Fleer’s sixth set in a row, the 1991-92 Fleer, was a drastic redesign with a thin, dark blue section on the left that was used for informational purposes. The set begins with the base cards where this section was used for the team logo, player’s name and position. After that, the first major subset appears, these All-Star cards. The dark-blue section here features the NBA logo, the set name, the words “All-Star Team” as well as the player’s name, position and team name. The placement of the set name, “Fleer 1991” and the words “All-Star Team” is slightly ambiguous. You might briefly think that this was Fleer selecting an All-Star team.
The All-Star subset had very informative reverses. Although this sacrificed the design features of the base cards (the hardwood background, the double image of the player), it allowed for much more information than the base cards. In fact, the reverse feels like an extension of the base cards rather than the reverse of an All-Star card. The #211 Michael Jordan doesn’t mention any All-Star related information instead focusing on the Bulls’ best record ever in 1990-91 (61-21), Phil Jackson mentioning a new strategy where Jordan had less minutes to save him for more crucial moments in the season, and Jordan mentioning that he very focused on the team as a whole. There’s also a lot of Wilt Chamberlain/Michael Jordan comparisons. Jordan had five consecutive scoring titles at this point while Wilt has the record with seven. Also, only Jordan and Chamberlain had 3,000 or more points in a season. With no opportunity for photos on the back, Fleer puts two on the front, an exciting drive to the hoop and a headshot of Jordan with a towel draped over his shoulders.
You can keep track of the structure of 1991-92 Fleer by following the Jordan cards. He appears in every subset except the “Slam Dunk” cards. So, following the set numerically, this is his second appearance. First the base cards, then the All-Star subset. And although the only aspect of this card that has anything to do with the All-Star game is the heading “All-Star Team” on the front, it’s still a nice and informative card to have.
In Short: Is this an All-Star card? Look, I see it says “All-Star Team” on the front and I always called them the “All-Star Cards” from ’91-92 Fleer. But this picture is a regular Bulls jersey. But, Fleer wrote us a novel on the back, so I bet we’ll have lots of All-Star related information. Bulls best record ever, ok… Jordan has five scoring titles at this point, Chamberlain has the record with seven, awesome, but not All-Star info… Phil Jackson says Jordan’s minutes will go down to save energy, only Jordan and Chamberlain broke 3,000 points in a season, Jordan focusing more on being a team player. Not a single detail of this card has anything to do with any aspect of any All-Star Game! Let’s call this subset “Long essays about players who were All-Stars last season.” Still one of my favorite cards because of the pic with the towel! Subscribe and collect with us if you want to spend time with fun cards that you might have overlooked!
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