Keep Em’ or Sell Em: Is it time to buy Anfernee Simons rookie cards?

When it comes to the 2018 Draft Class, the obvious guys to get in the hobby are Luka Doncic and Trae Young cards. To an extent, one could score great deals on Collin Sexton or Shai Gilgeous-Alexander stocks in the market. But among these players, there's one option that's slowly making noise out there – Anfernee Simons rookie cards.

While it's perfectly understandable to go for stocks that feature Doncic or Young, there's a great case to be made for the Portland Trail Blazers rising star. Here we discuss why Simons has the potential to be a great choice for card collectors everywhere.

Why are Anfernee Simons rookie cards going up?

There's no doubt that the Blazers have been Damian Lillard's team ever since Simons entered the league in 2018 with CJ McCollum getting the most minutes after Dame. This relegated the 6'3″ combo guard to the bench where he averaged 3.8 points in 7.1 minutes per game.

While his minutes went up over the following two seasons to an average of 19.1 minutes, Simons was still just notching 8.1 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.4 assists on 43/38/81 shooting splits. With those stats, it's understandable why he never broke out the same way his contemporaries were doing with the Dallas Mavericks and Atlanta Hawks. But then, a perfect storm of events have suddenly changed Simons' fortunes for the better.

In this season alone, there have been a few factors that drastically changed the landscape of Portland's future. For one, Lillard has only played in 29 games due to an abdominal injury. McCollum, for his part, has been traded to the New Orleans Pelicans right before the deadline after missing some time this season because of an injury as well.

With both Lillard and McCollum out of the picture in Portland right now, the keys to the kingdom have fallen upon Simons lap. So far, the fourth-year guard is putting a good show for fans and card collectors alike.

From measly averages of 7.8 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.4 assists last season, the Trail Blazers' new star is notching 17 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 3.9 assists in 29.3 minutes per game. Simons is also hitting his mark by shooting 50% from two-point range, 40% from downtown, and 88% from the free-throw line. But what's really revealing about him are the games Simons has played right after McCollum was traded to the Pelicans.

In the four games Simons has played as Portland's number one option, the guard has averaged 30.3 points on 51% shooting from the field and 46% from beyond the arc while getting 6.3 assists and 2.5 rebounds. And these were not just run-of-the-mill victories because these contests were against the likes of the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, Milwaukee Bucks, and Memphis Grizzlies.

With his numbers up and a 4-o winning streak right before All-Star Weekend, there's a pretty good case to make for Anfernee Simons rookie cards in the market. While most of the hobby's attention will be on guys like Doncic, Young, Ja Morant, Jayson Tatum, or LaMelo Ball cards, there's something intriguing about Simons and his potential, both on the court and in the hobby.

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The state of Anfernee rookie cards in the market

After spending several seasons as a relatively unknown option in the card market, Simons stock has suddenly awoken, much to the joy of the few who have invested in him. With that in mind, it pleasantly surprising to see a new name making a leap in the hobby.

As shown in this three-month graph of Simons' base PSA 10 Prizm rookie card by Card Ladder, there has been steady growth since it touched the bottom of $14.5 late last year. As of this moment, it's now valued at $78.65 in the market. Putting the numbers at work, that's a 147.57% growth rating in a span of three months.

While things are looking up for base Anfernee Simons rookie cards, his Silver parallels are doing much better. Again, this three-month chart shows the upward trajectory his PSA 10 Silver Prizm has been on. After reaching a bottom of $81, its value is now up to $320. That's a pleasant 181.67 rate of growth during that span of time and it can only be attributed to the hobby's warm reception of his performance in Portland.

While the given sample of four games is still too small to determine whether Anfernee Simons rookie cards will take the next leap or not, the flashes he has shown in those contests leave an intriguing possibility out in the open. Here we have a younger guy who can shoulder the Trail Blazer's offense on a contract that allows his team to get better pieces around him.

If Portland fails to live up to Lillard's expectations of creating a championship-level team around him, the All-Star guard might change his thoughts about leaving for another team. If that happens, building around Simons will be the next move to make and his stock in the card market will find its way up.

But until then, these Anfernee Simons rookie cards are in the sweet spot between just taking off and hitting it big time. It's best to take on a few of these cards for future purposes, especially if his role with the Blazers becomes more consistent.