

Originally Posted by mfw13

Because kinda like KD, he never won anything on his own.

Had to force his way to an already successful team to get his rings.

Another brain dead take from you.

-Shaq was the Finals MVP for all three of those Lakers titles.

-The Lakers were taken out in the first round of the playoffs the season before he got there. They were worse than the Magic team he came from.

[hermanotarjeta]

Originally Posted by Scottish Punk

I am happy to see other posters have this opinion. I got roasted years ago on here for stating Shaq wasn't that "skilled" of a player and didn't really improve. His numbers were always good, so i guess motivation wasn't there.

Effort, motivation and killer instinct are real things that discriminating fans can appreciate. When you are already so talented that you don’t try to improve all facets of your game, people can see that. It’s the same reason Bron gets all the crap that he gets - he practically begs for it.

The worst thing is - Shaq isn’t even a millennial!

[mwf94]

His goofy tone and over-availability is what utterly cripples his market. The masses love him but don't respect him.

[kingofsnake]

Is his market not strong? Should ask someone like rimshaqer34 who collects him.

I was a Shaq fan as a kid, but I agree with a lot of the takes on this thread - Shaq as an arrogant guy, a bit petty and spiteful of others, not committed to improvement, super over-exposed these days. It also doesn't help that for a number of years that

Shaq doesn't sign his own autos

[MavsRChamps]

Shaq's market for the guys in his time period is just behind Kobe, Lebron, and Jordan.

His rookies is just a print run thing - 1992 was mass produced.

Looking up comparative refractor prices say vs. Dirk, Garnett, Duncan, Iverson, Nash, he sells higher on average even if just slightly.

Very quick analysis for 2003 Topps Chrome refractor PSA 9 for sales as an example

Shaq - Auction $100
Garnett - Buy it now $75
Duncan - Best offer under $70
Iverson - Auction $70
Dirk - Auction $50
Nash - Auction $30

If you're saying he should be closer to Kobe in values, that's just 'cause Kobe's mentality, drive, etc is more beloved. He's a guard. Way more Kobe stans/fans than Shaq due to that. And with basketball, the top of the crop's prices are higher way more than even the next level below.

[duron]

Originally Posted by kingofsnake

Is his market not strong? Should ask someone like rimshaqer34 who collects him.

I was a Shaq fan as a kid, but I agree with a lot of the takes on this thread - Shaq as an arrogant guy, a bit petty and spiteful of others, not committed to improvement, super over-exposed these days. It also doesn't help that for a number of years that

Shaq doesn't sign his own autos

His market is strong. Just took a while.

As for his fake autos, many people are still unaware

[sportzking]

I’ve always it was because big men like centers don’t get hobby love. Not only Shaq but Ewing, Robinson, Mourning, etc. don’t get hyped like flashy guards and forwards.

[cms11]

Originally Posted by MavsRChamps

Shaq's market for the guys in his time period is just behind Kobe, Lebron, and Jordan.

His rookies is just a print run thing - 1992 was mass produced.

Looking up comparative refractor prices say vs. Dirk, Garnett, Duncan, Iverson, Nash, he sells higher on average even if just slightly.

Very quick analysis for 2003 Topps Chrome refractor PSA 9 for sales as an example

Shaq - Auction $100
Garnett - Buy it now $75
Duncan - Best offer under $70
Iverson - Auction $70
Dirk - Auction $50
Nash - Auction $30

If you're saying he should be closer to Kobe in values, that's just 'cause Kobe's mentality, drive, etc is more beloved. He's a guard. Way more Kobe stans/fans than Shaq due to that. And with basketball, the top of the crop's prices are higher way more than even the next level below.

Jordan dominated his era so much that the only other players to get a Finals MVP were him (3x), Hakeem (2x), and Timmy (3x).

I'd personally rather own Iverson cards than Shaq. Which is strange to say because I was such a fan of Shaq in 92 that I had a standup of him in my bedroom.

[rainmaker]

Originally Posted by mfw13

Because kinda like KD, he never won anything on his own.

Had to force his way to an already successful team to get his rings.

lolzers

[fabiani12333]

Honestly? Because he got too heavy and slowed down after his Magic years. He also couldn't shoot free-throws and had the whole hack-a-Shaq phenomenon. Had he stayed leaner and more athletic in his 30s, he would be viewed more foundly.

[mwf94]

For anyone in the know, is this basically THE Shaq grail card?

[rainmaker]

That and the Upper Deck 1 and 1B (trade card). All need to be Gems to be high end vault worthy.

[asujbl]

You’ll pay around $9,000 for that Beam Team

You’ll pay around $3,000 for the Upper Deck RC PSA 10

It all depends on how you define market I suppose

His high end market is active and not easy to crack. People have stashed their PC items

His lower end or modern stuff might not sell what you think it should sell for

It’s all point of view

[90skid]

I think everyone brought some valid points across the spectrum for reasons both positive and negative why his "market" isn't better.

Personally as my name suggests, I grew up watching Orlando Shaq and loved him, my #1 favorite player (as was Jordan of course). So it's the nostalgia in me that got me back to collecting Shaq again. I honestly don't care about the end of his career and how he went out, it doesn't matter to me. Orlando Shaq and Lakers Prime Shaq is what mattered. Not every athlete has to finish their career on the top to still be admired.

What also matters is how he is now a days in the public eye. He's got great entertainment, and is extremely generous, thankful, and respectful. I invite you to watch this 3 minute clip as just some examples.

https://x.com/josh_uglyasf/status/19...829736737?s=20


Now, getting back to his market - honestly it's not bad! Look at the 2 year chart of his index on Card Ladder:



We are at multi-year highs at this point. This is an index of 252 of his cards across a whole variety of grades/years/etc. The rare, hard to find, and high grade stuff is contested very well in the open market, and still on the rise.

As said above me, it's all about point of view.

[dizzy4111]

His market is plenty strong and has caught up a lot the last few years

Very few from that era that consistently sell higher