Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks have won the 2021 NBA Finals. Not since 1971 had the Milwaukee Bucks been NBA champions, and Giannis was literally voted the most responsible for it. Scoring 50 points in the finals by a single player is not a simple and routine event.Being down by two games in the finals and coming back to win four straight is not routine either. A leader for his team, he was pick number 15 in round 1 of the 2013 NBA draft.

Massive sales prices seen for other modern era rookie basketball superstar cards. On a relative basis, most of the Giannis Antetokounmpo rookie card sales prices have not commanded the same premiums. That may be changing.

Collectors Dashboard evaluates collectibles as an alternative asset class. It is undeniable that collectors now routinely have to fight against investors for the exact same asset in auctions. And these prices are often exponentially higher than typical investment sizes in stocks and bonds, or even property prices.

The key difference for collectors versus collectibles investors is that collectors may have a deep passion to own a card or collectible while investors are just looking to make a profit. Sports card investors just need to understand that there are big risks. Stocks and bonds offer no guarantees against losses, and that is definitely true of collectibles as well. Either way, collectors and investors have been fighting to own Giannis Antetokounmpo rookie cards.

Fox Business reported on the $1.812 million dollar sale of a Beckett graded Mint 9 from the 2013-14 National Treasure set. The card features the NBA logo patch and Giannis Antetokounmpo’s signature. The signature itself was a Mint 10. The final price was realized by Goldin Auctions on their website after 31 bids. Still, this has not been the typical Antetokounmpo sale.

Beckett is one of the top authorities on sports card collecting, and they have a list for the most valuable Giannis Antetokounmpo rookie cards.

The card that was sold was a National Treasure series Giannis Antetokounmpo 2013 rookie card that has two separate grades. One grade is for the card and the other grade is for the signature on the card. The PSA population reports show very limited numbers here. Number 130 has a graded horizontal patch autograph population of only one graded, at a PSA 9. The patch autograph has a total of only 8 graded examples ranging from PSA 8 to PSA 10.

The Giannis Antetokounmpo 2013 National Treasure series number 130 that set the record in 2020 was a grade 9 and had a patch autograph grade 10.

Elsewhere, eBay has seen many fresh sales of Giannis Antetokounmpo rookie cards sell for more than $200.00 since the Bucks’ victory. Many are exponentially higher priced. Since the night of Tuesday, July 20, 2021 victory, using a $200 baseline for “rookie” cards, there had been close to 300 sales using that criteria and “Auction” only rather than the “Buy It Now” sales.

UPDATED JULY 26, 2021 — The fractional ownership (shares) site Otis has recently offered up a Giannis Antetokounmpo RPA 2013 Immaculate Collection (#94 of 99) #131 Dual PSA 10 at a $96,600 market cap. That was last seen trading with a $113,505 market cap, but that last amount will of course fluctuate.

And for upcoming auctions already on the books, Goldin Auctions had more than 30 lots of Giannis Antetokounmpo for the August 7 & 8 (2021) auction from cards to shoes and jerseys.

For a reference looking at some of the more recent pre-victory sales from June 2021, here are some of the key prices paid and card types for Giannis Antetokounmpo compiled by PWCC:

• 2013 Panini Gold Standard Giannis Antetokounmpo Rookie Patch Auto #231 BGS 9.5 sold for $3,535.00 on June 21, 2021 after 36 bids.
• 2014 Panini Flawless Momentous Giannis Antetokounmpo Patch Auto /20 PSA 9 mint sold for $3,050.00 on June 21, 2021 after 45 bids.
• 2013 select basketball Giannis Antetokunmpo Rookie PSA/DNA 10 Auto #178 PSA 10 sold for $2,950.00 on June 30, 2021 after 51 bids.
• 2013 Panini Prizm Red White Blue Pulsar Giannis Antetokounmpo Rookie RC PSA 10 sold for $2,905.00 on June 21, 2021 after 31 bids.
• 2013 Select Purple Giannis Antetokounmpo Rookie RC Patch Auto /99 #1 BGS 9.5 GEM sold for $2,777.00 on June 21, 2021 after 29 bids.
• 2013 Panini Rising Tide Giannis Antetokounmpo Rookie RC Auto #25 PSA 10 GEM Mint sold for $2,776.00 on June 21, 2021 after 36 bids.
• 2013 Select Silver Prizm Giannis Antetokounmpo Rookie RC #178 PSA 9 Mint sold for $2,550.00 on June 21, 2021 after 34 bids.
• 2013 Immaculate Collection Nameplate Giannis Antetokounmpo RC Patch /13 BGS 9.5 sold for $2,425.00 on June 21, 2021 after 49 bids.
• 2012 Exquisite Collection ’13 Giannis Antetokounmpo Rookie RC /99 BGS 9.5 GEM MT sold for $2,16.00 on June 21, 2021 after 49 bids.
• 2013 Select Basketball Giannis Antetokounmpo Rookie PSA/DNA 10 Auto #178 PSA 10 sold for $1,925.00 on June 21, 2021 after 32 bids.

Additional words of caution need to be considered in buying sports collectibles, particularly when “investing” and modern superstar players are concerned. It has historically taken a decade or more of being a superstar for a player’s cards to have lasting interest with vast premiums among collectors. The rising prices of 2020 and into early 2021 also literally saw worse than the equivalent of a correction or bear market in stock market terminology.

Some of those prices have seen a recovery, but some remain handily under their prior strength.  Athletes are also at continued risk of injury. Many would not have been able to recover and perform the way Giannis did after what appeared to be a brutal knee injury in the playoffs.

As July comes to an end for Giannis Antetokounmpo, he can look back on his greatest month ever as an NBA player. How does the Finals MVP find time to rest? Sports card collecting and collectibles investing in the months ahead, regardless of what happens to card prices in general, will likely remain quite active.