Demand for Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, A'ja Wilson, Paige Bueckers WNBA cards continues to grow
The good news is with Panini Instant, fans can grab cards of big moments as they happen. Panini's on-demand offering features highlights and big moments from throughout the season, which started with the WNBA Draft.
Panini America saw big success with Instant last season, Clark's first year in the league. Not only was it a popular card release, but a Draft Night Clark 1-of-1 autographed parallel sold for $84,000 in September.
The Panini Instant cards are important for WNBA — maybe even more so than in other sports. In women's basketball, the players go from college into the WNBA without much of a break in between. This doesn't give Panini a lot of time to get new products on the shelves because of the time needed to create a new card release.
'Panini Instant was so important because for us, it gave us the ability to get consumers into collecting 'W' products and getting excited for the W product,' said Jason Howarth, Panini's senior vice president of marketing and athlete relations. 'When we finally released that first product in August last year, people were ready to go for it.'
Top of their class ☝️2025 #PaniniInstant WNBA Draft Night Trading Cards, including Autographs and Numbered Parallels, will be available for a limited time beginning tomorrow, Thursday April 17 at 2pm CT here: https://t.co/YEUa0bAxLw#WhoDoYouCollect pic.twitter.com/wr4vLZtI7u
— Panini America (@PaniniAmerica) April 17, 2025
This season, collectors won't have to wait as long for the first WNBA card product.
There are five WNBA sets scheduled for this season — an all-time high for the league. The newest entry will be Donruss WNBA, which is scheduled for July.
Donruss has made a name for itself in the modern collecting space, especially in football, where the popular Downtown inserts can be found.
Downtown inserts will soon feature WNBA stars with this summer's release.
'Donruss will be awesome from a Downtown point of view,' Howarth said.
Panini has built WNBA collecting since it took over the card license in 2019. Before that, there may have been one product a year and it often came as a complete factory set with a chance of autographs. That product made about $50,000 in sales a year, according to Howarth.
Panini has revamped the WNBA card collecting space by making more traditional pack products, giving collectors a chase with parallels, rare inserts and autographs.
As the WNBA has grown in popularity, so has the demand for cards, especially over the last year with Clark becoming the face of the league.
'I think you think there was a point in time where WNBA Prizm costs more on the secondary market than NBA Prizm,' Howarth said. 'I think that probably tells you the story about demand more than anything else. I think it always had a place in the category, but I think you saw a lot more migration and transition from other collectors of other core sports into the 'W,' and it is now viewed in that group of core sports. You've got the NFL, NBA, MLB, and now you've got the WNBA.'
This year's offerings will look different again. There are five WNBA products scheduled, up from three last season, which was also up from two the year before.
WNBA stars shine brightest in #PaniniPrizm WNBA White Sparkle ⚪ ✨ Available Monday April 7 at 11am CT here: https://t.co/ZtHbYUVGxB#WhoDoYouCollect pic.twitter.com/6CdEi9Nrgr
— Panini America (@PaniniAmerica) April 7, 2025
Last year saw the release of Panini Prizm (and the Monopoly version), Origins and Select. Previously, Panini also put out Revolutions.
The release calendar is always a work in progress as the brand team finds the right pieces for the season. One thing they knew they needed for Clark's rookie season was Prizm to make its way to the WNBA.
Prizm has become a staple for Panini and one of the most highly sought-after rookie cards.
'To have the class that we had last year and not have Prizm would have been a complete miss for us and collectors,' Howarth said. 'It would be one of those things that you look back on and wonder why Caitlin [Clark] doesn't have a rookie Prizm card or Angel [Reese] doesn't have a rookie Prizm card.'
As the WNBA continues to grow, creating household names and superstars, the league continues to leave its mark. From the NCAA tournament, right into the WNBA Draft and then the start of the WNBA season.
While big names like Clark and Reese created a buzz last season, there is no slowing down.
'This class is equally as exciting,' Howarth said. 'We've seen that both from a collectible point of view just off of the Draft Night cards that we released here a few weeks ago. Lots of excitement around the product and lots of excitement and anticipation for more 'W' products.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Saniya Rivers scores 17 points off the bench
The Sun came up short against the Aces, but Saniya Rivers shined with 17 points Saniya Rivers scores 17 points off the bench originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Caitlin Clark Return: Fever Coach Provides Latest Update
Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark has not played since reinjuring her groin in a win over the Connecticut Sun on July 15. Since then, Clark has been rehabbing from the second injury that has cost her time this season. Overall, she's appeared in only 13 of the Fever's 32 games. so far. With a nationally-televised game against the Dallas Wings on tap for Tuesday night, and Clark listed as a "game-time decision" on the WNBA website, there was some speculation that the second-year guard would be making her return. Not so fast though, Fever head coach Stephanie White told reporters Monday. Caitlin Clark still hasn't practiced While White said Clark is making progress behind the scenes, she's still not ready to return to practice with her teammates, let alone play in a game. "She's been able to get a little more in her full-court running with all of her body weight," White said. "It's really building up from doing minimal to then building some endurance to do longer periods of time. She's been able to do a little bit more on the court in terms of how she moves, but not practice yet." Given the fact Clark has been hampered by quad and groin injuries this season, it's safe to assume the Fever are being cautious with her. Clark admits she feels 'responsibility' to return During this week's edition of Sue Bird's "Bird's Eye View" podcast, Clark said she feels a duty to get back on the court, both for her team and for the WNBA as a whole because of how she has helped the league grow. "It's hard, because obviously I do feel this responsibility of being out there and playing," Clark told Bird. 'And not that I think there's a fear of any of this going away. That doesn't happen when like, LeBron or Steph get hurt. [Fans] are always going to be there,' Clark added. 'But you do want to play, you want to give people something to cheer about or scream about. People spend so much time, and money, and resources to come and watch you play. And it's been cool to see people continue to show up for my teammates, whether they're fans of the Fever just fans of myself, they're continuing to show up and support.' Fever holding down the fort Indiana is 10-9 this season without Clark and 18-14 overall with eight games to play. The Fever also recently lost guards Sydney Colson and Aari McDonald for the season due to injury. There's hope that Clark will return, hopefully sooner rather than later. "We feel this fight is a little different with (our) girls out of the lineup," Fever star Natasha Howard tweeted over the weekend. "All the hard work they've put in over this season won't go unnoticed. Win (or) lose, just know we are fighting to the end for Syd, CC & Ari. See you soon CC." Caitlin Clark Return: Fever Coach Provides Latest Update first appeared on Men's Journal on Aug 11, 2025
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
WNBA All-Star Sends Strong Message on Chicago Sky's Angel Reese After Postgame Exchange
WNBA All-Star Sends Strong Message on Chicago Sky's Angel Reese After Postgame Exchange originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Angel Reese cheered on the Chicago Sky from the bench on Sunday as the two-time All-Star was forced to sit out her second straight game due to a persistent back watched her team suffer another loss, this time falling to the Phoenix Mercury in a home game at Wintrust Arena, 83-67. Angel Reese's Postgame Exchange With Mercury Vets A video of Reese sharing a postgame moment with a few Mercury players has been making its rounds on social media. In it, Reese is seen having interactions with Kahleah Copper, Kalani Brown and Alyssa Thomas shortly after the final buzzer. In the video above, Reese is seen hugging both Copper and Thomas before exchanging words with the two and Copper got the opportunity to link up during the offseason as teammates for Rose Basketball Club in the Unrivaled League. Thomas, on the other hand, was Reese's teammate in the recently concluded WNBA All-Star game after both of them were selected to be on Team Collier. Kahleah Copper's Strong Message on Reese Copper, who led the Mercury to victory with 25 points on 8-of-14 shooting, three rebounds, two assists, a steal, one block and four triples, was asked to talk about her postgame moment with Reese during the Phoenix star's media availability took the opportunity to express why she values playing the role of Reese's big sister in the WNBA. 'Just keeping that line of communication open," Copper said. "There's not too many vets in this league that look out for the rookies. So you know how it feels to be a rookie and to have to navigate through injuries or personal things.'I take pride in mentorship and being there for young players.' Technically speaking, Reese is already in her second season in the league and is no longer a rookie. Nevertheless, her experience in the WNBA pales in comparison to that of Copper, who is already a decade into her career as a pro. Reese Has Turned to WNBA Veterans for Mentorship It is also worth noting that Copper isn't the only All-Star who has been a mentor for Reese. The Sky forward previously acknowledged Minnesota Lynx star Napheesa Collier as someone she turns to for guidance. For her part, the reigning Defensive Player of the Year had nothing but good things to say about Reese. The way Reese has built relationships with some of the biggest stars in the WNBA speaks volumes about her eagerness to learn from those who came before her. It also says a lot about how much respect and admiration she's earned from her peers in her brief time in the story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Aug 4, 2025, where it first appeared.
