Prices for sealed boxes of 2025-26 Topps Basketball cards more than doubled on the secondary market within hours of the set’s preorder release Friday afternoon.
Topps’ first licensed flagship NBA product since 2009, hobby boxes and jumbo boxes originally retailed for $109.99 and $229.99 each, and quickly sold out directly from the manufacturer.
Confirmed preorders were immediately listed for sale on the secondary market, with hobby boxes selling for as much as $225 and jumbo boxes reaching $450, according to research tool Terapeak. Friday’s preorder is believed to be a limited allocation. The majority of the stock is planned for sale closer to its official release Oct. 23.
Interest in the product arrives as Fanatics and Topps took over the exclusive rights to make licensed NBA trading cards Oct. 1. Exclusively held by Panini America since 2009, Fanatics won the licences for the NBA and NBAPA in a stunning deal — it won the NFL and NFLPA, too — in 2021. Fanatics later acquired trading card manufacturer Topps in January 2022 to create and distribute cards for its new licenses.
Prior to the Panini era, Topps had an extended stretch as a fan-favorite manufacturer for NBA cards —notable with Topps Chrome and Topps Finest refractors from the late 1990s.
Topps Basketball is headlined by cards for Dallas Mavericks rookie Cooper Flagg as well as a deep checklist of autographs, including signatures from LeBron James — James was an Upper Deck exclusive prior to joining Fanatics — Allen Iverson, Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, Stephen Curry, Victor Wembanyama and more.
Expected to be one of Topps’ most accessible products, retail prices for 2025-26 Topps Basketball have generally been praised as relatively affordable compared to previous licensed NBA sets. It’s currently unclear what price points will be for future products, including popular sets such as Topps Chrome.
Outside of the United States, Topps officially launched its first product under the new NBA license Friday with the release of NBA Match Attax 2025. Exclusive to China, the trading card game was designed by Topps but will be manufactured and distributed by Kayou.
Ben Burrows is a reporter and editor for cllct, the premier company for collectible culture. He was previously the Collectibles Editor at Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on X and Instagram @benmburrows.