Victor Wembanyama rookie card sets auction record price despite news of season-ending injury
One, in particular, believes so strongly in Wembanyama's continued excellence that he or she paid $860,100 for the San Antonio Spurs star's rookie card at a Goldin auction on Saturday night, The Athletic reported.
Saturday's auction, for a 2023 Panini Prizm Nebula Choice 1/1 card, surpassed the previous high for a Wembanyama rookie card. Last year, his 2023 Prizm Black Shimmer 1/1 card, sold for $516.000 as Wembanayama was completing his first NBA season that resulted in him winning Rookie of the Year honors.
🚨 BREAKING: NEW RECORD $$$ FOR ANY WEMBY CARD! 🚨Final Sale Price on this 2023-24 Panini Prizm Nebula Choice Prizm #136 Victor Wembanyama Rookie Card: $860,100 The All-Time Highest Public Sale for Any Wemby Card. Email us at Sell@Goldin.com to consign your Wemby or… pic.twitter.com/X7msNfJGSL
— Goldin (@GoldinCo) February 23, 2025
An $344,000 increase in a Wembanyama rookie card coincides with him improving virtually all of his numbers during his second season, making his cards look like a solid long-term investment for collectors. In 46 games this season, the 7-foot-3 sensation averaged 24.3 points, 11 rebounds and 3.8 blocks while shooting 35% on 3-pointers. All of those averages were better for him than last season.
Bidding for the 2023 Panini card was at $400,000 on Thursday when reporting on the auction began. Following that news, the price kept steadily increasing.
Despite the auction results, the news of Wembanyama's injury appears to have affected the current market for his cards. The going rate for his 2023 Prizm Silver card at a mint PSA 10 grade went from $850 to $700 or lower.
Mitch Johnson said, "There is no concern for Victor's health personally (long term) or his basketball activities." He added there is no reason to believe he won't be ready for next season.
— Tom Orsborn (@tom_orsborn) February 21, 2025
That drop will likely continue until positive news is reported on Wembanyama's recovery and he's deemed all right to play next season. And seven months will pass between now and the opening of training camp for next season.
Yet the Spurs reportedly believe that Wembanyama will make a full recovery and his condition won't persist as it did with other athletes such as former NBA player Chris Bosh, whose career was effectively ended due to blood clots. Other NBA stars including Brandon Ingram and Ausar Thompson have recovered from similar ailments and returned to play effectively.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
10 minutes ago
- USA Today
HoopsHype ranks Houston's Kevin Durant at No. 2 among NBA small forwards
The Christmas Day showdown between the Rockets and Lakers will feature the NBA's top-two small forwards of the 2025-26 season, according to HoopsHype's latest rankings. In HoopsHype's rankings of expected production for the 2025-26 NBA season, the Houston Rockets have Fred VanVleet at No. 17 among point guards and Amen Thompson at No. 7 among shooting guards. They're even higher than that at small forward, and it's largely why the Rockets have emerged as a championship contender. Kevin Durant, who earned his 15th career All-Star honor last season, checks in at No. 2 on the small-forward rankings. HoopsHype's explanation: For how much things change in the NBA, sometimes, they also stay the same, and these next two players are a great example of that. Even with the NBA's always-shifting strategies based on analytics, somehow, someway, Kevin Durant and LeBron James remain the best small forwards in basketball, in our estimation. Last season, Durant was one of just six players to put up a 26/6/4 stat line, and did so while shooting an astronomical 43 percent from three. According to VORP and BPM, Durant was roughly a Top 30 player in the league. Can he still be the best player on a championship team? We're about to find out, as Durant joins a strong Houston team replete with players that have either championship experience like Fred VanVleet, or have loads of promise like Amen Thompson and Alperen Sengun. Joining a well-rounded team with toughness and skill on both ends of the floor, if Durant is still an All-NBA-level player and a ceiling raiser for a team, he should be able to prove it in 2025-26... as he won't be forced to endure as much of the two-way load as he did with the Phoenix Suns. The only small forward ranked ahead of Durant is James, and the two future Hall of Famers will face off on Christmas Day in a primetime showdown between the Rockets and Los Angeles Lakers. Houston (52-30) and Los Angeles (50-32) finished as the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds in last season's Western Conference standings, and both teams are hopeful of more growth in 2025-26 amid the first full season of Luka Doncic with the Lakers and Durant's recent arrival in Houston. More: HoopsHype rankings: Rockets star Amen Thompson at No. 7 among NBA shooting guards
Miami Herald
10 minutes ago
- Miami Herald
Dru Smith on ‘great trajectory,' hopes to be ready for Heat camp after new deal
There have already been a few unfortunate setbacks in guard Dru Smith's career, but he knows how fortunate he is to be in his current position. After sustaining a season-ending torn Achilles tendon in December, the Miami Heat still kept him around on a two-way contract for the remainder of last season despite there being no salary cap penalty for swapping him out for a healthy player. Smith then became a restricted free agent this summer and continued to rehab with the Heat this offseason, but he wasn't eligible to return to Miami on a two-way contract because of NBA rules. So the Heat instead brought back Smith on a standard contract Saturday just one day after shedding forward Haywood Highsmith's expiring $5.6 million salary in a trade with the Brooklyn Nets to create enough room under the luxury tax to re-sign Smith. Smith's new deal — the second standard NBA contract of his career — is worth $7.9 million over three years, with his first-year salary of $2.4 million fully guaranteed and the second and third years of the deal including conditional guarantees. 'It was obviously a little stressful and things like that,' Smith, 27, said Wednesday during a phone interview. 'I think any time, whenever you have nothing signed and nothing set in stone, I think it's just a little worrisome. But overall I think we love this organization and we're just excited to be able to be back and be a part of this.' Smith's new contract is further evidence of the Heat's belief in him, as he has been a part of the Heat's developmental program since he went undrafted out of Missouri in 2021. He has spent at least part of his first three NBA seasons with the Heat and is now on track to begin his fourth NBA season with Miami. 'I'm extremely appreciative of an organization that believes in me the way that they have up to this point,' said Smith, who has been waived by the Heat four different times before Miami has brought him back each time. 'But also I think, obviously, this hasn't been easy. There have been a lot of days where I've questioned whether this is what I'm supposed to be doing. I have amazing people around me.' Smith has spent much of the last two years rehabbing from significant setbacks, as he also sustained a knee injury in November 2023 that cut his 2023-24 season short before returning and then suffering a season-ending Achilles injury last December. But Smith hopes and expects to be ready for the start of training camp. He has already begun to take part in some contact work and is on track to begin participating in full five-on five action in the coming weeks. 'Honestly, it's all been going really well,' said Smith, with the Heat set to open training camp in six weeks on Sept. 30 at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. 'I feel like I've been on a great trajectory as far as the rehab stuff goes. I've started to do some contact stuff now. I haven't jumped fully back into five on five. I would say probably here in the next few weeks or so. I think it's all just basically going to be how I respond to the more and more live sessions that I get in. 'I think the goal, obviously, is to be ready by camp. And I think that as of right now, with no setback, that's kind of what we're looking at.' Smith also hopes he can pick up where he left off just before he tore his Achilles eight months ago, as he had become an important part of the Heat's bench rotation last season before going down with a non-contact Achilles injury. Smith logged double-digit minutes in eight straight games before tearing his Achilles, establishing himself as a reliable and solid offensive option while also turning into a standout point-of-attack perimeter defender. In addition, he played the entire fourth quarter in five of the seven games leading up to his injury. 'I think more than anything what I learned is, obviously, that I can play at this level,' Smith said, looking back at that impressive stretch. 'For a full season, I really do believe I can help a team win games.' Smith averaged 6.2 points, 2.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.5 steals per appearance while shooting 50.8% from the field and 53.3% from three-point range in 14 games (one start) for the Heat last season before being sidelined with the season-ending injury. 'I don't really see why not,' Smith said when asked whether he believes he'll be able to get back to his pre-injury form. 'I wouldn't say this has necessarily been any worse of a rehab than the ACL or anything like that. I think [Heat senior director of rehabilitation] Jeff [Ruiz], who I work with every day, I think he's done an incredible job. 'I don't see any reason why I can't get back to being myself. The few times that I have been on the floor, I feel really good. I feel like I'm moving well.' But as part of a Heat roster loaded with guards, finding consistent playing time won't be easy for Smith. Tyler Herro, Norman Powell and Davion Mitchell are all expected to be ahead of Smith on the depth start to begin this upcoming season, and the Heat also used its first-round pick to draft guard Kasparas Jakucionis in June, is relying on guard Pelle Larsson to take on a bigger role in his second NBA season and still has Terry Rozier on its roster. Smith is up for the challenge, though. He has proven that during his winding and oftentimes difficult NBA journey. 'Honestly, the biggest challenge from this rehab specifically was just the mental part of it,' he said. 'Just really having to lean in on my faith and things like that and just understand for whatever reason, this is where my story was supposed to go. So just continuing to attack with a positive attitude. I think that was probably the toughest part because there are definitely days in there where it just seems like I've been rehabbing for two years at this point.' The Heat is expected to consider guard Jahmir Young for an Exhibit 10 contract, which essentially represents an invite to training camp and provides a financial incentive for that player to join the organization's G League affiliate. But a deal has not been signed yet, according to league sources. Young (6-foot-1 and 185 pounds), who closed last season on a two-way contract with the Chicago Bulls, went undrafted out of Maryland in 2024. He averaged 21.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, seven assists and 1.9 steals per game while shooting 46.8 percent from the field and 30.4 percent from three-point range in 43 G League appearances last season. NBA teams are allowed to carry up to 21 players during the offseason and preseason (including up to three two-way contract players). Not including Young since he hasn't signed a deal yet, the Heat's preseason roster currently includes 17 players signed to contracts (including two-way contracts and Exhibit 10 deals).
NBC News
11 minutes ago
- NBC News
Jake Paul to face lightweight boxing champion Gervonta Davis on Nov. 14
Jake Paul will face Gervonta "Tank" Davis in a boxing match on Nov. 14 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Netflix announced Wednesday. The bout is expected to be the biggest test to date for Paul, a social media star with 28 million followers on Instagram and 21 million followers on YouTube. Paul (12-1) became a professional boxer in January 2020 and has impressed despite limited experience in the ring. He has faced criticism for his competition, however. Most of his opponents have been nonboxers — a former NBA Slam Dunk champion in Nate Robinson, and MMA fighters like Anderson Silva, Tyron Woodley, Ben Askren and Mike Perry. He beat a 59-year-old Mike Tyson, and his lone loss came to boxer Tommy Fury, the half-brother of former heavyweight champion Tyson Fury. Paul, 28, is coming off a unanimous decision against former WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in June. Davis is without question Paul's most heralded opponent. The 30-year-old WBA lightweight champion is one of the sport's top talents, amassing a 30-0-1 record. Though he stands just 5-foot-5, Davis is known for his vicious punching power and has 28 knockouts in his career. He most recently retained his belt with a majority decision draw against Lamond Roach Jr. in March. Davis' boxing career was in jeopardy after he was arrested on July 11 in an alleged domestic dispute with his ex-girlfriend. According to the Miami-Dade County Clerk's Office, a misdemeanor battery charge against Davis was dropped. Paul vs. Davis is the latest boxing match promoted by Netflix as it gets more involved in live sports. Paul's bout with Tyson last November, for example, peaked at 65 million streams, according to the streaming service. Netflix is also promoting Terence Crawford vs. Canelo Alvarez on Sept. 13, and has WWE Raw and multiple NFL games on Christmas Day. Not everyone in the boxing world is happy Paul vs. Davis is happening. Ryan Garcia, a former WBC interim lightweight champion who lost to Davis in 2023, wrote on social media that "boxing is officially the WWE … integrity of the sport is getting ruined every day."
