Many thought his all-time record for points would always be maintained. However, in February 2023, it finally happened; LeBron James passed the 38,387 career points mark, leaving Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as merely the second-highest scorer of all time. But though the former Laker center was best known for that remarkable record, his time as a player was defined by so much more than that number.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is often an afterthought in discussing the all-time most outstanding player. But you will commonly hear his candidacy dismissed for various reasons. Usually, Kareem was a one-dimensional player who only knew how to do the “sky hook” move. But when you look at his accomplishments, they stack up with all the best.
His consistency was one underrated but incredibly important element in Kareem’s excellence. That was at least partially a result of the remarkable health that kept him on the court consistently for 21 years. Get this. The man averaged over 20 points a game for 17 seasons straight and over 10 rebounds for no less than 12 seasons straight. Not impressed yet? He also shot over 50 percent in his first 19 seasons in the league.
And Kareem was a natural-born champion. For some reason, the only guys with more titles than his six are various members of the 1960s Celtics and Robert Horry. Some critics believe he wouldn’t have won championships without help from Magic Johnson, but remember he won a ring in 1971 when Magic was in middle school. And before that, Kareem won three straight NCAA titles with UCLA.
Collecting Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Cards
Because he played and excelled for so long, fans from several generations fondly remember Kareem. Therefore, his cards are remarkably popular. The longevity of his career also means he appeared in a wide variety of releases, from the classic Topps releases of the early 1970s to featuring prominently in the junk wax era of basketball cards.
However, it also means there are seasons for the center that need to be added. In the early 1980s, Topps stopped producing basketball cards. They just decided the whole sport wasn’t worth the effort. What folly! That means we don’t have big company cards for every season the center played. But still, with two decades of basketball and countless appearances in sports card releases since retirement, there is no shortage of cards for the man born with the name Lew Alcindor.
The great thing about players of this stature is that their cards only seem to gain value over time. No one is ever going to take his cards lightly because Kareem’s numbers speak for themselves. Therefore, none of his cards are a bad investment.
2021-22 Panini National Treasures Kareem Abdul Jabbar Auto #13 /99
A BGS 9.5 is currently on sale for $700.
National Treasures sure has a way with high-end cards. The 2021-22 Panini National Treasures Kareem Abdul Jabbar Auto #13 is particularly well-loved, because it comes with the cache of the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame. And the iconic picture of Kareem with his trademark basketball goggles is perfect. And the classy signature is a reminder of what an intellectual this legendary player has become.
1988 Fleer Kareem Abdul Jabbar #64
A PSA sold for $760.
The last appearance of Kareem in a major release is a fitting salute to the career-ending of this literal and figurative giant. Here you have the legendary sky-hook shot featured on your typical junk wax era card. We also love the Laker color background of 1988 Fleer Kareem Abdul Jabbar #64, which can be obnoxious, but works perfectly in this case. Lower grades of this historically important card are fairly inexpensive.
1987 Fleer Kareem Abdul Jabbar #1
A PSA 10 sold for $769.
This card deserves an award. Therefore, I grant the 1987 Fleer Kareem Abdul Jabbar #1 the award of ugliest card on this list. But of course, junk wax ugly is a kind of art form when you think about it. And since 1987 Fleer basketball may have the ugliest design of any card for the sport, consider me impressed.
It is amazing how high prices are for PSA 10s of this card despite it being a late (even very late) card in Abdul Jabbar’s career, and having no particular merit aside from a decent action shot.
1980 Topps Kareem Abdul Jabbar #132
A PSA 10 sold for $1,050.
All the other cards in 1980 Topps Basketball are overshadowed by that legendary Larry Bird and Magic Johnson rookie card. Nonetheless, the 1980 Topps Kareem Abdul Jabbar #132 is a beauty. The card makes no sense. It is ostensibly a salute to the slam dunk. However, while it shows John Shumate and Larry Demic slamming and jamming, Kareem seems to be guarding thin air in his picture. But if you know the series, you will immediately notice that they recycled this same image for the other Kareem cards as well. A reminder of how Topps was cutting corners on NBA cards at the time. But the weirdness of this card alongside the trademark perforated sections of the release, make this an affordable classic.
1981 Topps Kareem Abdul Jabbar #106
A PSA 10 sold for $2,325.
Every card where Kareem is executing the sky hook deserves a special place in the pantheon. The 1981 Topps Kareem Abdul Jabbar #106 also features the center shooting over a guy who looks suspiciously like Apollo Creed in his trademark shorts. Of course, it's just a hapless Washington Bullets defender. The comic book style “super action” caption is gloriously 1980s. What a shame that Topps stopped producing basketball cards soon after this release.
2010 National Treasures Kareem Abdul Jabbar / Magic Johnson / James Worthy Triple Auto 5/5
A raw version is on sale for $3,000.
There are many post-retirement auto extravaganza cards to choose from. But the 2010 National Treasures Kareem Abdul Jabbar / Magic Johnson / James Worthy Triple Auto 5/5 is particularly wonderful. This trio led the ridiculously entertaining “showtime” Lakers of the 1980s. A team that brought basketball out of the doldrums of the early 1980s and into the modern era. This trio won three unforgettable titles together. And for an item that is indispensable to hardcore Lakers fans, and is now numbered, it is more affordable than you would expect.
1978 Topps Kareem Abdul Jabbar #110
A PSA 10 sold for $3,983.
The design here makes no sense, but somehow it really works. That is a general description applying to most Topps basketball releases of the 1970s. Unfortunately, the 1978 Topps Kareem Abdul Jabbar #110 humbles our hero by noting that he was a 2nd team All-Star. Wondering who was picked ahead of Kareem? I checked: Art Gilmore, Bill Walton and Bob Lanier. He was robbed, I tell you!
1979 Topps Kareem Abdul Jabbar #10
A PSA 10 sold for $3,995.
Though not his most famous one, the 1979 Topps Kareem Abdul Jabbar #10 is perhaps the ultimate Kareem Abdul Jabbar card. It features the center executing the devastating “sky hook” move that made him such a legend. Adding to the excitement, for some reason it looks like he is shooting over Rocky Balboa in Apollo Creed’s shorts. There is definitely a theme here. But the action shot is so good that it makes up for any other flaw.
1977 Topps Kareem Abdul Jabbar #1
A PSA 10 sold for $8,800.
An absolutely perfect card. The intense stare from Kareem captures his well-known intelligence. The design showcases the best of 1970s Topps. Simple yet somehow absolutely popping. And the 1st team All-Star signia (as if he would be anything else) completes the beauty of the 1977 Topps Kareem Abdul Jabbar #1 card.
Lower grades for this beauty are highly affordable. But as you can see, the market increasingly appreciates higher-graded copies of Kareem’s mid-career cards.
1986 Fleer Kareem Abdul Jabbar #1
A PSA 10 sold for $9,300.
Kareem was around long enough to be part of the two most important basketball card releases of all time, the 1969 Topps “tall boys” and 1986 Fleer Basketball. The center received the number 1 card honors in this crucial set, a sign of the high esteem with which he was held at the time. However, as we know, people aren’t into this set because they want the 1986 Fleer Kareem Abdul Jabbar #1 card.
It is known for its remarkable rookie, like Michael Jordan and Patrick Ewing. Therefore, his cards are among the more affordable ones in this release. Nonetheless, because of the prestige of 1986 Fleer, they are worth far more than his other late career cards. Nonetheless, this card is beautiful and historically important.
1975 Topps Kareem Abdul Jabbar #90
A PSA 10 sold for $33,600.
Let's be honest; most of us remember this player as Kareem and a star for the Lakers. This is the first card to show that stage of the player's career. The 1975 Topps Kareem Abdul Jabbar #90 has an atypically simple design for the decade. But the picture is solid and visceral enough to make that choice work.
As you can see, PSA 10s are worth a ton. But this card is more common and grades better than most of Kareem’s early cards. The most common grade for this card is a PSA 8, of which there are 198. So, it can be an affordable option for you vintage freaks.
1971 Topps Lew Alcindor #100
A PSA 10 sold for $66,610.
My personal favorite card of the player and one of the most fabulous cards of the decade. It is hard to even conceive of a design that would be more fully representative of the 1970s than this baby. Sure, Lew (still his name at this point) is giving a pretty awkward half-smile here. But his ungainly manner with the media has always been a significant element of this player's charm. But the sideburns and the lettering in the style of a B-movie of the time make this utterly irresistible.
In some ways, it is very similar to Kareem’s better-known rookie. It shows the player in his Bucks warmup jersey, and the proportions are of the longer “tall boy” variety. But this card is far more attractive. The market has also learned to appreciate the 1971 Topps Lew Alcindor #100. A PSA 10 went for $13,000 just two years ago and is now worth more than five times that.
1969 Topps Lew Alcindor Rookie Card #25
A PSA 10 sold for $240,000.
Easily one of the best-known and most loved basketball cards ever made. They call the cards from this release “tall boys” due to their unusual size. The 1969 Topps cards stand at 2 ½" by 4 11/16.” Because they didn’t fit in any binders or boxes, they often sustained more damage than most cards, and the white shows any defect all too clearly. For those reasons, decent grades (never mind really high ones) can be hard to come by for this card. There are only 18 PSA 9s and a mere 2 PSA 10s.
The design of 1969 Topps Lew Alcindor Rookie Card #25 is an acquired taste. To me, the white edges with the scribblings of basketball players look like something I would have doodled in seventh grade. I have also seen far better pictures of the young Lou Alcindor. Nonetheless, you can’t argue with the status of the card as a classic. And as the only recognized rookie card for Kareem Abdul Jabbar, this card deserves that stature. Scribbles or none.
Final Words On Valuable Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Basketball Cards
Since 2020 or so, many vintage sports cards have seen a considerable increase in value. The cards of the artist formerly known as Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr. are no exception. But the increase in value of his cards has been uniquely sharp. PSA 10s of his mid to late career have often gone up exponentially in the last two years. As the best player of his generation, and with basketball cards produced at lower rates than their baseball equivalents, investors have discovered the beauty of Kareem’s cards. They aren’t going to get any cheaper.
