Panini Contenders Draft Picks gets the opening experience right for all collectors
Contenders Draft Picks is not Panini’s most popular annual product — that title is reserved for Prizm and DonRuss Optic — but it is the season’s debut, an important title in its own right. And though it’s not the most popular or anticipated box, as the lead of the season it does have some expectations to live up to.
It also has the challenge of leaning into NBA excitement and merging it with a collegiate theme and the graduation from the college ranks to the pros. Given that this box releases prior to the draft, there is not intel or knowledge on where players will land, and more importantly no photography of rookies in their NBA jerseys to utilize yet.
While that aspect could be seen as a challenge, Panini has always leveraged this for their Contenders Draft Picks product in order to make a collegiately-themed product that still places its roots in the draft and stars as we know them today.
This year, Panini made some strong adjustments to crystalize this product as the college card set.
Rookie cards are, of course, the main focus here for collectors, but this year, the product top-to-bottom focuses on college, even for veteran players, an adjustment from 2019-20. So while many might quickly scan through each pack to find their rookie cards, it’s natural to pause and think, “oh yeah, I totally forgot that guy played for that school.”
It’s a nod to the standard of excellence that some universities have created, but it’s also a nod to the blazing paths some of the league’s stars have made.
Some examples: Kawhi Leonard at San Diego State University, Paul George at Fresno State, Steph Curry at Davidson, and more recently, Ja Morant at Murray State.
These players make up the visage of the NBA today, but they went to smaller schools, not Blue Bloods. Those schools are featured on these players’ respective cards all the same.
And still, the flashbacks to March Madness Tournament moments and strong collegiate careers from the big-name schools are there as you look at the cards, too. Think of Devin Booker at Kentucky, Joel Embiid at Kansas, Bradley Beal at Florida, Blake Griffin at Oklahoma, Anthony Davis at Kentucky.
That’s what makes this ripping experience downright fun. With 18 cards per pack, you’re taken on a journey with some of the stars of this league and their college experiences from years ago. There’s a certain cohesiveness to the product this year with the college theme top-to-bottom that didn’t exist last year.
James Harden might show up, and he’s not going to have a beard. We’re used to seeing grown men dazzle us with skill at the highest level on our TV night in and night out, but these cards throw it back to the babyface days.
And all the while as you sift through each card, you’re sitting in anticipation just like the prospects and fans are on draft night. It makes a lot of sense that the enjoyment of this pack is so similar to watching the draft, and I think that’s exactly what Panini gets right here.
You never know which card will be your auto in each pack. What school? What prospect?
And you never know what pick is next on draft night. What school? What prospect?
The excitement that you could pull a numbered LaMelo Ball on-card auto is the same excitement we’ll have on draft night wondering if his name is getting called next.
Panini’s premium products are always going to provide the most hits. In all likelihood, you won’t get a hot Ball card in this box, but you might get a Nico Mannion (that’s what happened to me!). It’s a product that will almost certainly give you something to walk away with that you’re happy to have, and an addition of 108 cards to your collection.
Panini’s more limited card boxes are pricy and for good reason. Each card is a big hit. But in the blink of an eye, the most fun part, the unboxing, is over. Contenders Draft Picks, on the other hand, is a beautiful, lengthy unbox with quality all-around.
In terms of the boxes motif, the base cards are “ticket” themed, so as to say it’s the ticket for these prospects into the NBA. And for any locked-in card collector, this product is the ticket into a new season.
Heavily collegiate themed, the vibrant colors here give the feel of crowds of student sections decked out in their school’s garb. All the while, the parallels in each box still look like the high-quality product we’re used to from Panini.
In the midst of a pandemic and an unknown season ahead, Panini got a lot right with their first product of the year.