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| #NBLxNBA Road trip to Salt Lake City (2017) |
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| Collector's Spotlight: Karl Malone Collector at 'The Hobby Hangout Trading Card Show' |
1. What was your first Karl Malone card?
My first ever Malone card was a pack pulled 93/94 Fleer Ultra Scoring Kings which I still have to this day in my collection.
2. What made you start the collection?
I think I was around 11 years old and after pack pulling that card I decided that day he was the guy I wanted to collect. My brother was into Hakeem 'The Dream' Olajuwon and my mate next door was a big Shaq fan so had to be different to one another. I was a huge Jordan fan but his prices were out of the realms that I could ever possibly collect.
3. What's your philosophy on collecting?
My philosophy is to nail down exactly what you want and who you want to collect (whether it be the first big card you pack pull or an NBA game that you watched and you made a decision to go yep that's the player I rate). For me, it was all about the insert chases. Base I didn’t care for much because it was so common, I was always after the refractors and rare insert chase. Even to this day, I prefer the short print, simple sleek designs. Prime example is the blank slate card from Court Kings – just wow what a simplistic but eye catching design. You'll also notice my collection is very "autograph" based because it was how I wanted to collect coming back into the hobby 2 years ago. To others out there starting or deciding, really find the niche you want and go for it. Don't try to collect everything, it's a slippery slope...
It's fantastic to see a resurgence, not so much for collectors who have been in the scene for a while and can no longer pick up cards for a lot cheaper than before. The prices of boxes are exorbitant, and Panini don't make it easy for you to collect a "Rainbow" chase, but they are only doing what they see as a business model to follow economic trends and the resurgence of cards. One thing that annoys me is the new money coming in to the scene with these so called "flippers/investors". I congratulate the people that can afford to get those high end cards. But what still baffles me is how a bball player that is unproven has cards way overvalued compared to Hall of Famers and players that have had glittering careers or perhaps I'm just a salty collector who chose the wrong player (laughs). Credit to the hobbyists who have the smarts to buy low and sell high at the right time but I think any true collector finds it annoying because it’s driving up the market and not to mention causing major delays with grading but hey it’s part of the hobby and it's here to stay for a while.
5. What do you make of the Australian scene?
The Australian scene is growing in leaps and bounds daily. Breakers are popping up everywhere, and not to mention the fast rate of growth for numbers of people in Facebook trading card groups. Instagram pages are popping up with people showing off their collections which is really cool. A lot of the guys I have dealt with have been genuine enthusiasts and for the most part take the time to talk and ask about your collection and help out wherever possible. Sure there are some people that have no interest in creating friendships, but rather there to make a quick buck and leave. Every hobby has those kinds of people but for the majority of it everyone is helpful, friendly, enthusiasts and always looking at ways to grow the hobby.
6. Do you think there’ll be anything in the near future that will dramatically change the value of Malone cards?
Anyone who is a basketball enthusiast will know of Malone's past which has probably tarnished the value of his cards and people in the hobby maintain that and can't get past it even though he has owned up to those mistakes and done his best to rectify off court behaviours. I mean 2nd in all time point scoring is some feat and people often forget how much of a beast he was on the court.
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| "He embraces the truck driving, he embraces the country ways... He was a perfect fit for that Utah culture." - Roland Lazenby, Author 'Stockton to Malone' |
7. I consider Karl a unique character. Did that have personal appeal for you?
I would say it had some sort of appeal because being a sports person myself you need to have other passions and hobbies. For me it was just watching Stockton dish up dimes for Malone to stuff coming down the lane. You love to see the signature Malone poster dunks.
8. By focusing on Malone, do you think you're a unicorn in the card collecting scene?
There's a very select amount of Malone collectors around Australia and the world that I have connected with via the various social media platforms and we are definitely rare to find so I would certainly consider myself a bit of unicorn as such.
9. Where do you sit on the NFT buzz? You waiting for a Karl Malone NBA Topshot to drop?
For me mate – I think they are absolutely ridiculous and a waste of money. I mean you can go on Youtube and basically download the clip you'd like and chop it and change how you please. I think the crypto world has tried to creep in and for me it doesn't work. It will leave as quick as it came in.
10. Despite the team dominating this season, the Jazz' All-Stars were slighted with LeBron justifying it by saying Utah has always been unpopular. Thoughts?LeBron James talking about why the Jazz were picked last... 💀@NBAonTNT | @KingJamespic.twitter.com/9HetP713sv
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) March 5, 2021
It's true no one ever used them because they weren't your ideal go-to stars. Much like today's players, they aren't household names like LeBron. Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell are undervalued and just go about their work winning games as did Malone and Stockton in their day!
11. You've got a few Lakers' Malone cards. What are your feelings on this part of the collection and this part of his career?
At first I only wanted Jazz signed cards but it was still a significant time in his career as it was a shift to a powerhouse team. The big thing that annoys me is when he signs "Malone 32" on a Lakers jersey #11 card. Fun fact is that I represented my country in Futsal (indoor soccer) and the jersey I used to wear was number 11 so it's kinda cool that as a collector I wore his jersey number which was unplanned.
12. Do you have Malone memorabilia worth mentioning?
I have absolutely zero other memorabilia besides a little "Corinthians" Malone figurine. I would love to add a signed bball or shoe but it’s not my immediate chase piece. I do envy the collections I see where people have a jersey, shoe or the aforementioned signed ball but as you can imagine, storage and having it on display can prove tricky.
13. Which modern players do you gravitate towards?
Anyone who doesn't gravitate towards Zion Williamson is just silly. The kid is a generational talent and a supreme athlete despite what the "haters" say. Big, strong and can score points for fun – he is the future of basketball for next 10 years easily.
14. Have you ever traveled for this hobby? Any cool connections or stories you can share?
I have not unfortunately. Only coming back into the hobby 2 years, it wasn't much in the way of Australia having trading shows but to see the interest boom recently, it has changed the landscape of collecting again and I can't wait to feature my collection at The Hobby Hangout in Sydney. Hopefully in the future I can venture to the States for the Dallas card show amongst others.
- Find Dean's featured collection at The Hobby Hangout in Manning House, Sydney University. Saturday, 29th of May.
- View my IG snaps from The Hobby Hangout
- Follow Dean on Instagram at @karl_malone_collector
