Topps released licensed NBA cards last week for the first time in over 15 years after taking over the exclusive license from rival Panini. The 2025-26 Topps Basketball flagship release has sparked a frenzy of interest as basketball card collectors get their first glimpse of what Topps has in store for this new era of NBA cards. 

The Athletic’s Collectibles Staff wanted to take a closer look at the cards, while also competing with each other. So we each purchased a hobby box (20 packs, 12 cards per pack, plus one bonus promo pack) with the intention of seeing who could hit the best card. And once all the packs were ripped open, there was no doubt about who did that. Here are the results…

The boxes

Larry: Purchased from House of Cards hobby shop in Metairie, La. on release day for $200. 

David: Purchased from Topps.com on release day for $120. 

Brooks: Purchased from Topps.com preorder for $110. 

See the full set checklist here and pack odds here. 

First impressions 

Larry: The card design is pretty clean, mirroring the 2025 Topps Baseball flagship sets. The rookie card (RC) bug might throw some collectors off since it’s varied from the bugs used across the board for years. It’s clear Topps worked to include a varied list of rookies, veterans and all-time greats within the autographs checklist (which my hits below will indicate). 

The set includes autograph cards of LeBron James (his first licensed autos in a decade and a half), Victor Wembanyama (his first ever licensed autos), Jalen Brunson and Cooper Flagg, but it doesn’t include Luka Dončić, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Giannis Antetokounmpo, or star rookie VJ Edgecombe because of ties to Panini. It’s bizarre how Dončić isn’t on the checklist at all for this product, but collectors could buy a Topps Now Dončić card following his first game. 

The inclusion of case hits borrowing from baseball like Home Court and All Kings should make for a fun chase, and probably jump higher in value since licensed annual Panini case hits like Downtown and Kaboom! will become extinct shortly in new products with the NBA license changing hands to Fanatics/Topps.

David: I was initially frustrated after opening my first pack, not because I didn’t hit the jackpot on my initial rip, but because every card in the first pack I opened had dinged up corners. Thankfully it was a lackluster pack with no real standouts, but what if there had been a special card in there? What if I had purchased that pack individually? Bent corners straight out of the pack before you have a chance to slap on a penny sleeve and top loader are infuriating. 

Overall, this is a fun design. The white frame and the team logo right next to the player name were instantly appealing. Of course the big deal here is the NBA being back at Topps. I think the Topps logo is a very welcoming and recognizable brand for fans who may have been collectors in their younger days but haven’t collected much since. The casual collector who vaguely remembers their collecting days from their youth will remember Topps and that recollection could be enough to get them back into the hobby.

Brooks: As Larry mentioned, I like the return to the design for Topps Basketball mirroring the flagship baseball set design, which Topps also did back when they last had both licenses — it helps me identify a specific design with a specific year. There are a good number of fun inserts in this set that I’d like to get my hands on, as well — the Home Court, All Kings, 8-Bit Ballers, Clutch City Prospects, plus the 1980-81 throwback design cards to name a few. 

One of the first things I noticed once I started opening packs was the use of dynamic photography. That tends to be reserved for a set like Stadium Club or the Golden Mirror/image variation inserts, but there are a good number of base cards in this set that I had to triple check weren’t Golden Mirrors because the photography stood out so much. It would be cool if they lean into that even further in future flagship sets, where you’re not likely to get much of a monetary value return on what you rip, but cool-looking base cards can go a long way toward counteracting any disappointment about that. 

A few examples of the dynamic base card photography in this set. (Photo: Brooks Peck)

The hits 

Larry: It’s probably fair to say all three of us walked into opening our boxes with guarded expectations given each one is said to possess either one autographed card OR one relic card. With such a long checklist and low price point, the chance of landing something exceptional stands rather low. 

So landing not one, but two autographed cards in one box should feel like a boon regardless of which players popped out.

In my first pack, I pulled a Marks of Excellence Green Rainbow (numbered to 99) autographed card (sticker auto) of the Toronto Raptors’ Jonathan Mogbo. Odds of landing an autographed card in this variation are one in every 1,344 hobby packs. So this should feel like a decent hit right off the bat. But then you would assume the rest of the box would be a bunch of base cards and maybe a numbered card or two.

Then came my fourth pack magic!

I was shocked when a Topps 1980-81 45th Anniversary autographed (on-card auto) insert card of my favorite player of all time greeted me: Shaquille O’Neal. While not numbered, it’s still a rare find with odds of hitting one in a hobby box at one in 2,582 packs.

Nothing would top the Shaq, predictably. 

On the non-auto front, I secured a base card of seemingly every rookie in the 2025 NBA Draft class. James Harden and Amen Thompson were the best two pulls from my one silver promo pack.

Flagg count: 1 base card.

Larry’s standout cards. (Photo: Larry Holder)

David: I pulled some big-name rookies out of my box, including Flagg (base), Dylan Harper (a base and a “No Limit” insert) and Ace Bailey (also a base and a “No Limit” card). My box had no autographs but did contain a Gradey Dick Purple Refractor (numbered to 250) and a game-used memorabilia “Own The Game” card of New York Knicks forward Precious Achiuwa. I had a more emotional reaction to pulling a base VJ Edgecombe rookie card than the “hit” my hobby box included. I also nabbed an Edgecombe “Rise to Stardom” card, repeating a pattern of multiple (and different) cards of top rookies. My silver promo pack was all rookies — Koby Brea, Cedric Coward, Brooks Barnhizer, Noah Penda and Joan Beringer — so we’ll see how they fare.

Dalton Knecht surprisingly has a very cool base card with an image of him hanging on the rim after a dunk (pictured above). It’s the kind of sports card photo you dream about as a kid. Knecht will love it when he sees it.

Flagg count: 1 base card. 

David’s top cards. (Photo: David Betancourt)

Brooks: Unfortunately, I was in the same boat as David with my “hit” being an “Own the Game” relic card of Kelly Oubre. I’m a Sixers fan, but that’s not what I was hoping for. My numbered card was a Tracy McGrady (though it emerged with a slightly damaged corner) and I got a decent assortment of mid-round draft pick base, parallel and insert cards. I guess what set my box apart was that it included two Flagg base cards instead of the one that Larry and David each hit. My favorite insert hit was a Donovan Mitchell “Daily Dribble” newspaper style card, which carries odds of one in every 26 hobby box packs. My silver promo pack didn’t produce much of note outside a Nikola Jokić. 

Flagg count: 2 base cards.

Brooks’ top pulls. (Photo: Brooks Peck)

The winner 

Larry Holder is the clear winner of this battle. That Shaq autograph was far and away the top hit of the three boxes, even if it didn’t quite pay back his purchase. Congrats to Larry on the inaugural victory. He now holds bragging rights until we do this again, which can’t come soon enough because he will be pushing those rights to their limit. 

The card that sealed Larry’s victory. (Photo: Larry Holder)

Final thoughts 

Larry: If I had bought the box from Topps directly, I’d certainly be on the plus side of making money. Given I paid nearly double for the box from my local shop (which is less than the $266 current average hobby box price, according to Waxstat), I came up short of breaking even after selling the Shaq auto on eBay for $157.50 on Monday night. That said, coming anywhere close to breaking even on a hobby box feels like a win these days. I might rip a hobby box once or twice per year, and I thoroughly enjoyed it with Topps Basketball. Partially because of the gravity of the release being Topps’ first licensed basketball product in more than 15 years. Partially because it’s a reasonable price point. I’d buy this again. Plus, it’s feasible for kids to be involved in the product because it’s not totally blowing up bank accounts or credit cards.

Final grade: B

David: This was a fun rip despite the initial pack of damaged cards, no autographs and a lackluster game-used memorabilia card. Landing some top-notch rookies helped with that initial buzzkill, but all of them being base cards has me giving serious debate as to whether I’d dive into another hobby box again. These cards look great and there is a buzz about them with Topps and the NBA being back in business together again, but the next time I think about spending over $100 for this set it might be on the secondary market for an individual card with more zing. 

Final grade: B

Brooks: It’s a really strong first showing for the new era of Topps Basketball. No, you’re not likely to pull many high-value cards out of these boxes, but it’s a fun rip. Like David, I had a number of cards come out of the packs with dinged corners, so quality control might need a tweak. Mixing in on-card autographs with the stickers that were the standard in most Panini sets, plus stepping up with game-used memorabilia as opposed to the previous license-holder’s mystery swatches is a welcome change. Although I probably wouldn’t buy another box of this specific product, it did get me excited to buy Topps Chrome when that comes out later in the season, as that’s where we’ll get a better balance between a little more value with all the positives of this flagship set. 

Final grade: B

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