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The sports card hobby is experiencing a surge reminiscent of the late ’80s and early ’90s, and at the forefront of this modern boom is Victor Wembanyama. In 2024, Wembanyama dominated the grading landscape, with six of the top 10 most-graded cards attributed to his rookie season. His flagship card, the 2023 Prizm Rookie, has officially set a new benchmark in the hobby, becoming the highest PSA 10 population card of all time.
2023 Prizm Victor Wembanyama RC Base
This card has shattered previous records, with over 24,244 PSA 10s recorded to date. For comparison, this surpasses the likes of Luka Dončić, Zion Williamson, and even some of the hobby’s most iconic cards. In less than a year, Wembanyama’s rookie card has reached heights that few thought possible.
For collectors who remember the hobby before 2020, the rise of Wembanyama’s card feels eerily similar to the phenomenon surrounding Luka Dončić’s 2018 Prizm rookie card, which was the first modern card to reach 20,000 PSA 10s. At the time, it was an unprecedented milestone.
Now, Wembanyama’s Prizm rookie has left that mark in the dust. Joining the exclusive club of cards with 20,000+ PSA 10s, his card ranks alongside:
Other notable cards, like Fernando Tatís Jr.’s 2019 Topps rookie, are on the brink, with just under 20,000 PSA 10s.
Panini added to the Wembanyama hype by teaming up with Monopoly to create a special Prizm card set. The Monopoly edition features another Wembanyama rookie card, which has already surpassed 10,000 PSA 10s.
When combined with his base Prizm rookie card, the numbers are staggering:
These figures solidify Wembanyama’s dominance in the modern card market, but they also spark comparisons to the overproduction of the Junk Wax Era, when cards were printed—and graded—en masse.
For seasoned collectors, the explosion of Wembanyama’s rookie cards feels like a trip back to the Junk Wax Era, when millions of cards flooded the market and diluted long-term value. While modern grading adds an element of scarcity at the top end (via PSA 10s), the sheer volume of submissions raises questions about sustainability.
To put this into perspective, Ken Griffey Jr.’s 1989 Upper Deck rookie card—an emblem of the Junk Wax Era—remains the most-graded card of all time, with 116,000 total graded copies. His other rookies, the 1989 Topps Traded and 1989 Fleer, have 88,000 and 66,000 graded copies, respectively.
While Wembanyama’s Prizm rookie hasn’t reached those numbers yet, its rapid ascent suggests it might eventually challenge these records, depending on Panini’s production scale.
The unprecedented grading volume of Wembanyama’s rookie cards has already cemented his place in hobby history. However, the long-term value of these cards will depend on factors like player performance, production volume, and the grading market’s trajectory.
For now, his 2023 Prizm rookie card is both a record-setter and a cautionary tale, highlighting the fine line between modern collecting excitement and the pitfalls of overproduction. Whether it’s the beginning of a new Junk Wax Era or just a sign of Wembanyama’s immense popularity, one thing is clear: his rookie season has reshaped the grading landscape.
Victor Wembanyama has not only lived up to his on-court hype but also become the face of a new wave in sports card collecting. While his cards may not be rare in the traditional sense, their PSA 10 population speaks to their enduring appeal. For collectors, the excitement of owning a piece of history is undeniable—but as the numbers grow, so too do the questions about the future of the hobby.
Whether you see it as a golden age of collecting or the dawn of another Junk Wax Era, Wembanyama’s rookie card story is one for the ages.
