Grading has made a grand comeback, stirring memories of the Junk Wax Era, and at the center of this renaissance stands Victor Wembanyama. In the latest PSA data for 2024, the young basketball sensation has taken the grading world by storm, occupying a staggering six out of the top 10 most graded cards of the year. Yet, it is one particular card that has set a new standard in the hobby.
Victor Wembanyama’s 2023 Prizm RC Base card has become a household name in the collecting community. With a monumental 24,244 PSA 10s and counting, this card reigns as the highest PSA 10 population card of all time—a feat previously deemed unattainable in contemporary collecting circles.
The emergence of Victor Wembanyama marks a new era in card grading. Those who witnessed the fervor surrounding Luka Dončić’s rookie cards will find Wembanyama’s rise eerily reminiscent. Surpassing the 20,000 PSA 10 mark in record time, Wembanyama has shattered the ceiling set by Luka in under a year.
The Wembanyama Prizm rookie card now joins an elite cohort of cards with 20,000+ PSA 10 populations, alongside luminaries like Luka Dončić, Zion Williamson, Ja Morant, Ronald Acuña Jr., and Juan Soto. Even Fernando Tatís Jr.’s card, with nearly 20,000 PSA 10s, waits on the cusp of entering this exclusive club.
The synergy between Panini and Monopoly further fueled the frenzy surrounding Wembanyama’s grading spectacle. A special Monopoly-themed Prizm card featuring the young talent garnered over 10,000 PSA 10s, cementing his dominance in the rookie card realm.
Combining the numbers from the base 2023 Prizm rookie card and its Monopoly variant paints a staggering picture. With over 40,000 cards graded in total and more than 24,000 PSA 10s for the base card alone, Wembanyama’s impact on the hobby is undeniable, yet it falls short of Ken Griffey Jr.’s rookie card dominance in the late ’80s.
For seasoned collectors, the surge in Wembanyama’s card numbers may harken back to the overproduction era of Junk Wax. While his cards may lack rarity, the emphasis on high grades, particularly PSA 10s, reflects a grading explosion akin to the ’90s, albeit with a modern twist enabled by Panini’s production prowess and collectors’ gravitation towards grading services.
The question lingers: Can Wembanyama eventually challenge Griffey’s all-time record numbers? With over 40,000 cards graded within a single year, Wembanyama appears poised to rival Griffey if Panini’s manufacturing output supports such growth. In the interim, his 2023 Prizm rookie card stands as a momentous achievement, reaching heights that other cards rarely achieve in years.
Wembanyama’s ascension in the grading sphere signifies both enthusiasm and caution for collectors. While his cards symbolize basketball’s soaring popularity and the global allure of emerging talents, the sheer volume of graded cards raises concerns about long-term value as the hobby ventures into what some dub as the modern Junk Wax Era.
Collectors learn a valuable lesson from Wembanyama’s historic cards: while they undeniably hold significance, rarity and condition will remain the ultimate arbiters of enduring value. For now, the hobby revels in the brilliance of a rookie sensation who has etched an indelible mark on the annals of grading history.
