20 of the Most Popular (and Valuable) Modern Sports Cards

PSA 10 Population: 2,068

LeBron’s Topps Chrome rookie is a staple in the card collecting community. I can’t tell you how many “baseball-only” or “football-only” folks have one of these LeBron’s stashed away. Is it the staple step-back jump shot on the front that makes it so popular? Maybe the classic, youthful 19-year-old image on the back? Or is it just that this is THE Topps Chrome brand rookie card of this current generation’s Michael Jordan? Probably the latter, but it’s an interesting card value-wise. Since LeBron’s move to LA, the PSA 10 copies of this card have nearly doubled in value. The card is known to be typically well off-center, so it’s not an easy grade for the PSA/BGS savvy types. This specific card has versions as a standard refractor, black refractor (#/500), xfractor (#/220) and the highly sought after gold refractor (#/50).

PSA 10 Population: 3,903

Ask any ‘80s to ‘90s card collector about this card, and I’m sure they all can identify it as the most popular card of the late ‘80s/early ‘90s junk era. The funny thing is this card is far from junk. With a PSA 10 POP report of 3,903, this card’s value on the secondary market continues to remain solid, and Griffey continues to be wildly popular with baseball collectors. With his recent Hall of Fame induction (2016) and popularity that crosses multiple generational lines, the Griffey Star Rookie has cemented its place as one of the most collectible and popular cards. It’s quite easily the most recognizable baseball card of the current generation.

PSA 10 Population: 15,639

What we have seen from LeBron James in the Topps Chrome Brand, we also see in Panini’s version of Prizm. Prizm, a brand released in 2012 by Panini, has taken the reins as the marquee chrome-like brand that collectors love. Now add in the enormous domestic and international buzz from Doncic to an already crazed basketball-collecting community, and you have a worldwide phenomenon modern rookie card. I would venture to say that this card has single-handedly brought tens of thousands of new eyes to the world of cards.

The PSA POP report at the time of this article was 15.639 for graded Gem Mint 10s. The craze is real, and Luka has become the new prince of the NBA (move over King?). Looking for a PSA 10 Gem mint copy? You’ll have to fork over a cool $1500+, but who knows how high the ceiling for this card could be. You can also find this card in a variety of parallels, including the ever-favorite Silver Prizm.

PSA 10 Population: 1,058

Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. Well, that name doesn’t exactly appear on this 2000 card, but the standard eight-letter “Tom Brady” sequence does. While I will leave the four-letter GOAT conversation alone, there is no argument that Brady’s rookies have become legendary in the hobby. The 14-time Pro Bowler and winner of six Super Bowls rings (or “chips,” if I’m going for cool points) sure does bring a lot of attention to his rookie cards. The Bowman brand, a brand that is now more synonymous with baseball prospects than anything, would be seen as one of the staples for Brady in 2000. There are many sought-after rookie cards from his rookie year (Upper Deck SP Authentic #118, Playoff Contenders Autograph, etc.). Still, the Bowman Chrome is by far the most preferred for anyone trying to own a small piece of the sixth-rounder out of Michigan. Similar to the 2003 Topps Chrome, centering can be an issue on these cards, and PSA 9s and BGS 9s seem to carry a little bit more of an uptick in value as compared to a raw Mint copy. There is no 2000 Topps Chrome rookie card, hence why the Bowman Chrome has become so collectible.

PSA 10 Population: 5,178

One of the most influential Topps rookie cards of the past decade has been the #US175 Update Mike Trout. The modern-day Griffey Star Rookie, this Trout rookie has seen a healthy rise in value and grading submissions in the past five years. Known by many in hobby circles as simply the “Trout Update,” the card may not woo you at first glance. It’s quite basic and made relatively cheap—thin card stock, simple design, paper base, minimal foil—no bells and whistles. But don’t let that fool you into thinking this card isn’t a powerhouse. PSA 10 Gem Mint copies of this card are selling at an all-time high. Quite impressive from a card in which the print runs of the 2011 Topps Update set were never released. That’s something to be said for how beloved Trout’s game is and how he carries himself on and off the field. From a strictly subjective perspective, customers always talk Trout. They talk about his play demeanor and cards. Trout has fans young and old. Many see him as the modern-day Mickey Mantle. How do you see him? Or better yet, how do you see his rookie card?

PSA 10 Population: 316

If I were ranking this list, it would be shocking not to have this card at the top. What is not to love about the iconic MJ Fleer rookie card? [delete two extra spaces] The card captures his iconic flight en route to a one-handed dunk, all while the tongue is flapping in the wind. How about the red/blue/white and yellow inner border that screams ‘80s warm-up suit? It doesn’t get any more classic than this. Another critical component to this card’s popularity is that the run is so simple: #57 is the only base set version of the card, and there is only one subset card—the sticker rookie card. That’s it. Less is more. It’s easily the most recognizable basketball card of all time, and unfortunately it’s also one of the most faked/reprinted cards. The MJ fleer rookie can be seen as a significant “key date” for you coin collectors. MJ, across the board, has only seen an overall increase in value in almost all of his cards, highlighted even more so with this 1986 sample. (To briefly touch on the authentic element and looking at our shop records for 2019—the count is up to eight—as in eight is the number of people who have brought in a “valuable MJ rookie” to sell to us, resulting in the unfortunate fake news. Additionally, a search on eBay will allow you to buy a “reprinted” version of this card for a few bucks.)

Please be careful when looking into purchasing this card, but imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right? Buying an already graded version of the MJ Fleer rookie will save you a lot of headaches. Just like his game, the MJ rookie IS the GOAT. Don’t @ me!

PSA 10 Population: 21

0.14 percent—this is the magic number. This 0.14 refers to the percent of the 1993 Upper Deck SP FOIL that have received the unicorn-level grade of PSA 10. It puts things into perspective when the registry has the Jeter Foil at a whopping 15,683 total cards graded. To give some perspective in terms of value, in May 2018, a PSA 10 off eBay sold for $99,100. Fast-forward to December a year later to find a purchase of $138,000 (including the buyer premium). As one of the most popular ‘90s baseball cards (and one with significant value), the 1993 SP FOIL Jeter has only seen an uptick in recent months and years. What’s unique about this card is that foil element makes the surface of the card extremely delicate to scratching, and the dark corners highlight any imperfections to almost a higher degree than other cards of this era. It is widely known that this card could be damaged simply by friction in the wax packs—a very tough grade. In terms of mass production popularity, the Jeter Foil and Griffey Star Rookie sit in their thrones atop the ‘80s/’90s junk era.

PSA 10 Population: 16,749

Probably one of the most under-the-radar cards in the last two years, the Acuna Update (At-Bat in Blue Jersey) has seen a tremendous rise in value for one of MLB’s most promising young talents in just the past year. This specific card has multiple variations, including the “Bat Down” pose and the highly coveted “White Jersey” SSP, all of which carry the #US250 numbering. The Topps Update version has become synonymous with many players as the player’s “true” rookie card, and Acuna is no exception. In the shop, the card never really peaked over $8 to $10 for a non-graded mint copy during the 2018 season, but the 2019 season brought the rain. PSA 10 copies of the base “At-Bat in Blue Jersey” card began selling $125 to $150 consistently on eBay, and the loyal Atlanta fan base seemed to be gobbling these cards faster than we could keep in stock.

On top of that, when you can find multiple parallels, including (but not limited to) the Gold (#/2018), Mother’s Day Pink (#/50), Father’s Day Blue (#/50), Camo (#/25), Clear (#/10) and coveted Platinum #1/1, it only adds to the craze. These parallels and short prints, for the most part, seemed to almost fuel the fandom for this card in a way that I haven’t seen from a base Topps Baseball Card in a long time. Values have cooled down a bit, but the Acuna Update is a rookie card that has revitalized those standard Topps wax packs!

PSA 10 Population: 852

Football cards can be a tricky bunch. When comparing the three major U.S. sports, it’s a common theme to see basketball and baseball carry more predictably than football. Maybe it’s because the NFL season is only 17 weeks/16 games, and players are quick to injure? Things can change so quickly with the pigskin. Lately, that rule seems to also apply to hot quarterback rookie cards as well. (See Lamar Jackson 2018 Prizm #212 for some homework.) Many savvy investors would have said the Patrick Mahomes base Panini Prizm rookie (which is silver) had already reached its peak at the beginning of the 2019 season. PSA 10 Gem Mint copies at that time could be had for roughly $200 to $300 and non-graded versions for around $60 to $90 depending on condition and eye appeal. Who knew that PSA 10 versions of this simple shiny base rookie card would skyrocket to $10,700? Never have we seen such a quick spike for such a basic football rookie card. I believe, one, this further solidifies the Panini Prizm brand as the new Topps Chrome and standard collectible rookie card, and two, that the element of branding, combined with hype, is fueling a new age of collecting. Let’s give credit where credit is due though—Mahomes, in his way, is reinventing the game as well with a massive arm, no-look passes, school-boy flip tosses, Madden covers and ketchup infatuations—all while appearing to have fun playing football. Keep an eye on this card for years to come as Mahomes is leading the changing of the guard with staples like Brady, Brees, Rodgers, Roethlisberger, Rivers and more coming to the end of their careers.

This iconic card of arguably the greatest football player of all-time comes from the 1986 Topps set. Due to their borders which were known for chipping along the edges as well as the poor centering of cards that this set is notorious for, there are only (59) PSA 10s in the entire population.

There are currently only (354) of these PSA 10s on record. There is also a Topps Chrome rookie that was numbered to /999 which currently sells for $50,100 but the population on that card is (60).

Steph has been absolutely on fire of late, breaking the record in April for hitting the most three-pointers in a calendar month in NBA history. Can the Warriors make a little run as a play-in game participant in this year's playoffs? That would certainly do wonders for the price of this card.

Another card with an extremely low PSA population (47), this rare Mario Lemieux rookie has actually seen a bit of a dip over the last few months as it was selling for around $80,000 just a few short months ago. Will it rebound, as many in the trading card hobby speculate that the entire hockey market could be on the rise in the coming months and years? Only time will tell, but next to Gretzky, Lemieux is about as safe a hockey play as they come.

The first overall pick in the 2005 NHL Draft came with quite a bit of hype. He entered the league with multiple nicknames, including "The Next One", referencing the nickname of Wayne Gretzky "The Great One".

His Upper Deck "Young Guns" rookie card has a PSA population of (766) and has remained fairly steady at that price.

Kobe's Topps Chrome rookie card reached a high of $49,100 on February 21, 2021 before quickly seeing it's price run down over 50% in just 2 short months.

With a PSA population of only (830), combined with the fact that Bryant is one of the most beloved players in the history of the sport, this card feels very safe long term.

While I love Justin Herbert and think he has all the tools to be a top quarterback in the NFL, I am a little scared of the current prices for this card. With the logjam over at PSA holding up submissions, the population of these cards is only (834) currently, but that number will absolutely explode once they work their way through the backlog. What happens to the value if there are 8000 of them in the population instead of 800?

This card is another one that scares me a bit, as the PSA population is already astronomically high (16,782) and you can be sure that number will go way up once everybody receives their submissions back that are stuck in the backlog.

Zion is a beast and has all the makings of a mega-star, but will the value of this card hold up long-term with so many of them out there?

This Mbappe rookie has seen an interesting run over the last three months, selling for $741 back in January, and almost doubling that price by the start of April ($1437). It has come back down a bit since, but as the soccer market continues to heat up, I feel good about the relatively low PSA population (2,614) combined with Mbappe's worldwide popularity. It should be enough to continue to see this card rise in the coming months. Now might be a good time to pick one up on the dip.

With a population of just (148) of one of soccer's GOAT's, it's no surprise that this Messi rookie card commands a $15,740 price tag if you want to purchase one. That said, this card has seen quite a roller coaster ride over the last 3 months, selling for just $5,500 at the end of January and running up to $27,500 less than two weeks later, before settling in at it's current price.

Fernando Tatis Jr. has been on an absolute tear to start the 2021 baseball season, clocking 7 home runs in his first 15 games, and flexing on pitchers as he circles the bases.

It looks as if he has a real shot to win an MVP and become one of the biggest stars in the game for a very long time, so now might be the time to invest in him before prices go crazy.

This card was just so iconic when it came out, as Upper Deck superimposed three photos in one showing off a Shaq dunking the ball in a creative, unique way, especially for the time.

With Shaq's seemingly never-ending string of endorsements, his larger-than-life personality on the NBA on TNT, his Hollywood appearances and popular culture references, you never really have to worry about him staying relevant. The all-black background makes it hard to find this card in mint condition, so the population is only (318). With a relatively small price tag, I think that this card has a lot of upward potential long-term.