To many collectors, many of whom are still a little hobby wet behind the ears, insert cards are a modern invention; something to push sales of modern packs. Vintage card collectors know that’s not true. Like their baseball and football brethren, basketball packs were full of unique little bonuses that are somewhat elusive today, waiting for new collectors to discover them. The 1970s Topps basketball inserts ranged from ‘rulers’ to posters to stickers with players and even some classic ABA logos.
Here’s a year-by-year rundown of some of the cool stuff that served as sidebars to the cards that were in packs.
1969-70 Topps Rulers
A unique and fun design, with all of the great players of the era, and sometimes at very low prices to buy, Topps Rulers are underrated.
With its ‘tall boy’ sets of ’69-70 and 1970-71, Topps seemed to be trying to mimic the height of a new generation of players like Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul-Jabbar). The look and theme of the rulers were a more obvious part of the effort.
Folded by Topps three times, the Topps Rulers are smaller than a standard card when folded, around 2.5 inches high and across, but when unfolded measure in at close to 10 inches high and 2.5 inches across. There is nothing on the back while the front is full of color and a great caricature of the player. They have measurements along the left side which indicate the player’s height.
The Topps Rulers set goes from #1 to #24 but actually has 23 different subjects. There is no #5 (that was supposed to have been Bill Russell, who retired and never made it into the 1969-70 set). The top Topps Rulers to collect are those of Wilt Chamberlain, Lew Alcindor (rookie year), Jerry West, John Havlicek and Oscar Robertson.
Once an afterthought, the 1969-70 Topps Ruler set now has plenty of respect. Better quality sets sell in the low four figures. In April of 2022, a PSA 9 Alcindor sold for $19,200. Even mid-grade examples run $500-$1,000. The are usually at least a few dozen Topps Rulers on eBay.
1970-71 Topps Basketball Posters
The next year, Topps went a slightly more traditional route with its insert. The 1970-71 Topps basketball insert posters measured roughly 8×10. While the cards in that year’s set often had a posed player picture there was plenty of action in the posters. Walt Frazier and Oscar Robertson are driving through traffic, Jerry West is reaching for a loose ball, Wilt Chamberlain is high above the ring for a dunk and Lew Alcindor has the ball in the low-post and looks about to turn and score with the Skyhook.
The most expensive poster in the set is a battle of Wilt and Lew. Havlicek, West, Robertson and Reed are some of the other big-names in the set. Most of the posters can be found for under $20 with stars bringing more, but condition plays a big factor.
1971-72 Topps Trio Stickers
When a pack of Topps basketball was opened in 1971-72 the cards might have ended up in a shoebox and the Topps Trios Stickers were probably peeled and placed on a schoolbook or in a scrapbook. These unique, black-bordered cards are a real challenge for those who like high grade cards. Centering and susceptibility to wear trump hopes for piecing together a quality set.
The set includes both ABA and NBA players and team logos.
There are some interesting player combinations in the 46-card set. Havlicek and Maravich share a card, along with Bob Kauffman. Oscar Robertson is teamed with Wes Unseld and Bobby Smith. Wilt has Gus Johnson and Norm Van Lier. If only there had been a three-on-three competition featuring these groups of players, maybe the card of Jerry West, Chet “The Jet” Walker and Willis Reed would have had the best balance and won the competition. Complete sets of Trios can sell for $400 and up with graded singles of stars selling for that much and more.
1973-74 Topps Team Logo Stickers
There aren’t any action photographs or player information or statistics on them but the 1973-74 Topps Team Stickers are a fun way to learn about the history of the NBA, and the ABA, with some team logos that are no longer used and a few logos from teams that are defunct. The stickers are unnumbered but there are 33 in all.
The awkward Denver Rockets logo is something to see, dribbling a basketball across the mountains isn’t easy for anyone let alone a rocket, while there is also a Houston Rockets sticker in the set too. A close look at the ABA’s Carolina Cougars logo shows a very suspicious big cat. The Bullets looked like they were going uphill while the Buffalo Braves featured a feather in their logo design.
The first ten feature ABA teams while the remainder covers the larger NBA family. Most can be had for $5-$10.
1975-76 Topps Fold Out Team Checklists
There was a time when all collectors did was open packs, trade cards and hope to complete a set. The checklist was an important tool for that task and the 1975-76 Topps Team Checklist set was a mail-in wrapper redemption in the form of an uncut, foldout sheet. Unlike the football and baseball sheets, the basketball sheets are blank on the reverse, making them among the most dull products you could imagine.
They’re pretty rare today, though. Expect to pay upwards of $200 or more.
Rounding Out the Decade
Topps didn’t utilize inserts in 1972-73, ’76-77, ’77-78, ’78-79 or ’79-80.
While just outside the 1970s, the 1980-81 Topps Team Posters put a bookend on an era of basketball inserts They provide a look at not only the star players, but the bench players, coaches and assistant coaches who never received a basketball card of their own. They were included in packs of 1980-81 Topps and are made of thin paper and again folded in quarters for insertion into packs. Measuring a little less than 5×7, the posters were called “Team Pin-Ups” by Topps back in the day.
Fairly plentiful today, you can find your favorite team (assuming they existed in 1979) for a few bucks at most, except perhaps the Lakers and Celtics.
Related Stories:
1970s Basketball Rookie Cards of College Hoop Heroes
NBA Finals MVPs of the 1970s and Their Rookie Cards
The ABA Story, Part II – Rookie Cards of Eight ABA-Only Greats
Overlooked and Underrated Rookie Cards of NBA Greats – Part 2, the 1960s
Overlooked and Underrated Rookie Cards of NBA Greats – Part 3, the 1970s
Overlooked and Underrated Rookie Cards of NBA Greats – Part 4, the Late 1970s
First Basketball Inserts: 1969-70 Topps Rulers and Those That Never Were
Rare Minneapolis Lakers Regional Set Has Deep History With Artist’s Family