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NBA basketball was a relatively minor pro sport in the late 1960s. Baseball and football reigned supreme, boxing was hot with Muhammad Ali and tennis and golf had earned significant popularity.
The sport was considered so insignificant that Topps Gum, the makers of bubble gum cards didn't think it was worthy of an issue from the late 1950s through nearly the entire decade of the '60s. But in 1969, the interest was on the rise. New York had a solid team in the Knicks, which helped get Topps and the NBA working on a set once again. And one player, New York native Lew Alcindor had turned the pro game on it's ear.
Alcindor had been the coveted number one draft pick of the Milwaukee Bucks in 1969 after a stellar career at UCLA. He was the most talented big man to come along since Bill Russell and fans saw a looming rivalry between Alcindor and the Lakers' Wilt Chamberlain.
Topps produced a 99-card set of players in a larger, 2 1/2" by 4 11/16" format. Designed to set the cards apart and probably to play on the size of the players in the league, the "tall boys" were unique. Selling for 10 cents per pack, the cards included some of the game's top stars. Chamberlain was the #1 card in the set.
Today, the card is valued at approximately $200 in near mint shape. Future Hall of Famers like John Havlicek (#25), Elgin Baylor (#35), Billy Cunningham (#40), Oscar Robertson (#50, Willis Reed (#60), Elvin Hayes rookie (#75), Jerry West (#90) and Walt Frazier (#98) highlight this issue. The checklist card, #99, is very difficult to find in unmarked condition and is valued at up to $250 today.
But the Alcindor card has proven to be the most popular in the set. #25 in the series, the rookie card of perhaps the game's greatest all-time center is difficult to find at a reasonable price now that basketball cards have taken off in value. The Alcindor rookie sells for $250-500 in nice shape, with graded cards going even higher.
The 1969-70 Topps set was printed on a sheet of 99 cards, with the checklist occupying the lower right corner of the sheet. Thus, the card,even in unmarked shape, was often nicked when found in an unopened package over three decades ago.
Complete sets of 99 cards now sell for $750-1600 in nice shape.
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