I Have The Only 1 (of 1)

With the excitement building around this year's NY Knicks team, I figured it was time to add something to my Knicks PC since it has been a long time since I have done so.

Now, I don't normally just collect any Knick. Most of my collection focuses on 90's players I grew up watching.

One of which I actually PC in Allan Houston.

So, I took to the bay to try and find a cool card that I could add. It didn't take long before I discovered one and an affordable one at that.

I know many complain about Leaf Trading cards and their lack of licenses, but where they lack in licenses they make up for in creative designs.

 

Like this one that is not only signed but is a die-cut shiny standout 1 out of 1 card.

I know the obvious miss here is the lack of the word New York on that jersey, but my focus is more on the overall look.

I think this is one of my more favorite Houston cards I own now.

My hope is that this new addition will serve as a good luck charm and help the Knicks make it to the Finals. Cleveland is a tough team and just took down the number one seed. This will be an intriguing matchup for sure, one that I can see going six or seven games.

In comments today, let me hear about your favorite 1/1 card (if you have/own one)

Dino-Might!

I know many people don't like Leaf Trading cards, but, they are putting out some sweet looking cards. 

And this is coming from someone who normally isn't a fan of theirs either because the cards lack licensing.

But Topps or Panini don't put anything that look this good,

 

Don't tell me these didn't catch your attention.

These are 2023 Wild Card Allumination Dino-Might cards. I almost have the full dinosaur rainbow, just missing the raptor. Hopefully someday I can finish that up and I would like to replace the stegosaurus to match the other ones.

Because my hobby OCD needs it.

What do you guys think? A fan? These meh? Let me know in comments!

Will The Giants Draft Him Part 1? Cam Ward

The New York Football Giants currently have no quarterback on their roster they are sticking with and a Top 3 draft pick to get their future one. 

The question is, who and when will they draft him.

To plan accordingly, I acquired a couple autographs of two top QB prospects I have heard them being connected to. And no, I have not landed a Sanders autograph yet.

Today's autograph is Cam Ward. He is known as the Top QB currently in this year's draft but with the combine coming up, that could change everything.

Will the Giants draft him? Will this be their guy? We will find out around April 24th.

What Is Up With The USPS?

I don't know about the rest of you, but I have been dealing with some issues with the postal service recently.

For one, I left my mail in the box for pickup, and the mail lady left it in there for two days before finally grabbing it on day three.

Two, I had two packages lost from eBay.

Three, Two PWE trades I did got lost and one of my envelopes. I have shipped PWE for 12 years without one being lost. NOT A SINGLE ONE.

Fortunately, there are a couple of good updates from the above list. 

One of the two PWE trades finally showed up after a month. Which is good, because I traded for cards for a reader's birthday. The second trade and the one I sent haven't shown up....yet.

The other good news is, that one of the eBay cards finally arrived after it was shipped on March 2nd.

Say hello to Eli Manning #1035.

 

This card is numbered 3/4, so when I found out it was lost, I wasn't pleased because of it's rarity.

Just glad that it finally arrived.

But there still something up with the USPS recently. I don't know what it is, but they keep raising their rates and stamp prices (going up again in July) but giving us even less service and even losing my mail.

In comments today, let me know if you are experiencing any issues with USPS like I am. Curious if it's just a local thing or it expands deeper.

Hopefully my PWE shows up to the person I traded with soon or my Cal Ripken Jr-esque streak will come to a bitter end.

Not Usually A Leaf Fan...

I am not usually a Leaf fan....but I do love their non-sport cards.

Their sports cards are okay, I don't care for the missing logos and sometimes even the missing player faces which gets replaced with a jersey of the player. Those are ugly.

However, with their ugly there is some beauty from Leaf.

 

Like this 2023 Pro Set Leaf Gold Refractor of Jessica Alba.

 

Stunning card in more than one way both front and back. These cards were an online exclusive on the Leaf website and are numbered to 199. I was fortunate to have this one sent to me by a follower on Twitter.

Actually owning this in hand now makes me really want the Chevy Chase version for my PC. Maybe some day.

Thoughts on Leaf products welcomed below!

Pickett’d It Up

Thanks to a quick trade with @ErichWalter , I was able to land an autograph of one of last seasons top rookies.

Why does this fit my collection since Pickett is a Steeler and not a NY Giant, well, I like to have autographs of top guys in case they become Hall Of Famers, which is a PC.

It’s cheaper to get them while they are young.

Here is the shiny new addition,

Usually not a huge Leaf fan since they lack logos, but this is a good looking card still.

Thoughts on my latest add welcomed in comments!

Side note, this is post 6400 on here. Can’t believe I have done that many!

Random Cardboard Of The Day: 2022 Leaf National VIP Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Random Cardboard Of The Day: 2022 Leaf National VIP Lionel Messi

Got It Right

A couple of months ago there was the NFL Draft.

There was a lot of speculation leading up to the draft on what the Giants would do with so many glaring holes and two top 10 picks.

The last few years underneath Dave Gettleman, the Giants never actually drafted needs and it has led to a roster full of needs. 

Two of the biggest glaring spots on the roster is on the offensive line and pass rush. It has been a spot of needs since the Giants won their last Super Bowl.

Last night, the new regime under Joe Schoen did exactly what they have been needing to do. Fill holes on the team. Who would have thought that was such a thing?

With their first pick, the 5th pick of the draft, they grabbed pass rusher extraordinaire Kayvon Thibodeaux. I was happy to see I had a card of him to post for today.

Big Blue then went on to grab dominating OT Evan Neal with their next pick, two picks later. Rumor had it the Giants were up to trading that pick but either that was a smokescreen, or they never got a big offer for it.

Either way, I am stoked with their draft last night. I look forward to what they do for the rest of the draft.

The only unfun part for a draft like this for my team is the lack of fun offensive players to chase for cards, but maybe they will grab a WR still and that will be my main focus. I do hope to add some more cards of the Top 2 picks for the Gmen and maybe an autograph of each but I don't plan on over chasing them.

So far, I give them an A++ start to this draft and hope it continues. There are so many needs.

In comments today, let me know how your team did in the draft?

Collins Haul

Today as I am watching the snow fall, I am dreaming of football season again. Though I would like to enjoy some summer weather first.

So instead, I will find myself living through football cards by taking a look at my latest Kerry Collins additions from Burbank Sportcards Beckett Marketplace.

When I look at knocking down cards on my player want lists, I always tackle 90's inserts first. The numbered, shinier the better.

This card is simple but bold and attractive.

Rookie Stallions. If you look closely, you will see stallions in the foil etching.

Summit only last two years, but it produced some great parallels and a solid looking base set.

Turf Team was a set I had considered chasing, but think I will just grab a few here and there.

The Rookie Rising Inserts though, I am definitely chasing. Panini brought these back for this year's Zenith and made them case hits.

Burbank didn't have a picture of this card, so I had no idea what to expect, but it's even better than I thought. Pacific knew how to make a die cut card.

Spx in the 90's, nothing better than that except EX2000. One card packs of the Spx made it tough to chase your favorite players and especially the gold parallels.

90's parallels will always rule over any that are put out today. The Stadium Club matrix is one of my favorites. I wished I could have captured it better.

The rivalries card is actually a dual card, on the opposite side is Ken Norton Jr.

I can't find any information on these parallels, but they each feature a colored star on the front of them. For some reason they are called bronze and gold redemption respectively. Maybe they were mail in sets.

And the final part of this mail day.

With these 26 new adds, my Collins collection jumps up to 526 cards. There will probably be more incoming soon from my next Burbank order. If you have any for trade or donate, hit me up via email!

Also, wanna Save 10% off your orders from Burbanks Sportscards on Beckett Marketplace? Use Code: 15BURBANK at checkout to do so! Also spend $50 and you will get free shipping. BOOM! Shop their millions of items in inventory now by CLICKING HERE.

Summer Of Wes Card #35

Coffee With George Lopez

*takes a sip of coffee, get's ready for a new Coffee With post. I haven't done one of these in some time. Coffee's hot and so won't this post be*

Sometimes I simply don't give some shows a chance and by doing so I may miss out on something special. I realized this in 2020.

When my wife goes to work on the weekends, I usually sit down with a cup of coffee-no surprise there-grab my laptop and turn on a show or movie to watch. It started out with some Halloween/Christmas movies, then it was Seinfeld, but after their time slot changed, George Lopez show took its spot.

I had never really sat down to watch George Lopez before I did that day. And honestly, it blew me away. I was literally laughing out loud and loved every second of the show.

With that being said, I needed a George Lopez autograph for my PC.

There was a fairly decent priced Leaf Pop Century one on eBay, so I grabbed it. The card was a blue parallel which also happens to be my favorite color.

 

It is also numbered to 25.

*takes a sip before closing out today's post*

George was not only the star of his own show, but he also has done tons of stand-up comedy, voices in cartoons and has been in a few movies. 

I would say the George Lopez show may be one of the best underrated comedies ever. If you need a good laugh, just give it a watch. I would be surprised if you weren't laughing in the first five minutes.

Have you ever watched the show or what have you seen with George in it?

*Coffee Card Blogger Out*

Player HITlights:Damontre Moore

 

The Giants have always been built on defense. 

So nobody is surprised when they go into the draft and draft defense especially in the trenches.

Sometimes they find that gem in the rough, other times, not so much. 

Damontre Moore was a 3rd pick of the Giants in the 2013 NFL Draft. He didn't have much success with the Gmen and caused multiple altercations with teammates especially in the 2015 season which led to him being placed on waivers where the Dolphins snagged him.

He was bounced around a few teams and even joined the AAF league not finding success anywhere he went which is upsetting for a guy who had high expectations as a First Team All-American from Texas A&M.

I grabbed quite a few of his cards, especially autographs, in 2013 with high expectations.

At least when it comes to players on your favorite team, "prospecting" doesn't always have to be a homerun.

As the saying goes, "Once a Giant, Always A Giant"

Moore has accumulated 88 tackles and 10 sacks in his career.

MMMB:New Trading Partners Always Welcomed

Sometimes it's nice to break out of my core group of 5 trading buddies who I trade with multiple times a year and find someone new.

Because new people could bring different types of cards for your collection.

So when I made a trade with @gator_cards, he got my interest by some cards I hadn't seen that much of before.

 

Was it these Daniel Jones?

This Sterling Shepard?

Nope. Seen that one as well.

 

A group of Ikes? Nah.

This Daniel Jones.... YUP! one of them!

But it really comes down to the following cards that help add to my NY Giants PC from the late 90's which is the weakest part of my Giants collection.

 

This Ike Hilliard Spx is from 1998, shines like a beaut Clark and is /325

This is a '99 Prestige parallel that is /500. Once again. love that shine.

And to end it, a Crown Royale rookie card. Other than 1995, this was one of my favorite designs on Crown Royale of the 90's.

Thanks again to @gator_cards for the trade!

As the title states, I am always looking for new trading partners so if that sounds like you, give me a holla. I do prefer only shipping within the U.S. and I obviously only want traders who are trustworthy. Other than that, I have all teams and sports available for a multitude of trading.

Giants Cardboard: Eli's Gaining Momentum

As the year creeps closer to the end, I have looked back on my collecting habits and how much they have changed all year long.

First it was hot rookies, then non sport cards, then it was Allan Houston, then it was Kerry Collins then it was 90's inserts again, then Patrick Mahomes cards, then Lamar Jackson cards, then Christmas cards, then Russell Wilson cards, then Mosaic cards, then shiny cards and so on and so forth. There was no straight focus and my collecting habits must look like someone with a bad case of ADHD.

Maybe I should rename this blog, ADHD collector.

Regardless how crazy I must look, there has been one constant throughout my collecting and that is the NY Giants. I have never gone off topic with them. I simply collect all that I don't have regardless of how long the player has been on the team. If they made it even one game, I would take them as long as they are wearing Giants blue or have affiliation of so.

But, that doesn't mean some players I don't prefer more than others.

Take Eli Manning for example. I always talk about Rodney Hampton on here... a lot, but deep down inside my favorite NY Giant of all time is Eli. Rodney is a very-very close second or a 1B in this case.

Eli brought out tons of emotions which you can tell a lot by his "Eli Face".

I felt for him being an underdog but that also made me root him on harder being one myself. He won two Super Bowls for my team against the team I despise most. He was a two time Super Bowl MVP. He went to Pro Bowler. He was a leader on and off the field and handled NY media the way you need to. I couldn't have asked to had watched a better player to play the toughest position in football in the toughest city to play football.

I appreciated everything he did for my Giants and can't wait to see him as a first ballot Hall Of Famer. Yeah I said it.

With these 9 new adds from Burbank Sportscards Beckett Marketplace (also saved 10% by using code 15Burbank which I suggest you try as well), I am creeping towards 700 Eli Manning cards. He marks my second highest Giant in total cards and I hope to be gaining more over the next few weeks. Eli has moved up as my second most sought after player right now behind Rodney Hampton.

*****************************************************************************

Before closing I wanted to show off another card I snagged, quite cheaply at $4 by the way and even less using the code, was this Darius Slayton auto.

Slayton is one of the up and coming WR's in this league when the Giants have time to throw to him. I look forward to seeing him more next year.

Who is your favorite player on your team All Time and/or Now? Do you have the same situation as I do with a 1A and a 1B?

New Griffeys

It wouldn't be a trade between Shane and myself if it didn't include some form of Ken Griffey Jr cards. Shane has always been the bomb when it comes to finding Griffeys I need. Plus, I usually get first dibs on any of this Cheap Wax Wednesday Griffey finds.

Besides the few he has set aside he won't let go. Some day....some day.

This recent batch included more than I show here but I just wanted to show a handful of them,

Opening Day, Leaf, Vintage are among those in this section. It's amazing how many base cards I need still, but when he has over 15,000 cards, it becomes less surprising.

Awesome Dugout Collection parallel. These fell 1:3 packs and feature a bronze foil.

The Kid without a smile and The Kid with one.

Stadium Club insert

1993 Topps Gold. Can't believe I didn't already have this one.

Up next is a unique item I hadn't seen before....

This is oversized binder by the way before I show you the inside

Interesting. Great throwback photo and cool collectible. At least it's in its own page and I won't have to worry about storage.

There is still more to show from this mail day so stay tuned!