Top 10 underrated early/mid '00s basketball setsby hoopscardsandmore91 - 10 cards (Last updated on Jul 22, 2023) |
There are so many other memorable events from this timeframe too. Future Hall of Famers' were near retirement and finding themselves on oddball teams - most notably Michael Jordan on the Wizards - but also Patrick Ewing on the Sonics/Magic and Hakeem Olajuwon on the Raptors. Vince Carter had an insane dunk contest performance in 2000. Yao Ming entered the league in '02 and aided internationalization of the sport. Oh, and I suppose there was a good rookie class in '03.
For all of these reasons and more a lot of my PC is focused on this era. It also happened to coincide with a great time in the hobby. There was a plethora of sets coming from multiple manufacturers, i.e., Fleer, Topps, and Upper Deck (the good 'ole days). While higher value sets like Topps Chrome and SP Authentic arguably garner the most attention, there are so many others that are appealing. So here is my list of exactly that - the top ten underrated early/mid '00s basketball sets (ranked in order). Note that TCDB requires you to pick a single card for a list, so I have selected the first card of each set for simplicity sake.
Honorable mention:
1999-00 Upper Deck HoloGrFX
2001-02 Fleer Maximum
2001-02 Topps High Topps
2002-03 Hoops Stars
2003-04 Fleer Platinum
2005-06 Topps Big Game
10. 2003-04 Bazooka #1 Tracy McGrady
With bubblegum in each pack and cartoon-esque designs, this set sends you straight back to your childhood. The Comic inserts are one-of-a-kind and there's some great memorabilia cards too.
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9. 2000-01 Upper Deck Victory #1 Dikembe Mutombo
Like many of the junk wax era sets, there are no insert cards whatsover. Yep, "all your base are belong to us" (if you get it you get it). It's nice when you can get around 10 players for each team in a set.
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8. 2002-03 Topps Ten #1 Allen Iverson
I appreciate sets that are related to statistical achievements and this is the best. As the name suggests, the top ten players per statistical category are featured. With Shaq dominating in 2001-02, he has five cards in the set! |
7. 2004-05 Hoops #1 Dwyane Wade
Hoops is my all-time favorite brand, partly because of how long its been in the hobby. Though spanning from 1989-90 to current day, there were some dark years of no Hoops. Thankfully there was a quick resurfacing in 2004-05 and 2005-06. The 2004-05 set is reminiscent of the 1994-95 design, one my favorite Hoops sets of all time.
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6. 2004-05 Topps Total #1 Antoine Walker
Low-grade card stock with high-grade nostalgia. Topps Total is a set for the people and it's a crying shame how expensive boxes are today. It has even a wider breadth of players than Victory and comes with an added bonus of coaches and mascots.
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5. 2002-03 Fleer Tradition #1 Shareef Abdur-Rahim
I actually didn't discover this set until last year and I couldn't believe it. Retro-style sets are my absolute favorite and this is identical to the Fleer set from 1989-90 - the first year in my collection.
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4. 1999-00 Fleer Force #1 Vince Carter
The only shiny set on the list, because to be honest I don't care for the shine factor that much. I can't help but love the sleek look here though. The parallel refractors ("Forcefield") are absolute fire and a solid chase.
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3. 2001-02 Fleer Shoebox #1 Tariq Abdul-Wahad
This set might be the one flying most under the radar. Simple but appealing style that resonates with my taste. That's it. Like it or don't! |
2. 1999-00 Hoops Decade #1 David Robinson
Alright, deciding between #1 and #2 was tough. As said, Hoops is my favorite brand overall. While not identical to 1989-90 Hoops, this is a perfect homage to the OG Hoops set, which I feel is a monumental one in hobby history. While parallels didn't exist then, Hoops Decade features two ("Hoopla" and "Hoopla Plus") which are worth chasing. |
1. 2000-01 Topps Heritage #1 Jason Kidd
Ultimately, 2000-01 Topps Heritage is the best of retro-style sets and the best of this era. Having an identical design to 1971-72 Topps, the colors really pop with an Andy Warhol feel (I sound like I know art - I know absolutely nothing). The subset recapping the Lakers 2000 championship is legendary too!
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Comments
This was the heydey of my collecting as well. Although I prefer the immediate pre-lockout years, I got most of my collection during this era. The 2002-03 rookie class will always hold a special place in my memory, and completing a 2002-03 set is still a major accomplishment to me. I have written before about my fondness of the Fleer Shoebox set and the Topps Ten set. Both standalone sets that I would have liked to have seen more of. | ||
Very nice list. I must admit this is a bit of a forgotten era for me as I tend to prefer the '90s goodness so was great to have a look at some sets I am less familiar with. | ||
Cool list! |
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This list was created by site member hoopscardsandmore91. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the Trading Card Database.
