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Would You Be Interested?

We receive numerous inquiries on a daily basis at our Somerset, NJ office.  Many come via email from our website and many others come via people calling us on the telephone.  The questions range from what do I have, what is it worth to are you buying?  Our Just Collect staff does their very best to decipher the inquires and answer the questions as quickly as possible.  We're usually able to answer most questions the same day.  Some take a little more time or additional follow-up.  But we're always ready and eager to help people understand what they have and what it may be worth, even if we may not be interested in making a purchase offer.

Sometimes, the calls and inquiries are tedious and amount to little more than a collection of overproduced cards from the late 1980's.  Sometimes, the calls are about old collections.  We never know what the cards will be until we speak to everyone that contacts us.  Sometimes, it ends up being a little more than expected . . . 

My Dad Had These Basketball Cards

We recently got a call from a young man in the southwest that had a collection that he had inherited from his father.  He mentioned that at one point, his relatives owned a Five and Dime type store and had some card vending machines in them.  There was a collection of cards from the late 1950's that included sports and non-sports cards.  The young man mentioned that his father owned the majority of the collection that remained and that he was given a group of 1957 Topps Basketball cards that contained more than 100 cards and comprised almost a complete set.  There were some duplicates, with as many as 6 of any one card (the most notable being 6 cards each of Hall of Famers Bill Sharman and Paul Arizin).  The group was not devoid of other keys as Bill Russell and Bob Cousy (2 cards) were also represented.

While the father wasn't quite ready to sell his portion of the collection, the son decided to solicit evaluations and offers for his collection of the near set and duplicates.  He provided us with some preliminary images and we made a preliminary estimation based upon the images, but advised that we could not make a definitive and final offer without being able to see the cards in person and examine them carefully.  The young man agreed to forward the collection, using our Free FedEx Shipping Program, to allow us to review the collection and prepare a complete evaluation.

After receiving the collection, our specialists evaluated every single card in the collection and arrived at a final valuation.  We made an offer and after some discussion back and forth, were able to reach agreement and purchase the collection from the gentleman, FedEx-ing him payment immediately upon agreement.

Star Power and a Tragic Story

Since there hadn't been a basketball set produced since the 1948 Bowman Set, there are plenty of rookie cards in the 1957 Topps Set.  The set features the rookie cards of many Hall of Famers, too.  Included are the HOF RC's of: George Yardley, Donald Neil Johnston, Bill Sharman, Paul Arizin, Slater Martin, Dolph Schayes, Frank Ramsey, Dick McGwire, Bob Cousy, Tom Heinsohn, Bob Pettit, Ed MacCauley, Vern Mikkelsen, Cliff Hagan, Maurice Stokes, Robert Houbregs, Harry Gallatin, Jack Twyman, Bill Russell, and Clyde Lovellette.  Two players, Maurice Stokes and Jack Twyman produced a story filled with both tragedy and human compassion. 

Stokes, already a Rookie of the Year and a 3-time NBA All-Star at the age of 24, was playing in the last game of the regular 1957–58 NBA season (March 12, 1958), when he was knocked unconscious as he drove to the basket, drew contact, striking his head as he fell to the court.  A few days later, after playing in their first playoff game, Stokes became ill, had a seizure, collapsed and went into a coma.  He eventually came out of the coma, but was paralyzed -- diagnosed with post-traumatic encephalopathy, a brain injury that damaged his motor-control center. 

Teammate and close friend, Jack Twyman, became Stokes' caretaker and eventually his legal guardian.  There friendship is an amazing story and while he regained some motor skills, Stokes never walked again and became a truly inspirational story before passing away in 1970 at the still young age of 36.  During his short career, Stokes was the NBA's leading rebounder (ahead of Bill Russell) and was second in assists (behind only Bob Cousy).  He had accumulated 5 straight games with triple-doubles and was one of the best all-around players in the league -- He was Magic and Lebron long before either laced up a pair of basketball shoes.

How Many Rings?

Looking through this set, it is incredibly amazing how many NBA Championship rings are owned by the guys in this set.  Bill Russell owns 13 rings on his own (11 as a player and 2 as a coach).  Tom Heinsohn (10 rings, 8 as a player and 2 as a coach), Jim Loscutoff and Frank Ramsey (7 rings) and Bob Cousy (6 rings) lead the way.

Our Buying Philosophy

We've run into a wide range of people and collections over the past decade. Although we are known for buying vintage sports cards and especially vintage basketball cards, we are also extremely interested in buying non-sports cards, also!

Every collection and every collector is different and we treat EVERY collection with the respect and attention that we show for our own collections. We understand that many have put their heart and soul into building their collection. So when you're ready to sell, Just Collect understands the feelings that you're going through and we will work with you to help you reach a decision that is a WIN/WIN, because if you're not happy, we're not happy.

We Are Always Buying

We've run into a wide range of people and collections over the past decade. Although we are known for buying vintage sports cards and especially vintage basketball cards, we are also extremely interested in buying non-sports cards, also!

Every collection and every collector is different and we treat EVERY collection with the respect and attention that we show for our own collections. We understand that many have put their heart and soul into building their collection. So when you're ready to sell, Just Collect understands the feelings that you're going through and we will work with you to help you reach a decision that is a WIN/WIN, because if you're not happy, we're not happy.

The "1957 Topps Basketball Collection:  The Hoops Hoard" Video: