Which Panini products will stand the test of time?

[MJ23Collector]

Everybody knows that over time, some products lose their appeal and others stay attractive and it's not always easy to tell in which category each one is going to end up. Clearly this also depends on future actions by the producing company which needs to take care of their brands.

I would be surprised if in 20 years more than 3 or 4 products made the relevant list. I have never been and probably will never be a specialist in Panini products but here are my favorites for the in-list:

1. NT mainly because it is the favorite for top RPAs

2. Prizm because of the popularity of the first years releases, but Panini needs to take better care of the brand in future

3. Flawless: quality on-card autos and popular RPAs

[Deadshot]

I think this is a pretty good list. You might add Hoops as well. They need a flagship, low-end base set. That used to be the set called Panini, but for whatever reason that didn't take off. Hoops seems to have taken that role since.

[ballhawkdawk]

I think certain parallels or subsets / insert sets will hold up, even from ‘lesser’ products. For example, Impeccable as a product isn’t up there with NT or Flawless, but a lot of the autos of the bigger names go for $$$.

Revolution seems to have slipped a bit in terms of hobby standing, but I think it’ll hold up well over time. It’s a quality release every year, six years running, and it fills a niche with no real overlap from other products.

[YeahBuddy]

Agree with revolution, but sticker autos probably hurt it some this year.

Optic ... usually a bit cleaner look then the robotic design Prizm stuff.

Hoops and Donruss for low end as there is a lot of love for Rated Rookie logo.

A bit of a different question and perhaps more fun, which releases arent that all popular now but think the future may look better on. Perhaps something like Noir, Court Kings, Origins.

[GeechQuest]

Originally Posted by ballhawkdawk

I think certain parallels or subsets / insert sets will hold up, even from ‘lesser’ products.

This is my thinking as well.

You see stuff like “Playmakers Theatre” holding up, and most people couldn’t tell you it came from 1998 Fleer Tradition.

You see the PMGs and Credentials of the world actually boosting the set they came out of, as opposed to the set boosting the inserts/parallels.

So to answer your question OP, I think it depends. I could easily see something like Prizm losing some of it’s appeal as Optic/Select cut into the chromium market share.

I think the products that will hold up over time will be the products that contain the insert/parallel set chases that define the Panini era. I’d much rather be holding a box of 1997 Metal Universe than 1997 Topps Chrome, and similarly I’d much rather be holding a box of 2019 Spectra (that contains a Color Blast) over 2019 Prizm even though I realize Prizm is the bigger “brand”.

[KhalDrogo]

Prizm
Optic
Select
NT
Flawless
One and One
Revolution

Like others have said, certain inserts from other sets will do well (Kaboom, etc), and some of the parallels/inserts from these sets won’t.

[bjho852]

No love for Court Kings?
Similar to Revolution, however, sticker autographs will hurt the product some more this season, as there seems to be more of these than in its previous season counterparts.

[bjho852]

Originally Posted by GeechQuest

This is my thinking as well.

You see stuff like “Playmakers Theatre” holding up, and most people couldn’t tell you it came from 1998 Fleer Tradition.

You see the PMGs and Credentials of the world actually boosting the set they came out of, as opposed to the set boosting the inserts/parallels.

So to answer your question OP, I think it depends. I could easily see something like Prizm losing some of it’s appeal as Optic/Select cut into the chromium market share.

I think the products that will hold up over time will be the products that contain the insert/parallel set chases that define the Panini era. I’d much rather be holding a box of 1997 Metal Universe than 1997 Topps Chrome, and similarly I’d much rather be holding a box of 2019 Spectra (that contains a Color Blast) over 2019 Prizm even though I realize Prizm is the bigger “brand”.

To some degree at least, it is my thinking too.

[bmf]

Originally Posted by MJ23Collector

1. NT mainly because it is the favorite for top RPAs

2. Prizm because of the popularity of the first years releases, but Panini needs to take better care of the brand in future

3. Flawless: quality on-card autos and popular RPAs

Agree with this but you need to add Immaculate. It's the closest in design to Exquisite (most iconic brand ever) and one of the earliest premium brands for Panini ... came out same year as Flawless. Optic would be #5 on the list.

[Akphillips86]

Originally Posted by KhalDrogo

Prizm
Optic
Select
NT
Flawless
One and One
Revolution

Like others have said, certain inserts from other sets will do well (Kaboom, etc), and some of the parallels/inserts from these sets won’t.

All the above plus rare inserts from Court Kings. I think Revolution serial #’d parallels are going to get some serious love down the road, but it’s just a gut feeling.


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[Deadshot]

Court Kings has been bad since at least 2018. They got rid of rookie nameplates, they got rid of game-dated materials, and the majority of the autograph sets became stickers.

[Dame]

Revolution also gets my vote, that design will scream nostalgia in another decade. Galactics will go down as one of the most sought after Panini parallel IMO and naturally will carry the other numbered SP stuff like Futura, Lava etc.

I also like Immaculate, especially their quad and triple autographs.

[sebreg]

I like the thought exercise. Will guess 09 being a key rc class will help float more products from that year (I particularly like Court Kings, but that is more personal preference than some belief it is some unbelievable key product. I do like that all the cards are #d. Sticker autos though big thumbs down).

Otherwise, 2012 prizm hands down. Hoping One and One makes a good run (best version of the Downtown inserts imo). Love 16 optic. Revolution has some of the best parallels, the Galactics should help keep that product relevant. I am generally not a fan at all of the bland higher end NT style products but they will def remain relevant as well. Rarer variants in the Select products might be a sleeper. Crown Royale is iffy base-wise but the Kaboom inserts are nice, especially from certain years. Question on those is will Panini run them into the ground and water down the insert in collectors' eyes (I know they have already ruined that insert line for some collectors).

A personal favorite, Noir. Not sure if it ever really gets major traction, but often some very lovely designed cards, all #d.

[flashinitup]

I think there will only be a few key, core, staple brands:

-Prizm, Optic, NT, Flawless, One and One


Everything else is becoming hit or miss on a yearly basis. Select is becoming watered down with all of these additional parallels and retail. Revolution has added a bunch of junk that no one wants and sticker autos (hopefully was only a case of it being during COVID and will go back to normal next year), Immaculate is becoming "high-end" sticker auto junk.

With that said, I think with so many releases every year, there will just be an increasingly narrower focus, on individual cards/inserts within some of these increasingly saturated sets:

-Revolution Galactics
-Court Kings Blank Slate
-Crowne Royale Silhouettes Prime
-Kabooms
-Downtowns
-Select Courtsides
-Impeccable On Card Autos
-Donruss Next Day Autos
-NBA Hoops Art Signatures

And so on......All of these in addition to the staple Golds/Mojos/Dragons/Nebulas/Blacks/Black Golds from Prizm and Optic

What Panini does do a really good job on is give some incredible inserts from time to time, sometimes hidden in different releases. 19-20 Optic Splash, Rainmakers, My House, Star Gazing, T-Minus 123 could all be all-time classics. There is always something new out there to go after and that keeps people always engaged, even if the majority of the products they are pumping out, overall are weaker and weaker.

[ninjacookies]

HPS Pulsar.


You're welcome.

[dunkindutchmen]

Hoops Premium Pulsars. They will be one of the more desired cards in a few years.

[Litwing]

NT: RPA as exquisite

Prizm: Chrome of NBA

Immaculate: Beautiful design

[Tallboy]

Originally Posted by Dame

Revolution also gets my vote, that design will scream nostalgia in another decade. Galactics will go down as one of the most sought after Panini parallel IMO and naturally will carry the other numbered SP stuff like Futura, Lava etc.

Interesting perspective.

Coming back in in 2020 I did (and do) feel that Revolution was one of the brands that stood out as having a passionate following that would grow over time, and the Galactics in particular represent an iconic insert.

On the other hand: Have you seen a "screaming nostalgia" from '90s era Revolution in football? I don't follow the football market any more and I realize at a certain level they aren't necessarily connected, but I do think Revolution's always had a '90s nostalgia thing going to me, but I don't get the impression that the OG Revolution's been benefitting from this sort of thing.

(By a similar token, has there been any specific nostalgia market for '90s Pacific Prism(s)?)

[Tallboy]

Originally Posted by sebreg

I like the thought exercise. Will guess 09 being a key rc class will help float more products from that year (I particularly like Court Kings, but that is more personal preference than some belief it is some unbelievable key product. I do like that all the cards are #d. Sticker autos though big thumbs down).

Otherwise, 2012 prizm hands down. Hoping One and One makes a good run (best version of the Downtown inserts imo). Love 16 optic. Revolution has some of the best parallels, the Galactics should help keep that product relevant. I am generally not a fan at all of the bland higher end NT style products but they will def remain relevant as well. Rarer variants in the Select products might be a sleeper. Crown Royale is iffy base-wise but the Kaboom inserts are nice, especially from certain years. Question on those is will Panini run them into the ground and water down the insert in collectors' eyes (I know they have already ruined that insert line for some collectors).

A personal favorite, Noir. Not sure if it ever really gets major traction, but often some very lovely designed cards, all #d.

It's interesting. I think the rookies of '09 have helped the brands for whom '09 was their swan song, but other than NT, I'm not sure if we're going to see something like that from Panini's other products because the gaps most of them have had.

That doesn't mean that, say, Court Kings can't become an iconic program whose stature grows over time, but I feel like it will be more about the brand itself rather than its association with a key rookie year.

As I say that, when we look at post-Topps era basketball years that could be iconic due to rookies, '18-19 is one of the likeliest possibilities, and I kinda think Court Kings stuck the landing by moving their rookie portraits from insert to Rookie I. Luka's (and Zion's) Court Kings Rookie I's stack up pretty dang well compared to other non-high end stuff.

I like Noir a lot too and I see some signs it could grew into a particularly strong brand, but other red flags. I think Panini surrounding Noir with Obsidian, Black, and quite possibly Prizm Black, dilutes the potency of Noir to stand out relative to rivals.

[Tallboy]

Originally Posted by Deadshot

I think this is a pretty good list. You might add Hoops as well. They need a flagship, low-end base set. That used to be the set called Panini, but for whatever reason that didn't take off. Hoops seems to have taken that role since.

I'm curious if the consensus among basketball collectors that Hoops owns that title rather than Donruss.

In football, just lurking on the board over there, it seems like Score isn't as appreciated as Donruss (due to Score not having pro jerseys) which kinda bummed me out.

As a '90s collector, I suppose I have a bias to brands that have a longer history in the sport in question, so that makes me feel warmer toward Hoops (and Score) even aside from the fact that I generally prefer Hoops' photography and action focus.

[GoSportsball]

I love Select. Hands down my favorite Panini product. Tie dye parallels are my jam.

[51CardDeck]

Select, once they start introducing XRC's like in football.

[dream34]

Hoops Premium:

Chrome of longest running Panini Basketball brand (only Panini acquiring Fleer or Topps could top this)

Updated in game photos for RCs and Vets

[yaoming]

Exquisites!
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Ok kidding.
I d guess Flawless .


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[GeechQuest]

Lots of love for the Hoops Premium set and here I am thinking it’s one of the absolute worst sets Panini had ever produced. I’ll die alone on this hill I guess.