Buzz buys a lot of stuff these days and for a few reasons, really. Sometimes it's just bargain-hunting, sometimes it's just something that strikes me. And other times it's a lot -- a group of things -- and that has happened enough lately I figured I'd try something different as a regularly appearing item. Sometimes my lots will be wins, sometimes they won't be ... but I'll let you decide. 

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DIGGING UP ONE GEM?
The Lot: A lot of nine 1975-76 Topps NBA stars
The Price: About $11

Keep reading for more on this one ...

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: MLB pulls, Topps Heritage chatter, Angel Hernandez, Victor Wembanyama, Elly De La Cruz and the end of the eBay Vault.

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What: 2023-24 Panini Select basketball cards
Arrives: May 10 for hobby, May 22 for H2
Box basics: Three autos or memorabilia cards per 12-pack hobby box (12 boxes per case); four packs her H2 box (20 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Select once again hits the court with the same formula -- a tiered base set with plenty of parallels -- but a new rookie class and some other surprises from this colorful brand.

Keep reading for more info and a full gallery of images released so far.

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Buzz recently landed a grail item ... and here's its story.

My latest in this Collecting Game-used series is a game-used jersey for a player probably most of you won't know -- actually, I expect that -- and it's an item that's pushing 50 years old, too, so it's definitely not a piece with ironclad straight-off-the-back holographically stickered documentation with an authenticity statement that can be looked up in some database somewhere at any time on any day.

In this case, though? I can without any hesitation state that this 1976-77 Houston Rockets road jersey is as real as it gets, was on the back of small forward John "J.J" Johnson back in the day -- likely all season long when on the road and then during the playoffs, too. These days, postseason jerseys would have extra touches on them with specialty patches attached and in some cases a guy might wear a few jerseys per game. In this case it's just like any other jersey -- if there are any others.

How do I know it's legit, though? Some dumb luck, really, thanks to a publicly available photo database cross-checked with Johnson's game logs for his two seasons with the Rockets. It's mostly the luck part thanks to one photographer's work from back in the day, a photo that's not the norm at all from those years. It's also an ironclad match thanks to some quirky flaws on this jersey -- look closely at that "Houston" we'll come back to that later. It might have scared some people off of this one as this sat on eBay for weeks (if not months) before I made it my biggest hobby purchase ever in decades of collecting. Why? Some school ties -- Johnson was the first former NBA player I ever interviewed long, long ago ... and also the fact that vintage game-used memorabilia just doesn't pop up regularly. I doubt I'd be able to find anything comparable ever again if I passed it up.

Keep reading to see the details this time -- it's those weird flaws that make this photo-match a lock.

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Buzz buys and busts a lot of boxes right here for Buzz Breaks, but one of my goals is to rip a little less and talk more about cardboard that I -- and you -- might like. One way to do that? Simple show and tell -- present a few pick-ups and say why they captured my attention.

So, with all that said, here are a few Buzz Buys ... 

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I CAN'T LAND THE CARD, BUT ... THIS IS EVEN BETTER
The Item: Paige autographed 2012 FCW Summer Slamarama 12-by-18 promotional poster
The Price: Pricey ... but probably less than your new WWE hobby box
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: So, what is this? It's a piece of 2000s WWE history that ultimately would only surface regionally (in Florida) and is one of few collectible options for the company's developmental ranks in the years before NXT was on TV every week. Florida Championship Wrestling was NXT's predecessor with it being broadcast on regional TV only (and sometimes weeks after events happened ... not live). Meanwhile, many of today's current stars got their starts there with different names than you might know -- and the only "stuff" that might be found now for this summer in particular are a single in-demand (and counterfeited) card set, potential programs/magazines, tickets and maybe a calendar ... but FCW wasn't like NXT is now in a lot of ways. It wasn't uncommon for the stars of now to be taking money for tickets or helping the crowd members find their seats before a modest small-venue show. This is a large poster that uses a version of Paige's card from that set of the same name -- a pricey one that's eluded me due to price and the fakes (I'd only buy graded) -- and this auto is an early, full-letter signature unlike her few card autos. It came from a Florida-based collector who went to an FCW show on June 8, 2012, in Punta Gorda, Fla., and landed it at a signing to kick off the regional Summer Slamarama Tour that year ... and that was the first event. Supposedly only 300 fans per stop (while they lasted) got card sets -- that also shows why those are pricey (if they survived). This stop had six FCW stars in the set signing these posters and Paige is the biggest of them by far -- and she had only signed with WWE as an 19-year-old and made her FCW debut that January. How many of these are still around now? I have no idea ... but I've never seen another.
Grab a box right here: Land WWE stuff at BlowoutCards.com

Keep reading for more interesting items ...

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Jackson Holliday set to debut, Topps Heritage is here, Dawn Staley, Victor Wembanyama, Elly De La Cruz and more.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Topps Heritage, NBA pulls, showing off sets, Julio Rodriguez and more in today's edition.

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What: 2024 TRISTAR Hidden Treasures Autographed Basketball Jerseys
Arrives: June 19
Box basics: One autographed basketball jersey per box (five boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: TRISTAR's Hidden Treasures line hits the hardwood for a new year with some of the biggest stars in the history of the game involved as either standard jerseys or as the big chase and the biggest new name in the NBA is in there, too.

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What: 2023-24 Panini Noir basketball cards
Arrives: May 29
Box basics: Four autographs and three memorabilia cards per 10-card box (four boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: Noir hits the hardwood once again with the nods to shoes, moody hues and, of course, new Rookie Cards and plenty more within its high-end boxes.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: 2024 Bowman chatter, NBA pulls, Shohei Ohtani, Caitlin Clark, Kris Bryant and some advice threads to see for returning collectors.

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What: 2023-24 Panini Obsidian basketball cards
Arrives: May 22
Box basics: Two autographed cards and one memorabilia card per seven-card box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: Obsidian arrives on the hardwood for the sixth time with top NBA rookies and plenty more to be found as part of this sometimes-colorful release.

Keep reading for more info and a full gallery of images released so far.

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What: 2023-24 Panini Impeccable basketball cards
Arrives: May 15
Box basics: Five on-card autographs per nine-card box (three boxes per case)
Order: Click here (live soon)

What's buzz-worthy: Impeccable NBA collectors drops once again with all of the precious metals, rookies, autographs and plenty more in a hits-driven approach.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Big pulls, the Sophomore Slump, Victor Wembanyama, Shohei Ohtani, Joey Bart and more.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Victor Wembanyama and NBA box-buying, Shohei Ohtani, Nikola Jokic, new golf cards, MLB chatter and a bad year for NFL cards?

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Opening Day standouts, Shohei Ohtani, Caleb Williams, player collectors and more.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: New pulls, NFL and MLB chatter, the "Ohtani Guilt-O-Meter" and could old-timers play in MLB today?

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: The Shohei Ohtani scandal, new NBA and Chrome UFC pulls, card alterations and more have 'em talking.

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What: 2024 Leaf Metal Pickleball cards
Arrives: May 24
Box basics: Five numbered autos and five numbered base parallels per hobby box (10 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Leaf Metal takes on pickleball with a colorful array of possible finds that include some surprises as you can see above.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Justin Fields is set to be a Steeler, showing off multi-player autos, vintage NFL, Connor Bedard and more in this Sunday edition.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Talking MLB and NBA, Ronald Acuña Jr., the Dylan Cease deal, 2024 Topps and more.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: Derrick Henry, Mac Jones, Trevor Lawrence, NFL moves, MLB chatter, 2024 Topps and more in today's edition.

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: NBA collectors are talking, spring training chatter, new NFL breaks, 2024 Topps, a question for all and ... is Joey Votto a Hall of Famer?

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The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: New pulls, 2024 Topps, Leaf wrestling cards and plenty more on collectors' minds in this Sunday edition.

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What: 2023-24 Donruss Optic basketball cards
Arrives: May 1
Box basics: One autograph per 20-pack box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Optic hits the court for another season with the established formula that NBA fans have come to expect with the new rookies, plenty of parallel power and more in store.

Keep reading for more info and a gallery of what's to come for this one.

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What: 2023-24 Panini Recon basketball cards
Arrives: April 24
Box basics: Two autos per 10-pack box (12 boxes per case)
Order: Click here

What's buzz-worthy: Recon gets a fourth run on the NBA calendar with "with a large selection of autograph, insert and parallel content" according to Panini with plenty of the rookie and star power in there, too.

Keep reading for more and a full gallery of images.

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