Demand for Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese, A'Ja Wilson, Paige Bueckers WNBA cards continues to grow
The WNBA season is underway, and fans and card collectors are excited for what's to come. With the likes of Caitlin Clark, A'Ja Wilson and newcomer Paige Bueckers, collectors are waiting for the first cards of the season to drop.
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.
Advertisement
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.'
This season, collectors won't have to wait as long for the first WNBA card product.
Advertisement
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 andit 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.
Advertisement
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.
Last year saw the release of Panini Prizm (and the Monopoly version), Origins and Select. Previously, Panini also put out Revolutions.
Advertisement
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 women's college tournament, right into the WNBA Draft and then the start of the WNBA season.
Advertisement
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
Senator Wants an Apology From Angel Reese, Caitlin Clark, and the WNBA Over False Racism Accusations Against Fans
Senator Jim Banks from Indiana is demanding that the WNBA, Caitlin Clark, and the Indiana Fever apologize to fans following an investigation that found no evidence of racial remarks directed at Chicago Sky player Angel Reese during a game last month. The league embarrassed itself, spending two weeks investigating alleged racist comments from the Fever faithful following an in-game skirmish between Caitlin Clark and Reese. Advertisement All parties involved helped lend credence to the allegations, despite there being no evidence to support them. 'We have investigated the report of racist fan behavior in the vicinity of the court during the May 17, 2025, Chicago Sky at Indiana Fever game,' the league sheepishly admitted after a thorough review. 'Based on information gathered to date, including from relevant fans, team, and arena staff, as well as audio and video review of the game, we have not substantiated it.' They were never going to substantiate something that clearly didn't happen. And everyone with a working set of eyes knew that it never happened. Will We Hear Any Apologies? Senator Banks, during an appearance on OutKick's 'Don't @ Me with Dan Dakich,' initially addressed Reese's role in the 'racism' investigation, though he contends there is a zero percent chance she'll issue an apology. Advertisement Following the initial announcement of the investigation, Angel Reese spoke about the completely fabricated charges of racist behavior by the fans. 'Obviously, there's no place in this league for that,' she said. 'I think the WNBA and our team and our organization has done a great job supporting me. … Going through this whole process, if it can happen to me, it can happen to anyone.' Turns out, it didn't happen to her. '(Reese) accused the Indiana Fever fan base of being racists. They investigated it. They said those accusations were false. The least that she could do is apologize to our great state and the fans that show up at these games and say, 'I'm sorry, I was wrong,'' Banks contends. Advertisement 'Obviously, she's not going to do that.' RELATED: Dave Portnoy Tears Into the WNBA Over 'Caitlin Clark' Investigation: 'Fans Deserve Better' Caitlin Clark and the WNBA Too Of course, Reese isn't going to do that. It would kill her obvious obsession with playing the victim in her one-sided rivalry with Clark. Banks didn't spare the Fever or their golden goose, Caitlin Clark, either. 'Those are awful accusations. They weren't true. The fans weren't shouting racial slurs towards Angel Reese or opposing players. I mean, where is Caitlin Clark? Where is the Indiana Fever?' he continued. Where is the WNBA saying that that investigation – there shouldn't have been an investigation.' Advertisement 'The allegations were false. Where's the apology? It's disappointing.' Clark, you would think, would have a vested interest in issuing a statement, since these were her fans who were smeared. And she helped push the narrative and expressed hope that the WNBA would find something. 'There's no place for that in our game, there's no place for that in society,' Clark said when the investigation was launched. 'Certainly, we want every person who comes into our arena — whether player or fan — to have a great experience.' 'Hopefully, the investigation — we'll leave that up to them to find anything and take the proper action if so,' she said. Advertisement They found nothing. The fans were falsely accused. And nobody is stepping up to tell them, 'We're sorry.' Shame on everyone involved. Also Read:: Angel Reese Doesn't Address WNBA Investigation After It Failed to Find Evidence of Fan 'Racism' Related Headlines
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
WNBA Ratings Are in Following Caitlin Clark's Injury, and Hoo Boy
Caitlin Clark's absence due to a strained left quad has had a significant impact on WNBA television ratings. We knew it would. To what degree was the only question. That question has now been answered. And if there were ever a sign for the league to get into gear and start protecting and promoting their most popular player, it is this. Advertisement Nationally televised viewership has dropped by 55% since her injury, according to an analysis by USA Today. The Indiana Fever's national TV games have seen a 53% decline, averaging 1.81 million viewers before the injury and 847,000 since. While an overly simplistic calculation, Clark's presence, or the lack thereof at the moment, is worth over half the value of the league and her franchise in terms of television ratings. Wow! Caitlin Clark Right Now IS the WNBA Caitlin Clark, now in her sophomore season after a Rookie of the Year campaign, has only played four games thus far, averaging 19 points, 9.3 assists, and 6.0 rebounds, including a triple-double in the season opener. Advertisement The Fever, with a 4-5 record, is cautiously managing Clark's recovery, with her next possible game against the New York Liberty on June 14. Clark's absence highlights her significant impact on the league, affecting both viewership and team performance. Which makes it utterly baffling that the WNBA earlier this season tried to smear her fans with false allegations of racism by launching a faux investigation. That investigation yielded no evidence of any untoward behavior by the Fever fans, but it allowed critics to paint them with a broad brush as being obnoxious for a couple of weeks. Scaring off Clark's fans is bad business. These ratings are more proof of that. Advertisement RELATED: Senator Wants an Apology From Angel Reese, Caitlin Clark, and the WNBA Over False Racism Accusations Against Fans A Legend Sees Her Greatness WNBA legend Lisa Leslie, a former Los Angeles Sparks superstar, spoke to Sports Illustrated recently about Clark's influence and praised the Fever guard for her transformative impact on the league. Leslie highlighted Clark's ability to draw massive fan interest, noting that games are sold out and some teams have moved to larger arenas to accommodate demand. 'It's going to be exciting, so I'm sure fans will tune in. Everything's already sold out,' she said of the current season's expectations. 'And some teams, when Caitlin comes to town, they've already had to get into larger arenas.' Advertisement 'So all of those things about the Caitlin Clark effect are true.' The ratings back that up. Fortunately, her injury is only expected to keep her out for two weeks, with her return anticipated very soon. The way opposing players go after her should certainly make WNBA officials a bit nervous going forward. Also Read:: WNBA's Bright Future: Lisa Leslie Credits Caitlin Clark for League's Growth, Touts Her 'Amazing Impact' Related Headlines


San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Valkyries sign Aerial Powers for the season, replacing EuroBasket-bound Julie Vanloo
With point guard Julie Vanloo departing for EuroBasket, the Golden State Valkyries signed veteran guard Aerial Powers to a contract for the rest of the season on Tuesday. The fifth pick in the 2016 draft out of Michigan State, Powers has averaged 10.5 points and 3.3 rebounds per game while shooting 39.7% from the field over her nine-year WNBA career. Named to the all-rookie team with Dallas in 2016, the 5-foot-11 guard helped the Washington Mystics win a WNBA title in 2019. She averaged 8.6 points in 17 games with Atlanta last season. Injuries have dogged Powers over the course of her career. In 2020 she sustained a season-ending hamstring injury, then tore the UCL in her right thumb in 2021. She sprained her ankle in 2023, which limited her playing time late in the season, and then she missed the final stretch of last season with a calf injury. A strong rebounding guard and a career 33.6% shooter from 3-point distance, Powers will be a veteran presence off the bench. Powers is the second player to sign with the Valkyries this week. They brought back forward Laeticia Amihere, who was on the preseason roster, to replace Kyara Linskens. They are expected to sign at least one more player this week when center Temi Fagbenle and forward Janelle Salaün leave for EuroBasket. Travel woes: The Valkyries have a traveling issue. Through nine games, the Valkyries lead the WNBA with 18 travels. Seven of those came in last week's loss to Phoenix, when they blew a late eight-point lead. While turnovers have plagued the Valkyries overall — 16.8 per game, second in the WNBA — these aren't the communication-based miscues one might expect from an expansion team. Head coach Natalie Nakase thinks some of those calls shouldn't have happened at all. 'I brought it up with the league,' she said. 'We're all trying to be better. Last game, it was two to zero. We got two travels, and Vegas got zero. But I told the league, those are big possessions. They're taking away seven more possessions than us (in Phoenix). I think it has to be fair in terms of how many are called and timely calls; sometimes they're just called at the very end of the game. It was the Minnesota game, we're trying to come back, and they're calling to travel once we just made two 3s. So, it's like, is that really the time?' Guard Kate Martin noted, 'They said that at the beginning of the year, when we had our first ref meeting, to be aware that they're gonna call more travels. But it's just us having to be a little more patient and getting our feet down.' That still doesn't account for why the Valkyries have struggled with this more than other teams. The good news? They didn't get called for traveling on Monday against the Sparks. Amihere on call: Amihere said on Monday that she had been told she might be back with the Valkyries during EuroBasket and spent the past few weeks preparing for the possibility in her hometown of Toronto. She joined the team in Los Angeles on Sunday evening after signing a rest-of-season contract. She didn't see any minutes in Monday's win in Los Angeles, but with three frontcourt players departing the team in the coming days, Amihere should be in the mix for playing time. 'I'm not going to lie and say this process was easy,' Amihere said. 'I'm on the team, so I'm kind of letting the past be the past and working on the future now. … The easiest thing for me to do is come in and bring a defensive intensity, rebound the ball, not mess up what they have going on.'