Basketball Cards
1940s
Click on images to enlarge
Images are all from the Retro Baloncesto collection and are ascending by year. The rarity scale (for cards) is based on graded POP reports, online exemplars, past listings, available sales history and is subject to change.
Including postcards, trade cards, stamps, flannels, felts & silks
HUGHES FROZEN CONFECTIONS BENNIE BORGMANN (F66) (U.S.A.)
Although this is a baseball card, it's the earliest card that features Basketball Hall of Famer Bennie Borgmann, often regarded as the best offensive player of his era. He spent most of his time with the Kingston Colonials and the Original Celtics, leading various leagues in scoring 15 times in a 12-year span. He frequently tallied 10 or more points in an era when most teams rarely scored more than 30 points per game. He also served as the first coach of the Syracuse Nationals of the NBL (now NBA's Philadelphia 76ers) and was part of the inaugural inductees to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1961.
Bennie also played as a middle infielder in the baseball minor leagues from 1928 to 1942. This rare Hughes card shows him during that time with the Sacramento Solons. The entire 20 card (unnumbered) set features only players from the Solons, as it's a regional issue. Hughes frozen confections was an ice cream company and distributed these cards with their treats, therefore they are often found in poor condition with considerable staining. There are 2 versions of the back of the cards. One has the Solons 1940 schedule with Hughes name as the sponsor, the other one is blank. The cards are cataloged as F66 cards in the American Card Catalog by Jefferson Burdick.
Measurement: 2" x 3"
1940
WALT DISNEY COMICS R161 PANCHITO PLAYS BASKET BALL (U.S.A.)
There were 32 R161 Cards in the Walt Disney Comics set. They featured various Disney characters, with a lot of them playing sports. Panchito Plays Basket Ball is the only Basketball themed card in the set.
Measurement: 2.75" x 2.25"
early 1940s
POSTCARD FRENCH GENERAL COMMISION FOR GENERAL EDUCTION & SPORTS RENE PELLOS
1940
TSUCHIURA NAVAL AIR CADETS PLAYING BASKETBALL POSTCARD (JAPAN)
The image on this Japanese postcard dates October 9th, 1942. It was taken at the Tsuchiura Naval Air Corps, which was a significant training base for the imperial Japanese Navy Air Service. Basketball had been introduced to Japan via the YMCA as early as 1908 or, as recent research suggests, in girls' schools as early as 1902. Basketball was not widely popular in mainland Japan, as it was considered a Western import, and sports in general were heavily restricted during the war. However, basketball was highly significant within certain Japanese American communities during this time, particularly in internment camps and military bases. The postcard is numbered Yokosu No. 27, 104/2
Measurements: 3.5" 5.5"
1942
AGUILA COLECCIÓN, CULTURAS Y DEPORTES, SERIE 7, NO. 276 BASKET-BALL (URUGUAY)
Aguila Chocolates released the Culturas Y Deportes (Cultures & Sports) cards in 7 series for a total of 300 cards. This was the only basketball card and it was included in the 7th series of the set. These cards were meant to be glued into the accompanying Aguila Coleccion album and I assume they were distributed in packages of their chocolate.
Measurement: 1.25" x 1.75"
1944
ESQUIRE GREAT MOMENTS IN SPORTS ESKY CARD SET #14, CARD #2 HANK LUISETTI (U.S.A.)
The Esky Cards were sets of numbered jumbo postcards released in packs (pictured here) by Esquire Magazine in 1945. This #2 Hank Luisetti card was the only basketball card in their "Great Moments in Sports" set #14, which also notably included a Bobby Jones golf card. The image on the card is from the painting "Luisetti Scores Again" by James Bingham, which features Luisetti playing in a game at Madison Square Garden in 1936. The painting was also featured in Esquire Magazine in 1944. There are only a couple graded examples of this card.
Measurements: 4.5" x 7"
1945
FLECHAS Y PELAYOS SELLOS EDUCATIVOS SERIE D ESCENAS DEPORTIVAS NO 3 BALONCESTO (SPAIN)
Flechas y Pelayos “Arrows and Pelayos” was a Spanish magazine of the Frente de Juventudes, a national delegation of the youth front under the dictatorship of General Franco. It began publication in 1937 to indoctrinate youth organizations of the Flange (fascista), known as Flechas (arrows), of the Carlista party, known as Pelayos (to honor Don Pelayo). In late 1945 and early 1946, the magazine printed panels of 6 cards of various themes and series to be hand-cut and collected. There were 6 series (A thru F) that had 24 cards in each. Both Series C and D featured a variety of sports, with this being the only example to feature basketball.
Measurements: 2.25” 2.5”
1945
LATE 1930s/EARLY 1940s POSTCARD FEATURING INTRAMURAL ATHLETISC AT CAMP BRECKINRIDGE IN MORGANFIELD, KENTUCKY
1945-46 POSTCARD FEATURING THE SENIOR BASKETBALL SQUAD AT BOY'S RANCH IN OLD TASCOSA, TEXAS
1940s
KELLOGG'S ALL-WHEAT SPORTS TIPS CARDS FC9-2 & FC9-3 (CANADA)
The Kellogg's All-Wheat Cards were released in 3 different sets in Canada in 1945-1947. Sports-Tips was one of the subsets and included various sports with images and instructions/tips on playing. There were a total of 7 Basketball cards, 2 in Set 2 & 5 in Set 3. Measurements: 1.75" x 2.5"
1946-1947
SPORTLANDIA ALBUM OLIMPICO NO. 2 RODOLFO BRASSELI BASKET-INTER (URUGUAY)
The 1947 Sportlandia Olimpico set was released in 3 separate albums, all featuring athletes that played in various Olympic events. This Rodolfo Brasseli card is from album number 2, the only basketball card that I know of in this album, although I've seen another basketball card that came from either album number 1 or 3. Rodolfo Braselli was a Uruguayan basketball player who represented his country in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, where Uruguay finished sixth out of 21 participating games.
Measurements: 1.375" x 1.625"
1947
CHICLES TABAY #A-43 BASKETBALL, ALBUM DEPORTIVO, REPORTAJES FOTOGRAFICAS (SPAIN)
Chicles Tabay was a Spanish Gum company and released this sports cards set from January 1948 through January 1949. They released 18 cards per month, the entire set consists of 234 cards, all depicting various sports. I believe this to be the only basketball card. There were 2 variations of the back, one with just an image of the pack of gum, the other with the image and text that included the name of the album.
Measurements: 1.25" x 1.875"
1948
TOPPS MAGIC PHOTOS - BASKETBALL THRILLS (U.S.A.)
The Topps Magic Photos set contained 252 cards broken into 19 different series, each designated by a different letter, and then numbered within that grouping. The front of these cards "magically" appeared when water was applied to them, and they got into the light, making each cards appearance vary slightly. There were a total of 11 basketball cards in the set, #1B - #6B & #1Q - #5Q. The DePaul Card (5Q) features George Mikan, an alternative rookie card to his 1948 Bowman true rookie card. Measurements: 0.875" x 1.5"
*Some Magic Photos seem slightly rarer than others. All are rare in high grade condition.
1948
BOWMAN BASKETBALL CARDS (U.S.A.)
The 1948 Bowman set was a milestone, as it was the first nationally distributed basketball card set. It consisted of 72 cards in two series of 36 cards apiece. 60 of the cards feature players, most notably (and most valuable) being #69, the George Mikan rookie card. The 12 other cards featured illustrations of different basketball plays. The 2nd series cards (37-72) are a bit tougher to find because of lower circulation. The cards in the set typically had blue or red backgrounds, although there are more scarce gray background variations, due likely from a printing error. Measurements: 2.125" x 2.5"
1948
CIGOGNA OLIMPIADI #19 PARTITA OLIMPICA PALLA CANESTRO ITALIA VS CANADA (ITALY)
It seems the general consensus is that these cards were manufactured by Cigogna, although I have also seen them attributed to Edizione VAV. There were 50 cards in the Olimpiadi set, all of which featured athletes and sports from the 1948 Olympic games in London. The cards are of standard cardboard stock and I've never seen an accompanying album, so they may have been meant to collect without one.
Measurements: 1.25" x 1.875"
1948
AMBOSIANA VS BOLOGNA HAND CUT CARD, UNKNOWN MAKER/UNCLASSIFIED (ITALY)
I’ve searched but am unable to find examples of cards from this set, so not sure of the publisher. I’ve dated it to 1948-49 because another card (jockey on horse) from the same set mentions the Grand Steeple Chase in Milan on April 25th, 1948. The art/photo style and font are similar to that of the 1949-50 Nannina Futbol set, so perhaps Nannina was the publisher but not definitive.
Measurements: 1.5" x 2"
1948-1949
EXHIBITS SUPPLY COMPANY SPORTS CHAMPIONS
Chicago's Exhibit Supply Company cards were meant to be sold in amusement parks and penny arcades. They were sold individually and not packaged with other cards, gum or tobacco, which was rather unusual. Exhibit Supply Co. (ESCO) released over 14,000 different cards between 1921 to the 1970s. This 1948 Sports Champions set consisted of 50 cards, 5 of which were basketball, including a "rookie" George Mikan card.
Measurements: 3.25" x 5.375"
1948-1949
EXHIBITS SUPPLY COMPANY SPORTS CHAMPIONS "SLICKS" GLOSSY PAPER DISPLAY VARIATION
"Slicks" are paper versions of the Exhibit Supply cards produced on “slick” glossy paper. They served as exact replicas (same dimensions) of the typically thick postcard-like cards and were designed to be affixed to headers on the front of exhibit vending/arcade machines. ESCO likely produced them because paper is more cost-effective and lighter than cardboard. When manufacturing and mailing tens of thousands of these each year, every penny saved matters. It's unknown if "slick" variations were made of every card but they are far more rare than the standard card stock issue.
Measurements: 3.25" x 5.375"
1948-1949
W.M. LOWNEY CRACKER JACK V410 SPORT YESTERDAY & TODAY (CANADA)
This card set featured sports early on (yesterday) and their modern play (today). The exact date of the set is in dispute but most agree it was released in the mid to late 1940s. The cards were released and distributed by Lowney's in Canada under the Cracker Jack candy name.
Measurements: 3" x 2.5"
1949
ALBUM FIGURITAS BICICLETA, CAMP DE BASQUET-BALL DISC CARDS (ARGENTINA)
I cannot find much information on this Argentinian album or the maker. Although this album primarily featured cyclists, it also included other sports, with a page dedicated to basketball that included 24 disc cards.
Measurements: 1.625" in diameter
1949-1950
GALLINA BLANCA SERIE 126 #1 BALONCESTO (SPAIN)
The Gallina Blanca set was very large with 792 cards, 3 of which were basketball. The cards were meant to be adhered to an accompanying album (2.0 Gallina Blanca), so they are more difficult to find without glue or residue.
Measurements: 1.5" x 2.125"
1949
NOS SPORTS FAVORIS LE BASKET-BALL POSTCARD (FRANCE)
1940s
