Chris HOJ-Cast

This episode has six parts. The first tries to explore the experience of encountering a card, though it stumbles a bit, as usual. Second is a reveal of a new Michael Jordan 1/1 and a read of its social media write-up. The third section brings in an audience reaction to the card and explains how the card was acquired. Fourth, a handful of recent under-the-radar sales are discussed. Fifth, the three Michael Jordan 1/1s currently at auction are briefly reviewed. And, finally, Ivan Pavlov's "The Reflex of Purpose" —an essay from 1916 with a lot to say about collecting — is analyzed.

This episode has four segments. First, a few select stories from walking the floor at the 2026 National. Second, the rising market for commemorative 1/1 cards—with specific examples from Ohtani, Brady, and McGwire. Third, a recent pickup: the 1998 Topps Gold Label Class 3 Red 1/1 of Peyton Manning. And fourth, a conceptual framework for understanding the financialization of sports cards.

This episode dives deep into the Highway 99 Gold 1/1 of Michael Jordan, contemplating the card through the lenses of metaphor, design, and historical importance. It then shifts to discussing whether the collector is also an artist. The episode concludes with a few thoughts on how markets for “trophy cards” function.

This episode has three main sections. The first discusses Brock Purdy and the predictive power of analytics in anticipating historic breakout performances like KAT’s 2026 playoff run. The second tees up multiple topics relating to the philosophy of collecting, including: how information changes the way we “see” cards, the gifts of research and storytelling, and the logic of the first. And the third reveals a Purdy 1/1 that boasts a special distinction.

This episode has six parts: 1) a reveal of the release dates of Michael Jordan's first seven 1/1s, 2) a deep dive into the first basketball 1/1 checklist (which happens to be an MJ card); 3) a quick look at some recent MJ 1/1 sales; 4) a discussion of "iconic" status in the sports card context; 5) some thoughts on Nikola Jokic's $1 million logoman autograph 1/1 sale; and 6) thoughts on Jokic's early playoff exit and legacy.

This episode has five parts. 1) A quick dive into my Luka fandom. 2) Reflections on how research shapes collecting—and how research builds meaning. 3) Using my recent pickup (2024-25 Silhouette Holo Platinum 1/1 Luka Doncic) as a case study in how research creates meaning. 4) A review of the market for Luka's first Lakers 1/1s. 5) Some closing remarks on the legacy Luka Doncic is etching into basketball history.

This episode has 5 parts. First, a discussion of PER and who has won its crown in each NBA season. Second, a review of two headline Jokic card sales with Goldin last weekend. Third, a deep dive into Joker's Totally Certified Holo Blue 1/1 run. Fourth, a synopsis of Jokic's 2025-26 season. And finally, some thoughts on culture and leisure in prehistoric times.

This episode analyzes the two 1/1 MJ sales from Heritage Auctions last weekend—the Platinum Masterpiece, which sold for $2.1m, and the Purple Masterpiece, which sold for $625k.

This episode revolves around my recent pick up of the "Heart and Soul" Gold 1/1 of Michael Jordan—using this card as a springboard into discussing: (1) MJ's first fifteen 1/1s ever made, (2) the historic "Heart and Soul" 30-card set, (3) my recent public poll asking collectors to choose their favorite among four MJ 1/1s, (4) all 66 public sales of a 90s MJ 1/1 since 2004, and (5) the first week of activity surrounding the live auction of MJ's Platinum 1/1 from 1997-98 Ultra.

This episode has three parts. First, a registry of the 72 first MJ 1/1s is introduced—identifying the 37 cards that are publicly owned, the 21 that are privately owned, and the 14 that have yet to surface. Second is an exercise in 1/1 valuation methods, specifically towards estimating a price for the two Ultra 1/1 masterpieces coming to auction soon. Third, the concept of a "hobby Rorschach test" is floated, considering how the same card can appear quite differently to us at various points along our collecting evolutions.

This episode has 3 parts. First is a discussion sparked by the recent Flawless 1/1 Jokic sale. Second is introspection around whether to pursue a very special Michael Jordan 1/1 that is coming to auction soon. And the final segment is a recap of Christian McCaffrey's legacy-enhancing 2025 season.

(Here is the MJ card ranking system mentioned in the second section: https://tinyurl.com/MJRNK)

This episode has four parts. The first contrasts two styles of sharing cards: (1) the yearly pickup recap and (2) the "card tree." The second section discusses my recap of eight cards added in 2025. The third segment investigates to what extent a card is a reflection of its owner versus a reflection of itself. And the fourth part shares a viral tweet on how Van Gogh's paintings rose to prominence.

This episode has two major segments. First, a new Jokic 1/1 is revealed, which is then used as a case study for contrasting a human-based presentation of its properties versus an artificial intelligence description. Second, two styles of understanding a card are contrasted: (A) the personal, narrative-driven recap, and (B) the communal/objective entry, rooted in facts about things like history and rarity.

This episode has three parts: (1) a review of my PC players, plus some commentary on how I'm currently collecting each, and which cards I'm looking for next, (2) meditations on the idea of evolving as a collector from the "aesthetic" state to the "conceptual" state, and (3) an analysis of my most recent social media post of Jokic's first game-worn logoman autograph from Immaculate.

This episode has 3 parts. The first questions the role of market price in card rankings. The second and third use rarity to rank Michael Jordan cards.

The document ranking MJ cards can be accessed here: https://tinyurl.com/5antmxn5

This episode has four parts. The first poses the question: what is the most misunderstood card in your collection? Second is a discussion of "commemorative" cards—culminating in the reveal of a recent MJ pickup. The third section analyzes historical Q4 price trends through the lens of the CL50. And the fourth offers some quick thoughts on the NBA's recent GM survey.

This episode has 3 sections. The first investigates how "known unknowns" induced a bout of collecting paralysis—and how I plan to prevent it from happening again. The second tells the story of a "One of a Kind" Michael Jordan 1/1 from the inaugural Master Collection product of 1999-00. And the third analyzes the current sports card market—through the lens of Michael Jordan cards—using a variety of metrics and theories.

This episode opens with a segment on what "utopia" might teach us about card collecting. The next segment investigates how ownership of a card triggers a learning process. The third segment introduces the "90s MJ 1/1" taxonomy. The fourth is a review of my recent social media post of the PowerDeck 1/1. Fifth is a spotlight on cautionary episodes issued by @TheHobbyWithCage and @TheReal27Guy, followed by my own retelling of the market for a card that went on a bull run back in 2020/21. Finally, some NFL stats that reflect favorably on two of my PC players are recited.

The MJ 1/1 web resource referenced in the show — https://90sMJ1of1s.com/

This episode has three segments: 1) September supply increases and how they might counteract runaway prices in this bull market, 2) a deep dive into storytelling about sports cards, and 3) does the "better player hypothesis" predict that Duncan prices should be higher than Kobe, or does it actually predict the opposite?

This episode puts forth 12 segments. Several of the highlights include: a thought experiment designed to figure out the goal of collecting, reflections on successful market predictions in a bull market, and photo-matching a recent pickup.