He was one of the “biggest names” in the 2013 NBA Draft but Giannis Antetokounmpo basketball cards are among the league’s hottest. A 6-11 guard/forward/center with long arms and large hands, Antetokounmpo is called “The Greek Freak” because he is from Greece, has freakish size and athletic ability… and because that is easier to pronounce than his name. For the record, it’s YAHN-iss Ahn-teh-toe-KUHN-poe.
Class of the Class?
Basketball ca
rd collectors initially looked at the rookies in that draft class and dismissed many of them. Nerlens Noel was injured. Top overall pick Anthony Bennett never got going. Hustling Victor Oladipo and Michael Carter-Williams did have popular cards but it was the teenager with the crazy wingspan laboring for a bad team showed flashes of what is surely to come.
Antetokounmpo is definitely a unique player. He has a 7’3″ wingspan, an ability to run the floor and in his first NBA season had 61 dunks, more than Dwyane Wade, Kawhi Leonard or James Harden. Some scouts think the ceiling for Antetokounmpo is Kevin Durant with more blocks. Collectors locking down some of his cards are already smiling.
Giannis Antetokounmpo Rookie Cards
Some players may seem a bit lazy when they don’t sign their full name, but with Antetokounmpo it is understandable as there usually isn’t enough room on the card. His autograph has ‘evolved’ since his rookie year. Where he once signed his last name, Antetokounmpo now usually signs only his initials–or not much more than that. That doesn’t stop his autographed rookie cards going for increasingly higher prices. As usual, on card autographs do better in the marketplace.
If Panini’s Flawless and National Treasures are out of your price range, then there are far less expensive Antetokounmpo rookie cards to target. An affordable signed rookie card is his 2013-14 Panini Spectra #120. You can see some of those lower end rookie cards on eBay here.
As for unsigned cards, brands like Hoops, Prestige, Pinnacle, Prizm, Select and Panini are priced at a buck or two.
Search for Misspellings
When searching on eBay for basketball cards it can be worthwhile to try a few misspelled versio
ns of a player’s name, as sometimes a card will be listed as Michel Jordan or Kevin Drant and it will evade many of the automatic searches. For Antetokounmpo, that idea might apply even more.
Complete Star in the Making
Basketball card collectors like players who make highlight plays, and Antetokounmpo does that on both ends of the floor. Dunks and blocks, long-range shooting ability, playmaking skills all make for an entertaining player. There is another big reason why he is all upside, for the Bucks and card collectors, and that is his youth.
Even if you can’t pronounce his name, the Greek Freak’s basketball cards are worth grabbing right now. You can see the hottest right now on eBay via the live list below.
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