Cardfest Resumes! Day 14 Breaks

So now with Prizmpalooza done, it's time to get back to Cardfest as we're slowly but surely getting to the end (only 19 boxes left to go lol). So what are going to start with today? This

17-18 Donruss Basketball

 

3 Boxes of 17-18 Donruss Basketball. So this might take a while just because of the sheer number of cards per box (24 packs, 10 cards per pack). Donruss of course is a low end set, but there are some possible monster pulls. Next Day Rookie Autos bring in solid money and typically come 2 per case so maybe we'll get lucky and pull one here. There's also other autograph rookie goodness I can pull. Hoping for something decent!

Notable Rookies De'Aaron Fox(x5)
Frank Ntilikina (x5)
Malik Monk (x3)
Kyle Kuzma (x3)
Donovan Mitchell (x3)
Jayson Tatum (x3)
Lonzo Ball (x3)
Lauri Markkanen (x3)
Dennis Smith Jr. (x3)
Jonathan Isaac (x3)
Markelle Fultz (x3)
Josh Jackson (x3)

Retro Series
Norm Nixon
Bill Russell
Dave DeBusschere
Reggie Miller
Clyde Drexler
Glen Rice
John Stockton
Shaquille O'Neal
Dan Issel
Alonzo Mourning
Chauncey Billups


Retro Series Press Proof Silver
Dave Bing

All Clear For Takeoff
Zach LaVine
Aaron Gordon
Giannis Antetokounmpo
Larry Nance Jr.
Kevin Durant
DeMar Derozan


The Champ Is Here
Tim Duncan
David West
Dennis Rodman
Ray Allen (x2)
Kevin Durant
Peja Stojakovic

Rookie Kings
Caleb Swanigan
D.J. Wilson
Lonzo Ball
Josh Jackson
John Collins
T.J. Collins

Rookie Kings Silver Press Proof
Luke Kennard

Court Kings
Buddy Hield
Hassan Whiteside
Blake Griffin
James Harden
Russell Westbrook
Dennis Schroder
Dwyane Wade

Hall Kings
George Mikan
Reggie Miller
Mitch Richmond
Bill Russell
Larry Bird

Hall Kings Silver Press Proof
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar

The Rookies
Jayson Tatum
Markelle Fultz

All Stars
Giannis Antetokounmpo
LeBron James
John Wall
Jimmy Butler
Larry Bird
James Harden
Magic Johnson
Stephen Curry
Isaiah Thomas
Tim Duncan
Paul George

Swishful Thinking
Stephen Curry
James Harden
Isaiah Thomas

Silver Press Proofs
Al Horford (#31/299)
Tim Hardaway Jr. (#75/299)
Tim Hardaway Jr. (#215/299)
Joe Johnson (#100/299)
Joe Johnson (#272/299)


Purple Press Proofs
Isaiah Thomas (#105/199)
Buddy Hield (#160/199)
Lonzo Ball RC (#110/199)
Jimmy Butler (#177/199)


Red Lazer Holo
Karl Anthony Towns (#27/99)
Darren Collison (#27/99)

Blue Lazer Holo
LeBron James (#30/49)

Newly Crowned Jersey
Markelle Fultz

Swatch Kings
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson


Jersey Kings
Brandon Knight

Significant Signatures
Clint Capela

Rookie Materials Signature
Frank Mason III (#56/75)

Rookie Dominator Autographs Gold
T.J. Leaf (#4/10)

Overall Thoughts: I dunno..maybe I'm burnt out or just in a bad mood but I didn't enjoy this break at all. The hits were crap (of course I pull a low numbered auto and it's of T.J. Leaf) and as petty as it sounds, I only buy 3 boxes of this stuff and I pull duplicates of two of the players Press Proof cards?! Of course they are crap players on top of that but man Panini is absolute SHIT when it comes to collation. I guess the only bright spot is, if you buy a box of this you're guaranteed to pull all the major rookies. I got them in all 3 boxes. The Lebron numbered to 49 parallel is seriously the best card of the break which isn't good. Bleh..the Hobby portion of  this break has been underwhelming to say the least. Here's pics of the cards.

 

Alright well..onto the next break. Here's what up

1997-98 Finest Series 2 Jumbo Box

 

This is basically high risk low reward as I believe there's maybe just a couple of cards that could come close to covering the cost of this box but I've always wanted to bust a box of this year's Finest so I'm willing to live with the results. Should be very interesting to say the least.

Notable Bronze Base Anfernee Hardaway (X3)
Antoine Walker (x2)
Shareef Abdur Rahim (x2)
Alonzo Mourning (x2)
Patrick Ewing (x2)
Hakeem Olajuwon (x2)
John Stockton (x2)
Dennis Rodman
Shawn Kemp
Michael Jordan
Scottie Pippen (x2)
Grant Hill (x2)
David Robinson (x2)
Allen Iverson (x2)
Charles Barkley (x2)
Jason Kidd (x2)
Kobe Bryant (x2)
Karl Malone
Chris Webber
Reggie Miller
Gary Payton

Silver (1:2)
Antonio Daniels
Jason Kidd
Jamal Mashburn
Dennis Rodman
Mitch Richmond
John Stockton


Bronze Refractor (1:4)
Michael Jordan
Tim Hardaway
Christian Laettner

Embossed (1:7)
Charles Barkley Silver

Gold (1:10)
Tim Duncan
Dikembe Mutombo

Silver Refractor (1:21)
Glenn Robinson (#967/1090)

Overall Thoughts: THIS put me in a MUCH better mood! First of all I've always loved the Topps Finest design and also this reminds me a being a kid and wishing I could afford more than one pack of this stuff much less a box. Most of my old school breaks range from average/good at the time to poor..this is the first one that actually EXCEEDED my expectations! The MJ refractor is AWESOME and is the 2nd best pull of my entire Cardfest so far, which is NOT what I expected! Also the Duncan Gold "Rare" rookie card is an awesome pull as well. These cards also weren't stuck together at all. Very clean and no damage! The bronze base set is small so I pulled tons of doubles of the stars of that era (including 3 Penny's and two Kobe's). I really needed this after that crap filled Donruss break! I would've never thought I'd actually pull something worthwhile! Here's pics of the cards!

 

Well, we're closer and closer to the "Main Event" of Cardfest so to speak. This is the last product before that. Here's what up next

16-17 Studio Basketball

 

Time for the Studio 8 Box Case! I've a lot of great things about Studio and how fun it is to bust. Hopefully for the price point (this was a November Wave Special) it's a low risk high reward product! The main card will be the From Way Downtown insert. If you pull the right one, they are really valuable as they are one per inner case. You also get 1 auto and memorabilia card per box so there's plenty of chances to pull something really good. Here's hoping for the best!

Box 1
Ben Simmons Portrait RC

Rising To The Occasion (1:3)
Steve Nash
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
John Havlicek
Giannis Antetokounmpo

Driven (1:4)
Kevin Durant
Josh Richardson


Defying Gravity (1:10)
Tracy McGrady

Glossy (1:10)
Rudy Gay

Sketch (1:10)
Eric Gordon

Influencers Jersey Card
Dwyane Wade

Studio Signatures
Taurean Prince (#163/299)


Box 2

Rising To The Occasion (1:3)
James Harden
John Wall
Aaron Gordon

Driven (1:4)
Kyle Lowry
Kemba Walker
Rudy Gay


Defying Gravity (1:10)
Giannis Antetokounmpo

Glossy (1:10)
Nick Young

Sketch (1:10)
Patrick McCaw RC

Gamers Jersey Card
Jabari Parker


Studio Signatures
Damian Jones (13/299)

Box 3

Rising To The Occasion (1:3)
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
John Havlicek
Karl Anthony Towns

Driven (1:4)
Elfrid Payton
John Wall
Jabari Parker


Defying Gravity (1:10)
Blake Griffin

Glossy (1:10)
Devin Booker

Sketch (1:10)
Marc Gasol

Rock Solid (1:40)
Kobe Bryant


First Impact Jersey Card
Wade Baldwin IV

Studio Signatures
Buddy Hield (#233/299)

Box 4

Rising To The Occasion (1:3)
Dennis Schroder
George Hill
Kyrie Irving

Driven (1:4)
Gordon Hayward
Dwyane Wade
Damian Lillard



Defying Gravity (1:10)
Dominique Wilkins

Glossy (1:10)
Kenneth Faried

Sketch (1:10)
Drazen Petrovic

Rock Solid (1:40)
Draymond Green

Gamers Jersey Card
Devin Booker

Studio Signatures
C.J. McCollum (#6/299)

Box 5
Ben Simmons Portrait RC
Ben Simmons Action RC

Rising To The Occasion (1:3)
LeBron James
Steve Nash
Jimmy Butler
DeMar DeRozan

Driven (1:4)
Dennis Schroder
Gordon Hayward


Defying Gravity (1:10)
Julius Erving

Glossy (1:10)
Eric Gordon

Sketch (1:10)
Malachi Richardson RC


First Impact Jersey Card
Denzel Valentine

Studio Signatures
Cheick Diallo (#223/299)


Box 6

Rising To The Occasion (1:3)
Dirk Nowitzki
Kobe Bryant
Robert Horry
George Hill

Driven (1:4)
Dennis Schroder
LeBron James


Defying Gravity (1:10)
Russell Westbrook

Glossy (1:10)
Michael Kidd-Gilchrist

Sketch (1:10)
Kobe Bryant


Influencers Jersey Card
Giannas Antetokounmpo

Breakout Signatures
Clint Capela (#207/249)

Box 7

Rising To The Occasion (1:3)
Jordan Clarkson
Tim Duncan
Chauncey Billups


Driven (1:4)
Karl Anthony Towns
John Wall
Elfrid Payton
James Harden
Mike Conley


Defying Gravity (1:10)
Kobe Bryant

Glossy (1:10)
Draymond Green

Sketch (1:10)
Karl Anthony Towns

From Downtown (1:80)
Karl Anthony Towns


Gamers Patch Card
Tristan Thompson (#19/30)

Studio Signatures
Jason Terry (#150/299)


Box 8
Ben Simmons Portrait RC

Rising To The Occasion (1:3)
Carmelo Anthony
Larry Bird
Giannis Antetokounmpo


Driven (1:4)
Chris Paul
Damian Lillard
Rudy Gay


Defying Gravity (1:10)
Giannis Antetokounmpo

Glossy (1:10)
Wesley Matthews

Sketch (1:10)
Andre Drummond

Teal Parallel
Klay Thompson (#13/15)

First Impact Jersey
Malachi Richardson

Celebrated Signatures
Kyrie Irving (#20/49)

Overall Thoughts: I hate to be negative and complaining considering I did pull 2 Top 10 Cardfest cards (not top 5 overall this year, but for cardfest) but for a product that at it's price point in November that was considering "can't lose"..well..I feel like I lost. I might be lucky to have gotten maybe half the value back from this case. The autos outside of the Kyrie were the worst and Jersey cards are pretty much worthless unless you pull a patch card and the one patch card I pulled sucked. Some of the inserts are awesome, such as the die cut Defying Gravity and Rock Solid and luckily I pulled three Nice Kobes (Defying Gravity, Rock Solid, and a Sketch Card). The Karl Anthony Towns From Downtown insert is a case hit that ACTUALLY HAS VALUE! It's a really good pull and it's now the 3rd best pull of Cardfest behind MJ and Simmons. The Klay Thompson teal parallel is also nice. Collation..well it's Panini..so you know it sucked beyond belief. Even with those positives, the awful hits outweigh the good ones. At the very least though, there were two cards worthy enough in making the Top 10 for Cardfest and at this point in the game I would've been super disappointed had I not at least gotten 1 nice card. So that will wrap up today's breaks and I'd say overall a pretty good day despite that terrible Donruss break. The Topps Finest break was such a pleasant surprise, glad I took a gamble on that. So I'm planning on finishing off Cardfest on New Year's Day with the 5 product "Main Event" so to speak. It's the more expensive boxes I bought so hoping that out of those 6 boxes left, one card can unseat the Simmons as the best card of Cardfest. Here's pics of the Studio break.