I was looking over some data and saw that Victor Wembanyama officially owns the most graded cad among all active NBA players (43,400 of his '23 base rookie have been graded, thank you @gemrate).

And it got me thinking... by this time next year, how many base RCs of Caitlin Clark will have been graded? Will she have the most graded WNBA card of all time in only her 2nd year?

10,428 of her Panini Instant Draft Night cards have already been graded, and more than 45,000 were made. I'm guessing 20,000 graded by this time next year...

And as for her base RC? Fewer than 1000 of her base Prizm #22 have been graded so far.

What do you think?

I was inspired by reading that @Celticsupercollector has a graded card and auto of Guerschon Yabusele as part of his Celtics Player PC (which is very much not a random PC, but stay with me here).

It got me thinking- there have to be plenty of very random PCs tied to this group of passionate collectors. Do you collect a certain player that had a not-too-stellar career? A strange item of memorabilia? Autographs of, say, Jim Nantz (sorry @EPonMantel)?

Let's hear what the strangest thing is in your PC.

And as always, no judgement.

You might have seen this today in Mail Day, but I wanted to share in a post here too. This is what I have my eye on right now. Who's with me?

Four things I’m buying

1. Capri Sun Moon Punch ($???) - This will never be my favorite “glow in the dark thing of the last 10 years” – Allen & Ginter’s “Where Monsters Live” will forever be No. 1. And I cannot figure out when these go on sale, how much they will cost, or even what the “cherry” flavor tastes like (eds note: likely cherry). Frustrating? No. This all adds up to a classic “there will be a rush to get these,” like the McDonald’s retro glasses and Don Julio x Popeyes combo. All we know so far is there was a Snapchat promo and the brilliant twist is that it’s not just one glow in the dark full moon on each pouch – they made different stages that glow.

2. J.J. McCarthy rookie cards ($40-200) – I think the Vikings are telling us something by not signing any QBs (yet). They seem to have a lot of faith in McCarthy, who has never played a regular season snap BUT has Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, TJ Hockenson, Aaron Jones, and Jordan Mason to throw passes to. Really, you could kind of throw anyone in there at QB and guarantee 250 yards and 2 TDs as a floor. 

McCarthy’s card prices, though, feel a little muted. And look, I’m not even a fan of McCarthy – his sycophant fanboys are too loud/annoying on X and I don’t care about Michigan football – but I can buy these cards relatively cheap and likely flip them around Week 5 or 6 when McCarthy is on fire.

3. Molly Miller Star Wars autographed cards ($1-5) – The coach of Grand Canyon University, Molly Miller, is probably going to go from “kind of instagram famous” to “Barstool famous” by the middle of next week – this is a really good team with offensive firepower, and Miller is not camera shy.

Leaf usually steps up in these situations and I was astonished they didn’t have autographed cards of Miller ready to go. YET. In my searching for anything Miller memorabilia, though, I found these autographed Star Wars cards of a completely different Molly Miller – a stuntwoman/actress who often does work for child actors (she’s 4’4”). It’s random enough for me! Our collections really should be more like a series of mementos than JJ McCarthy flip factories – I’ll find this card in a tub in 2033 and remember the time I suggested people buy a dual sweater relic!

4. Rick Pitino autographed Leaf Metal card ($39.99) –  SPEAKING OF LEAF! My impressionable years were spent watching the legendary coaches of the Big East be crazy sideline characters. And now we can buy a Pitino autographed Leaf card for $40. The hype level is high with his return to Providence for the first round of March Madness and his possible matchup against John Calipari (which gives off Golden Age Big East vibes) in the second round. Pitino autographed cards are few and far between (Fleer had one in 2001, for instance, that’s selling for $75) so $40 might not be the worst price to pay to get in on the Pitino market. 

While doing some 'research' for tomorrow's newsletter, I stumbled upon Opendorse, which appears to be an NIL/athlete version of Cameo. That got me thinking- could we sponsor a college athlete and have them shout-out Mantel and our newsletter?

Should we pick someone poised for a long run in March, like Terps post-player Amari DeBerry? Or should we sponsor an athlete from a more obscure sport, like flag football's Tatiana Dos Santos?

Take a look at the website and let us know in the comments below.