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Gold Mettle: Even Before Release, 2010-11 Gold Standard Basketball Rose in Value
The price of gold reached a record high of more than $1,600 an ounce earlier this week. Good news*for investors. Better news for collectors.
2010-11 Gold Standard Basketball,*the newest NBA trading card product from Panini America,*released on Wednesday blinging*with 50*special cards*made with 11 grams*of real 14-karat gold — marking perhaps the first time in the history of the sports collectibles industry that cards have*ascended*in*value before they were*even released.
The se so-called “Solid Gold” cards*– featuring*the likes of Kobe Bryant, Blake Griffin, Larry Bird and Magic Johnson –*follow*in the flaxen footsteps of Panini America’s wildly successful real-gold endeavors*in*2010 Playoff Contenders Football*and*2010-11 Playoff Contenders Hockey*earlier this*year.
For the record, the current*value of 11 grams of 14-karat gold is roughly $330.*Clearly, though,*these cards will be*worth*way more than their weight in, well, gold. An Aaron Rodgers Golden Ticket from 2010 Playoff Contenders Football sold for more than $3,000 earlier this season while*the*Golden Ticket*of Edmonton Oilers rookie Taylor Hall*sold just four days ago*for $2,500.
But those numbers could pale in comparison to what gold brings in the basketball market. The LeBron James Solid Card surfaced earlier this week with an asking price of $7,500. Meanwhile, the first Solid Gold card unearthed this week — appropriately featuring Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry — is also online with a $1,300 price tag.
In addition to the one-of-a-kind cards made of real gold, 2010-11 Gold Standard Basketball also includes more than 2,000 additional cards – dubbed “Gold Rush”*– with a small piece of 14-karat gold embedded into the card. Early feedback on those has been positive, too. A Derrick Rose Gold Rush*card has already changed hands for the handsome Buy It Now sum*$400.
Those*of you engaging in your own personal Gold Standard gold dig will*enjoy the following video from Tom “The Ripper” Key, who spent some quality time this week at Big League Cards*in Casselberry, Fla., documenting some golden moments for us, including the pulling of a Sold Gold card of a certain Celtics legend.
After the video, take a look at a gilded gallery of*Sold Gold beauties.
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