You can’t fully understand this card without reading… This link about the 1986-87 Fleer set as a whole.
The Set: You’d be hard-pressed to find any basketball card collector that doesn’t have the design of this set burned into their minds due to the Jordan rookie card. But it’s always worth mentioning the connection with Dubble Bubble bubble gum. Frank Fleer basically invented bubble gum and, by 1928, was marketing Dubble Bubble. The crown in the logo…the red, white and blue of the easily-chipped border… The design links wonderfully to Dubble Bubble, Fleer’s other business.
After 1961, Fleer disappeared until this appearance 25 years later. Topps kept things going and Star stepped in for a brief period. The Star Co. cards weren’t widely distributed, but this Fleer set was. Many believe it marks the beginning of the modern era of basketball card collecting. Short and simple. 132 cards, alphabetized, photo on front, stats on back…nothing fancy. But the rookie cards in this set are unbelievable! Jordan, Drexler, Ewing, Isaiah Thomas, Dominique Wilkins, Karl Malone, Hakeem Olajuwon, Charles Barkley… It’s important to note that there were earlier Star Co. cards of some of these players, but the limited distribution meant they weren’t traditionally recognized as true rookies. Opinions about the Star Co. cards are shifting, but the ’86-87 Fleer cards still retain their status as rookies.
This set is one of the few that retains its importance as a complete set. Collectors want all 132 and in the best condition possible, so whether it’s this #4 Danny Ainge or the #57 Jordan rookie, a market certainly exists. There’s a worthwhile article by Joe Orlando on PSA’s website that discusses the importance of the set as a whole called “Modern Masterpiece” and it is worth a read.
The Card: As we mentioned earlier, some of the “rookies” in this set are present in earlier Star Co. sets. This Danny Ainge is one of those situations. Many recognize his 1983-84 Star #27 as the true rookie card, others as an extended rookie card. (Not counting his 1981 baseball rookie cards!) Let’s turn the card over. With Danny Ainge, you don’t want to overlook the mention of his college, Brigham Young University. With BYU in 1981, he made a historic play, driving the length of the court in eight seconds, with a behind-the-back dribble, for a buzzer-beater against Notre Dame, allowing BYU to advance from the Sweet Sixteen to the Elite Eight. (Watch that play here.) As you can see on the back, he was playing for the Celtics as early as the 1981-82 season after leaving the Toronto Blue Jays, hence the existence of the earlier Star Co. card. This was a great time for the Celtics, NBA Finals wins in 1984 and 1986 with a Finals appearance in 1985.
In Short: Let’s talk behind-the-back dribbling. Here we have the 1948 Bowman Bob Davies. Davies is typically credited with being the first player who had command of the behind-the-back dribble for game situations. And here’s the Danny Ainge rookie from ’86-87 Fleer. If you don’t know his famous behind-the-back dribble that led to a game-winning basket saving Brigham Young from elimination in the 1981 NCAA tournament, check out the link in the description. So great history here…the player who first developed a usable behind-the-back dribble and a player a few decades later, using it to protect the ball in a clutch moment. By the way, although opinions are changing about the Star company cards, most sources still call this a rookie card even though Ainge started playing in the ’81-82 season. Subscribe if you like spending some time with often-overlooked common cards and minor stars!
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