LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – AUGUST 19: LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers waves to the crowd during the game against the Miami Marlins on LeBron James bobblehead night at Dodger Stadium on August 19, 2023 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
(Harry How via Getty Images)
Hey Collectors,
LeBron James has one more checkmark on his side of the NBA 🐐 ledger- first male athlete to get the Ken Doll treatment. Earlier this week Mattel announced that James would become a Kenbassador (their term, not ours), with his signature doll hitting store shelves April 14th for $75.
Mattel did LBJ right, putting his doll in a pair of Nike’s, with an AP Royal Oak on his wrist and a pair of Beats headphones in his hands. Pre-sales of the doll are already flipping for 3x the purchase price ().
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Of course, that’s not the only figurine catching the eye of collectors and resellers this week…
It turns out the most unexpected star of The Masters collectible universe isn’t a signed Tiger Woods ball or an original 1934 badge — it’s a gnome. Since Augusta National began selling Masters-themed gnomes in 2016 for under $50, they’ve transformed into one of the hottest resale items in the golf memorabilia world. The 2016 edition now commands thousands online (), with newer releases regularly flipping for hundreds. Their limited availability, quirky annual designs, and a dash of Augusta mystique have turned them into must-haves for collectors.
BTW — with The Masters starting today, Mantel’s has some golfers, and their trading cards, worth keeping an eye on. .
AUGUSTA, GEORGIA – APRIL 07: A view of a Masters Gnome being carried by a patron during a practice round prior to the 2025 Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 07, 2025 in Augusta, Georgia. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
(Richard Heathcote via Getty Images)
If you want to really rile up someone who grew up in the 90s, send ‘em your ranking of Sports Illustrated for Kids cards. ran through the most important cards ever torn from the magazine, and it didn’t take long to see rebuttals pop up on , including one in this week’s .
In a delightful twist on traditional trading card games, the children of Kawara, Japan have gone all-in on collecting local legends — quite literally. The viral Ojisan TCG swaps out dragons and superheroes for the real-life middle-aged men of the Saidosho community, with favorites like “Firewall” Mr. Honda and “All-Rounder” Mr. Fujii gaining cult hero status. Originally created to bridge generations, the hand-made cards have turned civic volunteers into hometown celebrities, complete with shiny card upgrades for real-world good deeds. For ¥500, you might just pull a holographic soba master — and maybe, make a new role model too.
On the heels of Alex Ovechkin’s record-breaking 895th goal, a wave of hockey memorabilia has hit the spotlight, starting with the stick of Ilya Sorokin, the Islanders goalie Ovi scored on. While Sorokin gave up the goal and his equipment, Budweiser gifted the 28 netminders Ovechkin never scored on . And Topps quickly dropped a ($29.99) tracking Ovechkin’s milestone goals, where buyers can chase rare parallels. Meanwhile, the gifted to Wayne Gretzky after he passed Gordie Howe with goal No. 802, is heading to auction, with a pre-sale estimate of nearly $900K.
A man has pleaded guilty to a long-running fake memorabilia scheme that spanned nearly a decade. Anthony Tremayne admitted to selling between $250K and $550K worth of forged items, including fake autographs from stars across sports and entertainment — think Kobe, Prince, even the Kardashians. He allegedly used bogus certificates of authenticity to back his forgeries and even duped an undercover FBI agent. His plea deal reduces the charges to a single count of mail fraud, but he still faces up to 20 years in federal prison.
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