Few people buy more vintage sports cards than Leighton Sheldon, but even he couldn’t pass up the collection of modern grails that arrived at his booth last Friday.
Set up at the Philly Card Show last weekend, Sheldon and his company, Just Collect, were approached by an international collector hoping to sell what is possibly among the greatest collections of 1990s-era Boston Celtics cards assembled.
Aided by a walker following a car accident years ago, the man, who has asked to remain anonymous, approached Just Collect’s booth with a box of 32 cards and a thick New Zealand accent.
“It’s almost like he came out of a movie,” Sheldon recalled.
Sheldon didn’t know what to expect, but after a short conversation with the man, who has traveled internationally extensively for work while based in London, it was clear he had been collecting Celtics players for decades and was ready to move on.
The first card out of the box set the tone.
“It was a Precious Metal Gem,” Sheldon said. “That’s how I knew we were in business.”
Of the 32 total cards, there were five Precious Metal Gems, a number of 1998 E-X Credentials, including both Future and Now parallels, two SkyBox Premium Star Rubies and three Fleer Brilliants 24KT Gold, among other hobby grails.
Multiple cards for Antoine Walker, Chauncey Billups, Paul Pierce, Ron Mercer and Kenny Anderson were among the treasure trove. According to Card Ladder, the highest public sales to date for Walker, Billups, Mercer and Anderson have all been for similar cards from the late '90s.
According to Sheldon, the man had looked into grading his cards there at the show, but was unsure if his collection, made up of exclusively raw cards, could grade well. Many of the top cards from his collection, including Precious Metal Gems and Star Rubies, are extremely prone to chipping and surface damage.
“I’m gonna do everything I have to do to try to get this deal,” Sheldon recalled telling Just Collect vice president John Palomares.
According to Sheldon, he had to work with the seller to find the right deal based on expectations. The seller initially wanted a large cash offer, which didn’t make sense for Just Collect. Eventually the two came to an agreement for a cash offer significantly less than what was initially asked, with the caveat that profits would be split once cards were graded and sold.
“I assessed the situation and understood this guy just wanted to be treated fairly,” Sheldon said. “He wasn't necessarily going to sell them outright unless you gave him just bundles of cash, in which case [we] might actually lose. So, I proposed, in conjunction with him, a win-win situation.”
The win-win didn’t happen immediately.
The man left Just Collect’s table with his cards and, according to Sheldon, likely checked in with other dealers and possibly auction houses for other options. The man eventually returned that weekend and struck a deal with Sheldon to split the funds once the cards were graded and flipped.
“Even if we didn't make any substantial money, or any money at all, I just thought there would be a lot of fun to bring these cars to market,” Sheldon said.
The cards, which Sheldon expects to sell privately to high-end basketball collectors, spent Monday afternoon being scanned and catalogued by Just Collect. Considered new-to-the-hobby, the collection represents a major find for '90s-era collectors who will often battle for specific players and sets.
According to Sheldon, who was flipping through cards to judge grading potential during the conversation with cllct, many of the cards have the potential to grade a PSA 8 or higher while about three are closer to PSA 6s.
The first part of the deal, which was finalized Saturday, will be closely followed by sales for this group of 32 cards. If things go well, Sheldon and Just Collect could see even more from a mysterious international collection.
“He hopes this group goes great, and then he asked me, ‘Do you want me to send you cards that are all numbered to 100 or less or 50 or less?’” Sheldon recalled.
Sheldon’s response after was simple: “Oh, my God.”
Ben Burrows is a reporter and editor for cllct.