Basketball card collecting or investing sometimes starts at the bottom. The dollar box. The prospects. We scout, we dig, we negotiate, and we dream – we hope we will find the next Giannis, Joker, or Maxey.

HoopsandCards.com talks about the 4G’s – players or cards can fall into one of these four categories: Guesses, Goods, Greats, and GOATS! With one week down in the 2023-24 NBA season, we unveil our very first edition of “GUESSWORK” – a list of prospects or young players who would make a great sports card guess or cheap investment at this moment in time. And today is clearly Duren’s Day.

JALEN DUREN, DETROIT – To be honest, most NBA-types expected this kid to rebound and block shots. I’m not sure how many of us really thought he would score 20 points in a game, or on any sort of regular basis. But the youth movement in Detroit, along with the return of the Cade, has given Duren plenty of time to shine. He’s bulked up and he looks incredible. And your dealer has no idea who he is. Attack the dollar boxes for silver prizms, autos in his NBA jersey, and anything numbered from Duren’s rookies.

SHAEDON SHARPE, PORTLAND – If you listen to our podcast, you know we loved Sharpe as the season began. But in the last week, Anfernee Simons tore his thumb and Scoot Henderson has struggled to find his shot. In the meantime, Sharpe has taken over the scoring load for the Blazers and is starting to make a name for himself. And it’s a fun name to say five times fast – “Shaedon Sharpe!”

CAM THOMAS, BROOKLYN – He’s a guess from last season, people. Dude is already good and starting.

BONES HYLAND, LA CLIPPERS – He’s been a guess for a while, but finding his place in the Clippers rotation of aging guys who need his energy. Hyland’s number will continue to increase as he runs around catching dimes from Westbrook and Harden. Don’t give up on Bones, people.

JALEN JOHNSON, ATLANTA – Young, athletic, hot-shooting… Jalen Johnson has had a strong start to the season. But it’s just one week, and the 14.5ppg scoring may not be needed once Trae and Saddiq wake up. Still a great bargain for Jalen’s autos and a Hawks team that invested in him!

BRANDON MILLER, CHARLOTTE – The absence of Miles Bridges and Kelly Oubre has led to more minutes and opportunities for the #2 overall pick, previously known as “not Scoot.” Miller blew up last night for 22 points, 9 rebounds, and terrific overall play as he’s averaging 32 minutes a night.

CASON WALLACE, OKLAHOMA CITY – Since he turns 20 this week, I’ll mention how impressed I was watching him in person and his 86% FG through four games. Wallace is merely the next in a long line of young NBA talents identified by the Thunder, including Jalen, Jalyn, Josh, Ousmane, Tre, and Chet.

KEEGAN MURRAY, SACRAMENTO – We hoped he would start putting up All-Star numbers already! But Kings fans will settle for 16 points and 7.7 rebounds a game on a team that somehow still features Harrison Barnes. Murray is a priority for the Kings and he could be MPJ or better in a year.

Also Guessing about… Ausar Thompson (DET), Derek Lively III (DAL), Sasha Vezenkov (SAC), Ziaire Williams (MEM), Malaki Branham (SAS).

Posted in Articles, Card Picks, Dropping Dimes, Podcast Episodes, Rising Stars, Rookies