NBA jerseys, Topps cards to feature Rookie Debut and Gold Logoman patches

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Fanatics Collectibles CEO Mike Mahan likened the emotions of the long-anticipated return of NBA licensed cards into the Topps portfolio similarly to his bated breath right before turning 16 and receiving his driver’s license. It’s funny Mahan pointed to 16 since that’s about how many years Topps had been without the NBA license for trading cards … until now.

Following a soft launch in China, Topps’ first mass produced licensed NBA cards will hit store shelves worldwide on Oct. 23 with the company’s 2025-26 Topps Basketball flagship set to be available wherever collectors typically purchase cards. In addition, Topps officially announced that players will be wearing Rookie Debut Patches and Gold NBA Logoman patches, which will be taken off of jerseys and put into one-of-a-kind trading cards in upcoming NBA products that will be revealed at a later date.  

An example of the upcoming NBA Rookie Debut Patch. (Photo: Topps)

“This important milestone, and 3 1/2 years ago when I first started, it’s felt like forever and a day. Now that we’re here, I’m just as excited now as I thought I would be,” Mahan said. “It’s just the opportunity to take the reins on basketball and bring to the forefront these innovations and partnerships with the league and the (NB)PA (NBA players’ union) and the athletes and the teams.”

Presales for boxes of the 2025-26 Topps Basketball product occurred nearly two weeks ago and the limited allotment quickly sold out. There likely won’t be much of a shortage come release day with the anticipation of this set being heavily produced and accessible to collectors buying cards at hobby shops or retail stores. On launch day (Oct. 23), Topps and the NBA will host events at NBA stores in New York, Los Angeles, Paris, Beijing and London.

The Debut Patch card first came into collector verbiage when Topps launched the unique insert with Major League Baseball two years ago. A player wears a patch on their jersey during their first professional game appearance. The patch is then removed after the game and placed within a trading card, making it a one-of-a-kind item. Similar patches were later rolled out for MLS, UFC and WWE.

The cards reached mainstream status when the hunt commenced last year for the MLB Debut Patch autographed card of Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes. 

The Pirates placed a public bounty on the card, along with Livvy Dunne — Skenes’ girlfriend and social influencer — adding some caveats to the team’s plea for the card. An 11-year-old boy from the Los Angeles area landed the card, stemming from one box of 2023 Topps Chrome Update Series he opened on Christmas morning. Dick’s Sporting Goods purchased the card through a Fanatics Collect auction in March for $1.1 million, which was more money than Skenes made in base salary during the 2024 season.

Cooper Flagg’s eventual Debut Patch card is likely to spark a similar frenzy.

“You know it’s such a simple idea, but fits perfectly into sort of like the ethos of the trading card world,” said Matt Holt, NBA vice president of merchandising partnerships. “Basketball cards and the notion of the Logoman patch, that’s been part of the lexicon and kind of the grails that all these collectors are looking for.
The Debut Patch and the Gold Logoman patches are just taking it up to another level.”

NBA Logoman patch cards have been a staple in the basketball card space for nearly 20 years with Upper Deck and then Panini including them within products. So much so where an NBA Logoman card recently became the most expensive publicly sold card ever. The Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant 2007-08 Upper Deck Exquisite Collection dual Logoman autographed patch card sold for $12.9 million via auction in late August.

Topps has elevated the Logoman chase, borrowing another element from their baseball sets. Last year’s league MVP (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander), rookie of the year (Stephon Castle) and defensive player of the year (Evan Mobley) will wear jerseys with special gold NBA Logoman patches this season. Those patches will be inserted into trading cards.

Shohei Ohtani wearing the MLB gold logo patch for winning NL MVP last season. These patches are removed from the player’s jersey after being worn and put into trading cards. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)

“For us, the excitement comes from having partners with the ability to focus on storytelling and innovate around how they bring the licensing rights to life,” said Josh Goodstadt, chief commercial officer at THINK450 — the NBPA’s licensing and partnership arm. “We’ve seen the success Topps’ had with the MLB patch program and that is the type of fan engagement we want to replicate on the basketball side.”

One trap Topps hopes to avoid will be to overly replicate the company’s ideas for MLB cards in licensed NBA cards and eventually licensed NFL cards starting next year. However, the popularity of the Rookie Debut and Gold Logoman patch cards translates across sports platforms with ease. 

“There’s certain things that I think that we have done in baseball that work perfectly for basketball,” Mahan said. “And then there are things that we’ve done in baseball that, in a modified way, will work in basketball. Not quite the same thing, but needs to be unique to basketball. And then there’s things that are uniquely suited for basketball that we will do that people haven’t seen yet. I think it’s really getting all three of those.”

FIRST LOOK: Cooper Flagg’s official NBA rookie card 🔥 pic.twitter.com/KtcQi23uIM

— Topps (@Topps) October 14, 2025

None of this, though, comes without the seismic transition within the trading card industry of Topps gaining the NBA license after Panini’s 15-plus year run. 

There’s no doubt collectors will compare and contrast basketball cards from both companies. Plus, Fanatics (owner of Topps) and Panini are in a grueling legal fight with Panini claiming that Fanatics has built a monopoly within the sports card industry by securing long-term, exclusive licensing deals with major sports leagues and players’ associations, preventing competition. Additionally, Topps can’t include any cards of Luka Doncic and Zion Williamson within its initial sets, as well as no autographed cards from SGA, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Anthony Edwards among others because of contractual ties to Panini.

Meanwhile, Topps products will possess autographed cards from current players like LeBron James, Victor Wembanyama, Stephen Curry, Cooper Flagg and Dylan Harper, alongside NBA legends like Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Shaquille O’Neal and Dwyane Wade.

An example of a Victor Wembanyama autographed card that will appear in the 2025-26 Topps Basketball set. (Image: Topps)

Mahan said Panini made “a lot of awesome cards” while holding the NBA license, but feels the best days for basketball card collectors are firmly ahead. 

“I think the level and quality of product innovation that we’re going to bring is going to be unprecedented,” Mahan said. “I think collectors are really going to appreciate the level of thought and the level of care and the passion that we have for this sport.”

Holt added: “Panini’s been a great partner. We still have a great relationship with them. 
We will have a great relationship with them going forward. But there is just an incredible amount of enthusiasm (from Fanatics). 
It’s no longer just about printing a picture and some text on a card or piece of cardboard. There are layers of this industry and Topps/Fanatics are just really delving into every single component of it.”

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This news was originally published on this post .

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