Skybox abandoned their distinctive computer-generated backgrounds in 1992-93. The set wasn’t particularly successful and this Shaquille O’Neal rookie card is clearly the highlight by far. A frequent complaint about the first two Skybox sets was that the computerized backgrounds cropped too much detail from the photos. Did Skybox listen? The 1992-93 Skybox cards were all photograph, full-bleed, with the player’s name in a colored, fading rectangle overlaid on the photo. The team logo was discreetly placed in the corner, again, maximizing the photo.
Not all was lost from the previous Skybox designs. The glowing basketball was kept. And on the reverse, the tradition of a, casual, often non-basketball photo of the player was kept as well. Again, Skybox maximized photo space. Trivia and statistics were limited and condensed. The only information here was that Shaq majored in business at LSU. You can tell that distinguishing the rookie cards was an afterthought. Skybox didn’t even bother adjusting the statistics box, leaving awkward dashes under “91-92 season” and “NBA Career.” The rookie cards did have a gold seal that says “Rookie, 1992-93” around the Skybox logo.
Although Skybox reduced the number of cards to 413, the two series were very disproportionate. Series II was only 86 cards, meaning Series I was a lengthy 327 cards, structurally similar to other early ’90’s junk wax. Teams alphabetically, players alphabetically, and after 254 cards of that, coaches and team checklists.
The set didn’t really generate a lot of excitement among collectors, but that made it all the more special when a pack produced this particular Shaquille O’Neal rookie card!
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