Dime Box Junk - $1.70

THE HAWKS LOST THE LAST GAME OF THEIR SEASON LAST NIGHT ON A BUZZER BEATING 3-POINT FOUL AND YES IT WAS THE MOST APPROPRIATE WAY FOR THAT SEASON TO END. LET'S LOOK AT SOME DIME BOX BASKETBALL CARD PICKUPS IN HONOR OF THEIR 50TH SEASON IN ATLANTA WITH NO CHAMPIONSHIPS OR FINALS APPEARANCES

1981-82 TOPPS JACK SIKMA & SUPER ACTION

VINTAGE TOPPS BASKETBALL IN A DIME BOX IS AN INSTANT BUY - NOT EVEN GOING TO CHECK MY WANTLISTS - GIMME ALL OF IT.

SIKMA'S A HALL OF FAME CENTER FROM ILLINOIS-WESLEYAN, PLAYED WITH THE SONICS AND THE BUCKS SO ENJOYED AN ALL-GREEN NBA CAREER. APPARENTLY THE HALL OF FAME ANNOUNCEMENT WAS 5 DAYS AGO AND I HAD NO CLUE. I WOULDA BEEN CROWING ABOUT ATLANTA HAWKS LEGEND SIDNEY MONCRIEF GOING INTO THE HALL ON TWITTER OTHERWISE

SO THE BRIEF PERIOD OF TOPPS BASKETBALL CARDS FROM THE LATE 60S TO THE EARLY 80S WAS FILLED WITH LUDICROUS GIMMICKS AND THIS SET IS NO DIFFERENT. THE BASE SET WAS 66 CARDS IN SIZE AND THEN TACKED ON ANOTHER 44 CARD SET FOR THE EAST, MIDWEST AND WEST MARKETS. THE 'HIGH NUMBERS' CONTAINED ADDITIONAL PLAYERS AND THESE ACTION CARDS FROM PLAYERS IN THE MAIN SET. THIS SOUNDS CONFUSING AS HELL BUT IT'S REALLY ONLY 198 CARDS FOR THE SET AND IT'S NICE TO SEE SOME OF THOSE BENCH PLAYERS GET SOME CARDS WHO WOULDN'T HAVE OTHERWISE

1994-95 UPPER DECK SPECIAL EDITION DOC RIVERS & JEFF HORNACEK GOLD

UPPER DECK BASKETBALL SETS FROM 1993 TO ABOUT 1996 ARE CONFUSING AS HELL. THERE'S REGULAR SETS, SPECIAL EDITION SETS, SP SETS, SPECIAL EDITION INSERTS, IT'S ALL A BIG MESS. BUT THESE ARE FOILY AND SHINY AND THAT STUFF TURNS BRAINS TO MUSH WHEN DIGGING THRU DIME BOXES SO I HAVE THESE NOW

DOC RIVERS WAS MY FAVORITE HAWKS PLAYER NOT BORN IN FRANCE* WHEN I WAS A KID SO ANY SHINY CARDS WITH HIS MUG ON IT IS COMING HOME WITH ME. THE HORNACEK, WELL, GOLD CARDS ARE HARD TO PULL OK

I SHOULD PUT TOGETHER A '90S BASKETBALL PARALLEL FRANKENSET, I'VE GOT SO MUCH OF THIS STUFF AND NOTHING TO DO WITH THEM

1997-98 TOPPS ALLEN IVERSON BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME PARALLEL

I COMPLAIN ABOUT PARALLELS 24-7-365 AND THEN I PICK THEM UP AT CARD SHOWS LIKE I'M SNARFING DOWN BAR PEANUTS. WELL, YEAH. THERE'S A BIG DIFFERENCE IN PULLING USELESS PARALLELS OUT OF A PACK OF EXPENSIVE CARDS AND SNAGGING A HALL OF FAMER PARALLEL FROM A TIME PERIOD WHERE THERE WAS ONLY ONE - MAYBE TWO - PARALLEL SETS IN A PRODUCT

BESIDES THIS IS A SECOND-YEAR CARD OF ALLEN FRIGGIN IVERSON, THE MAN WHO SINGLEHANDEDLY DRAGGED A TEAM TO THE FINALS. SOME PARALLELS ARE GOOD

2008-09 TOPPS TREASURY COURTNEY LEE SHINY RC SERIAL NUMBERED REFRACTOR THING

TOPPS TREASURY WAS A ONE-SHOT PRODUCT FROM TOPPS WHERE THE GIMMICK WAS A RIP CARD PER BOX AND SOME RIP CARDS HAD ACTUAL MONEY IN THEM. IMAGINE SPENDING $70 ON A BOX AND OPENING A RIP CARD AND YOU GET A $50 BACK. THE CARDS WERE SORTA SILLY LOOKING AS THEY HIT HARD ON THE CURRENCY THEME BUT THERE WERE BIRD AND MAGIC CARDS ALL OVER THE PLACE SO IT WAS MOSTLY A FUN PACK TO RIP

SO I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS A PARALLEL OR IF THE BASE ROOKIES WERE ALL LIKE THIS OR WHAT BUT COURTNEY PLAYED A FEW YEARS IN THE LEAGUE SO YOU'D THINK IT'D BE WORTH MORE THAN A DIME. WHERE MY WESTERN KENTUCKY SUPERCOLLECTORS AT

2001-02 FLEER SHOEBOX WALLY SZCZERBIAK

MILDLY OBSESSED WITH THIS SET BECAUSE FLEER DID NOT PRODUCE A FLAGSHIP OR FLEER TRADITION BASKETBALL SET THAT YEAR FOR SOME REASON. FLEER IS BASKETBALL CARDS AS FAR AS MY NOSTALGIA-ADDLED BRAIN IS CONCERNED SO THIS DISTURBS ME GREATLY. THIS SHOEBOX COLLECTION SET IS THE CLOSEST THING TO A TRADITIONAL FLEER SET FROM THAT YEAR AND HAS A REALLY NICE MINIMALIST DESIGN GOING FOR IT SO I'VE DUBBED IT THE OFFICIAL FLEER SET OF 01-02. I LOVE IT SO MUCH I ONLY BOUGHT ONE (1) PACK OF IT BACK IN THE DAY AND NOW I DESPERATELY WANT THE SET BUT CANNOT FIND

I HAVE NO MEMORIES OF SZCZERBIAK OTHER THAN 'WALLY WORLD' AND A BILLION TIMBERWOLVES ROOKIE CARDS.

WITH THE SEASON OVER I HAVE DECIDED TO ROOT FOR THE BUCKS SINCE THEY STOLE GIANNIS AND OUR COACH FROM THE HAWKS SO IT'S BASICALLY AN ATLANTA TITLE IF THEY WIN. I NEED SOMETHING TO DISTRACT ME WHILE I WAIT ANXIOUSLY FOR THE DRAFT LOTTERY. WE'RE TOTALLY GETTING ZION, I BELIEVE THIS. I BELIEVE IT

NEXT TIME: SOMETHING OTHER THAN DIME BOX CARDS MAYBE

* ANYONE MENTIONING BORIS DIAW IS BANNED FOR LIFE. THERE IS NO WAY TO BAN PEOPLE IN BLOGGER BUT I'LL REMEMBER DAMMIT