Welcome to part 3 of my series about Upper Deck commemorative sheets. This one, dedicated to basketball, has been the toughest to organize, research, and write about since they seem to be the least discussed across the hobby of the four major sports. In fact, TCDB only has 1991-92 Upper Deck Basketball (with 12 sheets on the checklist) and 1992-93 Upper Deck Basketball (with 13 sheets on the checklist) sheets on it. However, as you will see, there are other years. They’re also tough to organize because the dating on them is inconsistent. You see, The Upper Deck Baseball sheets all have a single year printed on the seal, and the hockey sheets all corresponded to specific games or events that aligned with the NHL season, so they were easy to categorize. However, with Basketball, Upper Deck has sheets that have single years (i.e., 1991 or 1992) and others that align with the NBA season that crosses calendar years (i.e.’ 91-92 or 1992-93), so I will categorize them by the year printed on the gold seal or for later years, the date printed between the words “Limited Edition” and the serial number.
1991 Upper Deck Basketball Sheets
These sheets have a gold seal with a single year, “1991”, on them.
These first two are very similar, one for the June 26, 1991, NBA Draft and another Draft-related one given away at the 12th National Sports Collectors Convention; neither have actual Upper Deck released cards depicted on them.
The following sheet has a similar design to the previous ones but has 1991/92 Upper Deck cards pictured. The sheet was likely a giveaway at the Hawks vs. Pistons game held on November 27, 1991 (the Pistons won 100-91). Also, the Upper Deck logo in the bottom right corner now says 91/92.
The following example celebrates the Lakers playing in the McDonald’s Open in Paris, France, on October 18/19, 1991. However, no cards are pictured, and the logo has no date.
The Open took place at Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy in Paris, France. It featured four teams: Slobodna Dalmacija, who were the 1990-91 FIBA European Champions Cup winners; Motnigala Joventut, who were the champions of the 1990-91 Liga ACB; Limoges CSP, who were the runners-up of the 1990-91 Nationale 1A, and the Los Angles Lakers who were the runners-up of the 1990-91 NBA League. The Lakers won the Open, which was a pre-season tournament for them.
Then there are a few ‘Stay In School’ examples with a Limited Edition 1991 Seal. The first, with Bob Lanier and Otis Smith, has a 1991 Upper Deck logo, while the examples with Pistons and Nets logos in place of Otis Smith have a 91/92 Upper Deck logo towards the bottom. The Hawks vs. Pistons sheet pictured previously also has a ‘Stay in School’ logo.
1991-92 Upper Deck Basketball Sheets
These sheets all have a gold seal with “’91-92” on them.
Upper Deck appears to have given this sheet away during All-Star Weekend in Orlando, held February 7-9, 1992, in conjunction with the Slam-Dunk Championship.
Another sheet that looks a lot like the slam dunk one and is labeled a sample appears to have been intended for the Timberwolves vs. Knicks game on February 29, 1992.
The Lakers played a home game on February 26, 1992, against the Knicks, the same date as this sheet from Upper Deck commemorating the’ 71-72 World Champion Lakers team.
The following sheet is also a sample copy, but it looks like it was supposed to have been given away at the Clippers vs. Pistons game that was played on March 31, 1992. Whether they were or not, I have no idea.
This sheet commemorating John Wooden, Adolph Rupp, Dean Smith, and Bob Knight is dated April 4-6, 1992. It looks like it was a promotion at the NCAA Final Four.
1992 Upper Deck Basketball Sheets
These sheets all have a gold seal with “1992” on them.
Upper Deck continued promoting their sets at the 1992 NBA Draft held on June 24, 1992. This first sheet commemorates the draft and shows the top draft choices in 1991. Notice the 1992 date on the seal in the bottom left and the 1992 on the Upper Deck Logo on the bottom right of the sheet.
Upper Deck also appears to have made specific sheets for each time; here are the Clippers and Bullets examples.
Upper Deck used a similar design as a giveaway at the Charles Smith Battle of the Basketball Stars in June 1992 (I think on June 21).
The Golden State Warriors sponsored Hoop It Up event, held earlier in June, had its own Upper Deck sheet, too.
Next, and this is one of the more popular Upper Deck Basketball sets, is The 1992 USA Basketball Team example.
Finally, this Utah Jazz example has a lot in common with some of the 1991/92 examples since it has the ‘Stay in School’ logo, too. However, the Upper Deck Logo is for 92/93.
1992-93 Upper Deck Basketball Sheets
These sheets all have a gold seal with “1992-93” or “1992/93” on them.
First, I found three examples featuring 1992/93 Upper Deck basketball cards in this category (those with 1992-93 dates on the seal). The first is saluting the Atlanta Hawks; the second was likely a giveaway at the Bull’s April 20, 1993, home game against the Philadelphia 76ers. Both of these sheets have a 92/93 Upper Deck Logo on the bottom left corner. The third sheet, however, doesn’t have a serial number and has a 1993 Upper Deck Logo; it’s for “The Ultimate Hoop It Up 3-On-3 Match Up, East VS West.”
Next are a pair of sheets with 1993 Upper Deck logos; the first appears to have been a giveaway at a Cavaliers home game against the Cavs on January 12, 1993. and the second salutes Larry Bird at his retirement ceremony on February 4, 1993, at the Boston Garden.
This final 1992-93 sheet salutes All-Star Heroes in conjunction with the Upper Deck Trading Card and Memorabilia Show held during Utah All-Star Weekend in February 1993.
1993 Upper Deck Basketball Sheets
These sheets all have a gold seal with “1993” on them.
There are a couple of categories of 1993 Upper Deck Basketball Sheets. The first, again, were developed in conjunction with the NBA Draft (June 30, 1993) and appear to have been made for each team. The Upper Deck logo has 1993 on it. Here are examples for the Blazers and Sonics.
There’s also a more general Upper Deck NBA Draft sheet that depicts the Top Draft Choices from 1992 on it.
Next, Upper Deck made sheets for the NBA Jam Session events held in Melbourne and Sydney, Australia, in August and September 1993.
This next sheet has me a little confused; American Airlines sponsored the 1992-93 three-point contest before AT&T took over in 1993-94. But the cards shown are 1992/93s – perhaps this sheet was made to announce the partnership.
The following Upper Deck basketball sheet is dated March 2, 1993, to celebrate the Bucks’s 25th anniversary. The Bucks had a home game against the Mavericks that evening. It’s odd that the sheet doesn’t have a 1992/93 date like the Cavs vs. Celtics sheet pictured in the previous section.
1993-94 Upper Deck Basketball Sheets
I only ran across a single sheet with “1993-94” on the seal, but I’d bet there are others. This one features Bulls players for a game held on November 13, 1993. The Bulls played the Celtics that night. Notice the 93/94 Upper Deck logo on the lower right corner.
1994 Upper Deck Basketball Sheets
Upper Deck replaced the gold seal with a sort of emblem this year, but all the sheets display “1994” between the words’ Limited Edition’ and the serial number.
Upper Deck, again, made commemorative sheets in conjunction with the NBA Draft held in Indianapolis on June 29, 1994. Here’s the Seattle Supersonics example.
There are a bunch of other ‘Limited Edition’ 1994 Upper Deck basketball sheets, including the following for the Long Distance Shootout, the All-NBA Team, 1994 All-Rookie Team, the Knicks, All-Star Weekend, the Michael Jordan Tribute Night held on November 1, 1994, and the 1993-94 Upper Deck Special Edition set.
1995 Upper Deck Basketball Sheets
The 1995 Upper Deck Basketball Sheets have similar emblems to 1994’s, but the date is now “1995”.
I found three sheets with 1995 dates on them. Again, the first two were for the NBA Draft held in Toronto on June 28, 1995. One is generic for the event; the other has Kings-specific information on it.
Upper Deck also released a sheet for their Predictor Series Cards.
Conclusion
Now, despite sharing 43 Upper Deck Basketball Commemorative Sheets in this article, it’s not even remotely close to an exhaustive checklist. What’s really cool about these basketball sheets compared to the baseball and hockey ones is the variety. Upper Deck appears to have released them at NBA games, off-season events, in conjunction with the draft, at the All-Star Game, and as generic advertisements for upcoming sets.
Keep an eye on the blog because I’ll be wrapping up this series with Upper Deck’s football commemorative sheets!