Trading With a King

After showing off a very small part of the haul I won from Gavin of Baseball Card Breakdown, I found a trade partner in Billy Kingsley of Cardboard History.  I happily sent him a lot of cards and I was happily surprised to see the stack of cards he sent back.

Billy has been the #1 contributor to my SuperSonics collection and this trade was no exception.  The cards span across all sort of sets and include a handful of other teams as well.  I'll highlight a few of my favorites.

1972-73 Topps

This card has the honor of becoming my oldest basketball card.  Considering that Topps did not start putting out basketball sets on a regular basis until 1969-70, this is a cool feat.

2014-15 Panini Threads / 2013-14 Hoops

Combining old school photos with new school cards.  These photos pop on new card stock as compared to how they would look on say a 90-91 card.  

2005-06 Upper Deck Rookie Debut

I was first turned on to this set thanks Tony L. at Off Hiatus after he sent me a graded Andrew Bogut rookie card.  These cards still look sharp.  Radmanovic was fun to watch as he wasn't afraid to throw up a 3-point shot.  This card would mark the last time we would see Radmanovic in a Sonics uniform. He was traded the Clippers mid-season.  

1990-91 Hopps

Rookie of the Reign Man! Enough said!

2004-05 Topps Total

A mascot card of the high-flying Sasquatch.  I'm biased but I think the Squatch is one of the best mascots out there.  He plays on a local urban legend, he doesn't look overly fake, and he can DUNK!

2000-01 Topps Chrome

Finally, I get my first card of Patrick Ewing in a Sonics uniform.  The Sonics had been in decline a few years before Ewing arrived.  This move reeked of a "ehh, fuck it" type move. Ewing had no business playing for the Sonics, let alone the in the NBA.  Unsurprisingly, he only lasted one season with the Sonics.

By the way, this card is purple.  This whole set is purple.  WHY?

2007-08 Topps - Rookie Set

Durant rookie! Many basketball fans resent Durant for the way he left the Thunder and taking the "easy way" to a ring by joining the Warriors.  I say to hell with those fans. The Thunder didn't deserve Durant. I look forward to Durant returning to the Sonics when they eventually return (yeah right).

1996 Upper Deck Slam Dunk Series

SLAM DUNK SERIES?? 1996-97 COLLECTOR'S CHOICE DESIGN?? I can 100% say I have NEVER seen this card before!  WHERE? WHEN? HOW?? I am a huge fan of 1996-97 Collector's Choice so my mouth was agape when I saw in this the trade stack.  

According to Trading Card Database user Billy Kingsley, this set was issued with Nestle chocolate bars.  I haven't cross-checked every card but the photos appear to be different from the base set.

I'm looking on eBay right this instance and I see this complete set 40-card set for $12 shipped. Yup, that's an instant buy for me.

There were many, many more cards but these are a small sampling of my favorites.  Thanks Billy for all the excellent cards!