There's no denying that LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers have been underwhelming the whole season. With Russell Westbrook's questionable fit and Anthony Davis missing time due to various injuries, it's up to the King to lead a lineup filled with aging veterans and unproven young guys to make it through the regular season and into the playoffs. But as fate would have it, the odds are against the Purple and Gold, both on the court and in the card market.
That's why it isn't a surprise anymore to see most LeBron James cards take a hit in the hobby. But rather than wallow in one corner and see the value drop, there are some insane moves that can be made. We take a deep dive into some of them.
Focus on the most valuable LeBron James cards
It's pretty easy to score those base, inserts, and retail parallels of the King these days. But while they can be easily added to your collection, their value in the market isn't the same anymore when the hobby was at its absolute peak a couple of years ago.
In this regard, getting rid of them all in one go can be a big help. This will clear up the space in your collection, give you extra funds, and help you focus more on those short-printed and low-population LeBron James cards, most notable those rookie offerings.
It's a given that these cards have a better chance of retaining their value in the long term than their base counterparts. Just take a look at James' PSA 10 2019 Prizm Silver, which is considered as one of his more popular modern cards in the market. This three-month graph from Card Ladder shows that its price has been on the decline. The card's population count from PSA also suggests that there are a lot of these in the hobby, which dilutes its value further.
This data backs up the move to get rid of these base LeBron James cards and go for those rookie slabs, numbered pulls, and low-population bangers, among others. By making your collection lean and mean with these, the collection you'll end up with will be a far better one.
Go all-in and invest in another star
As the Lakers are struggling this season, there are a number of teams that have exceeded expectations. Just take a look around the league and you'll be quite surprised with how Ja Morant has led the Memphis Grizzlies to the upper tier of the Western Conference. Jayson Tatum rookie cards are looking good too after the Boston Celtics have surged through the standings after a disappointing start to their campaign. Heck, even Tyler Herro's stock in the market is getting some love after evolving into a deadly scorer from the bench.
All of these young guys, and even more, are gaining a lot of momentum in the hobby. With the King's stock being dragged down by the Lakers' woes, going all-in on another star by liquidating your LeBron James card collection. Going with this move will help modernize your collection and ensure it stays relevant within the next decade or so.
Of course, the key here is to pick the right guy to invest in. There's no proven science here that can deliver proven results. But if you manage to choose a young star who has what it takes to become the next face of the NBA, his rookie cards will enjoy a tremendous boost in the market.
In this regard, the obvious choices here are Luka Doncic, Jayson Tatum, and Ja Morant cards. All three are the number one options of their respective teams, playing for contenders, and have what it takes to transcend to another level in the league. Barring any injury or any unfortunate circumstance, these are some of the guys worth investing in if you choose to ditch your LeBron James card collection.
Double down on getting more LeBron James cards
Sometimes, taking the opposite direction can be good down the road. In the case of LeBron James cards, doubling down on these can be considered a crazy move to make, especially with the market down on the King's stock.
Since the best time to buy cards is when the market is down on a certain player, then there's no better moment than now. The key thing to keep in mind here is to forego those base and high-population offerings in the market. As proven during the past year or so, those cards won't retain much of their value in the long term.
Instead, the wiser move, again, is to go for James' low-population cards. It's already a given that the Lakers' All-Star is a surefire bet to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. He's also within striking distance of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's scoring title, which is a feat that can be done faster than expected. With these accomplishments in mind, there's no reason for those valuable LeBron James cards to gain more momentum sometime in the future.
But of course, collectors should be really discerning in choosing which card to get. In this regard, a graded rookie card of James is a safe bet. Those gem-mint slabs, short-printed parallels, and One of One cards are also great options to consider. With these low-population options, your investment has a good chance of passing the test of time in the hobby.
Grade, flip, repeat
Another crazy move to keep in mind is one that has been done a lot in the market. You pick which of your LeBron James cards has a good chance of getting a gem-mint grade, sell it, and use the profit gained to get another card of the Lakers' star.
Sure, you may just start with less than a handful of cards. The thing is, there's a chance that this move will become exponential down the road. It can snowball until you've got flipped enough graded LeBron James cards to get a monster pull of the King or any other promising star in the hobby.
The danger here, of course, is you're not guaranteed of getting gem-mint slabs all the time. That's why you should be really discerning which card to send for grading, and at what price level it should be sold for a quick turnaround time. If done correctly, you would have transformed your stagnant LeBron James card collection into a profitable and sustainable operation.
With the market about to peak soon during the playoffs and rest for a bit during the offseason, the timing to execute these moves should be planned carefully. In any case, always keep an eye out on how James is doing on the court to see how the card market reacts to his stock.
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