Basketball Cards & Memorabilia

1940s WALT DISNEY COMICS R161 PANCHITO PLAYS BASKET BALL (U.S.A.)

There were 32 R161 Cards in the Walt Disney Comics set. They featured various Disney characters, with a lot of them playing sports. Panchito Plays Basket Ball is the only Basketball themed card in the set.

Measurement: 2.75" x 2.25"

1940s ENG KEE GO TAO CHINESE FIRECRACKER LABELS

Label reads: Eng Kee Go Tao, Basketball Ground, Trademark, Juanasan, Sole Agents, Mee San Hong, Importers, Exporters & Commission Agents, 204 Wing Lok St West, 2nd Floor, Hong Kong

1940 POSTCARD FRENCH GENERAL COMMISION FOR GENERAL EDUCTION & SPORTS RENE PELLOS

THE ELKS MAGAZINE, FEBRUARY 1940

1941

BASKETBALL - ITS ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT BY JAMES NAISMITH, FIRST EDITION 1941

Very rare 1941 First Edition of Dr. James Naismith's only complete book. Copyright by the International Committee of the YMCA and published by The Association Press. Basketball, It's Origins and Development includes stories of Naismith's childhood, what inspired the invention of Basketball, the refinement of the rules and development of equipment, and the growth of the sport throughout the world. This book was published posthumously, as Naismith died in 1939.

1944 AGUILA COLECCIÓN, CULTURAS Y DEPORTES, SERIE 7, NO. 276 BASKET-BALL (URUGUAY)

Aguila Chocolates released the Culturas Y Deportes (Cultures & Sports) cards in 7 series for a total of 300 cards. This was the only basketball card and it was included in the 7th series of the set. These cards were meant to be glued into the accompanying Aguila Coleccion album and I assume they were distributed in packages of their chocolate.

Measurement: 1.25" x 1.75"

1944

1945 ESQUIRE GREAT MOMENTS IN SPORTS ESKY CARD SET #14, CARD #2 HANK LUISETTI (U.S.A.)

The Esky Cards were sets of numbered jumbo postcards released in packs (pictured here) by Esquire Magazine in 1945. This #2 Hank Luisetti card was the only basketball card in their "Great Moments in Sports" set #14, which also notably included a Bobby Jones golf card. The image on the card is from the painting "Luisetti Scores Again" by James Bingham, which features Luisetti playing in a game at Madison Square Garden in 1936. The painting was also featured in Esquire Magazine in 1944. There are only a couple graded examples of this card.

Measurements: 4.5" x 7"

1945

1940s COMIC BOOKS & PULP MAGAZINES FEATURING BASKETBALL

LATE 1930s/EARLY 1940s POSTCARD FEATURING INTRAMURAL ATHLETISC AT CAMP BRECKINRIDGE IN MORGANFIELD, KENTUCKY

1945-46 POSTCARD FEATURING THE SENIOR BASKETBALL SQUAD AT BOY'S RANCH IN OLD TASCOSA, TEXAS

1946 & 1947 KELLOGG'S ALL-WHEAT SPORTS TIPS CARDS FC9-2 & FC9-3 (CANADA)

The Kellogg's All-Wheat Cards were released in 3 different sets in Canada in 1945-1947. Sports-Tips was one of the subsets and included various sports with images and instructions/tips on playing. There were a total of 7 Basketball cards, 2 in Set 2 & 5 in Set 3. Measurements: 1.75" x 2.5"

1946 SOUVENIR PROGRAM FOR THE JAMES H. NAISMITH BOYS INVITATIONAL TOURNAMENT WITH ED ELBEL PORTRAIT OF NAISMITH ON COVER

1948 CHICLES TABAY #A-43 BASKETBALL, ALBUM DEPORTIVO, REPORTAJES FOTOGRAFICAS (SPAIN)

Chicles Tabay was a Spanish Gum company and released this sports cards set from January 1948 through January 1949. They released 18 cards per month, the entire set consists of 234 cards, all depicting various sports. I believe this to be the only basketball card. There were 2 variations of the back, one with just an image of the pack of gum, the other with the image and text that included the name of the album.

Measurements: 1.25" x 1.875"

1948

1948 TOPPS MAGIC PHOTOS (U.S.A.)

The Topps Magic Photos set contained 252 cards broken into 19 different series, each designated by a different letter, and then numbered within that grouping. The front of these cards "magically" appeared when water was applied to them, and they got into the light, making each cards appearance vary slightly. ​There were a total of 11 basketball cards in the set, #1B - #6B & #1Q - #5Q. The DePaul Card (5Q) features George Mikan, an alternative rookie card to his 1948 Bowman true rookie card.

Measurements: 0.875" x 1.5"

*Some Magic Photos seem slightly rarer than others.

All are rare in high grade condition.

1948 BOWMAN BASKETBALL CARDS (U.S.A.)

The 1948 Bowman set was a milestone, as it was the first nationally distributed basketball card set. It consisted of 72 cards in two series of 36 cards apiece. 60 of the cards feature players, most notably (and most valuable) being #69, the George Mikan rookie card. The 12 other cards featured illustrations of different basketball plays. The 2nd series cards (37-72) are a bit tougher to find because of lower circulation. The cards in the set typically had blue or red backgrounds, although there are more scarce gray background variations, due likely from a printing error. Measurements: 2.125" x 2.5"

1948-49 AMBOSIANA VS BOLOGNA HAND CUT CARD, UNKNOWN MAKER/UNCLASSIFIED (ITALY)

I’ve searched but am unable to find examples of cards from this set, so not sure of the publisher. I’ve dated it to 1948-49 because another card (jockey on horse) from the same set mentions the Grand Steeple Chase in Milan on April 25th, 1948. The art/photo style and font are similar to that of the 1949-50 Nannina Futbol set, ​so perhaps Nannina was the publisher but not definitive.

Measurements: 1.5" x 2"

1948-49 EXHIBITS SUPPLY COMPANY SPORTS CHAMPIONS

Chicago's Exhibit Supply Company cards were meant to be sold in amusement parks and penny arcades. They were sold individually and not packaged with other cards, gum or tobacco, which was rather unusual. Exhibit Supply Co. (ESCO) released over 14,000 different cards between 1921 to the 1970s. This 1948 Sports Champions set consisted of 50 cards, 5 of which were basketball, including a "rookie" George Mikan card.

Measurements: 3.25" x 5.375"

1948-49 EXHIBITS SUPPLY COMPANY SPORTS CHAMPIONS "SLICKS" GLOSSY PAPER DISPLAY VARIATION

"Slicks" are paper versions of the Exhibit Supply cards produced on “slick” glossy paper. They served as exact replicas (same dimensions) of the typically thick postcard-like cards and were designed to be affixed to headers on the front of exhibit vending/arcade machines. ESCO likely produced them because paper is more cost-effective and lighter than cardboard. When manufacturing and mailing tens of thousands of these each year, every penny saved matters. It's unknown if "slick" variations were made of every card but they are far more rare than the standard card stock issue.

Measurements: 3.25" x 5.375"

1949 W.M. LOWNEY CRACKER JACK V410 SPORT YESTERDAY & TODAY (CANADA)

This card set featured sports early on (yesterday) and their modern play (today). The exact date of the set is in dispute but most agree it was released in the mid to late 1940s. The cards were released and distributed by Lowney's in Canada ​under the Cracker Jack candy name.

Measurements: 3" x 2.5"

1949

1949-50 ALBUM FIGURITAS BICICLETA, CAMP DE BASQUET-BALL DISC CARDS (ARGENTINA)

I cannot find much information on this Argentinian album or the maker. Although this album primarily featured cyclists, it also included other sports, with a page dedicated to basketball that included 24 disc cards.

Measurements: 1.625" in diameter

1949 GALLINA BLANCA SERIE 126 #1 BALONCESTO (SPAIN)

The Gallina Blanca set was very large with 792 cards, 3 of which were basketball. The cards were meant to be adhered to an accompanying album (2.0 Gallina Blanca), so they are more difficult to find without glue or residue.

Measurements: 1.5" x 2.125"

1949 EDITION OF THE INDIANA NEWS BASKETBALL RECORD BOOK FEATURING JAMES NAISMITH ON THE COVER

LATE 1940s/EARLY 1950s DUTCH KORFBAL (NETBALL) HOLLANDSCHE KASS CHEESE FOOD LABEL (HOLLAND)

1949 FRENCH PROTEGE CASHIER NOTEBOOK PROTECTOR FEATURING GIRLS BASKET-BALL

LATE 1940s/EARLY 1950s ST. HONORE SUPER BISCOTTES SALEES (SHORTBREAD) FOOD LABEL (FRANCE)