What's Buzzing: MLB and MVP chatter, NFL Week 12, new pulls, the 76ers and more in this Thursday edition.

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With the sports world in a massive pause with everything in flux -- a weird time for sure -- I figured I'd go with the weird item in the Collecting Game-used series this month.

And you can actually call this one "Collecting Pregame-used."

The item you see above is a shirt presented to and used by an NBA player not long ago (and who was having a pretty solid campaign this year) and it's not some super-pricey piece or relatively amazing visual, though you should know some of the faces on the front. However, it was a series of locker room photos about what the team had planned for this marketing event that got me to jump on this one.

You can keep reading to see the details ... and the item in action (sorta).

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This year's National Sports Collectors Convention is nearly here -- it's set for July 31-Aug. 4 in Chicago with a strong roster of autograph guests ready to sign for collectors who get a ticket and get in line for their moment beyond the ballpark.

Some signers are free if you attend the VIP reception on opening day of the show or buy a VIP ticket package -- a bonus for taking the time to hit every day of the show -- but other signers will take some planning to land the ones you want.

It's tough to see everything at The National -- it's that big -- and the time it takes to work through autograph lines is valuable in that it impedes your shot at seeing it all. With that said, here are my picks -- one per day plus a bonus pick this year -- to grab off the autograph list. (Keep reading for the full signers list in a gallery ... and, remember, times are always subject to change.)

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ... a super-sized edition this time around that's heavy on MLB and NBA but with a few surprises.

The Cards: 1991-92 SkyBox #544-546 Team USA puzzle
The Reason Graded: I picked up a box of this one for roughly $16 late last year (a bargain price) and pulled two sets of these puzzles, which was good. Why? Because grading these and the other notables from the iconic Hall of Famer-loaded Dream Team is pretty heavy and this one has been on my to-do list. I landed most of the notables more than once but just one Jordan that was noticeably off-centered. These glossed cards on the puzzle could have issues that the standard cards don't have simply because of their surfaces, but mine were clean. I will revisit my second set to see if anything stands out. I may go the PSA route on the other set for variety's sake if I see anything that would make me wonder about potential grades.
The Grades: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: This one was a stressful one as I had hoped for matching grades. Thankfully, that's what I got and that's where most cards land for all three pieces of the puzzle. This is a textbook example of the kind of cardboard that can make you some money with grading, too, as they're no more than $10 total raw, while BGS 9.5s together should top $100 in some cases and asking prices for the middle (Jordan) card alone can be steep. It's memorable cardboard from the past with nothing but iconic players involved, so there's still good demand -- and that's another reason why I slabbed. Wax boxes aren't all that plentiful, either, compared to other boxes around that time.

Keep reading for the rest of this month's new grades and additions.

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...

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Have you seen the latest cool or interesting items on eBay? If not, you just might see some of those here every week as we're launching a weekly version of our eBay Buzz pieces that pop up from time to time. We’ll spotlight some items that have a story or just wow us with how much interest it might have — and we’re not just talking baseball cards, either.

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A HIGH-GRADE RARITY
The Item: 1959 Fleer Ted Williams #68 Ted Signs for 1959 SP (PSA 9)
The Price: $2,500 Buy-It-Now 
Why it’s Buzz-worthy: Today would have been Ted Williams' 100th birthday and this card is by far the rarest one from a unique and collectable set that examines his life away from the game as well as highlights up to that time. He signed a $5,000 per year deal to only appear on Fleer cards but this one was pulled for some type of contractural reason. Meanwhile, ironically, if you check the PSA pop report this card is the most-graded of any card in the set. (Likely since it's the most-valuable and others are all readily available.) Just 43 copies of this card have graded a PSA 9 -- and fakes exist, meaning you should buy one graded --  and none have graded higher.
Similar Pieces: Other Ted Williams cards on eBay 
The BlowoutCards.com Hunt: Click here for MLB boxes

Keep reading for four more interesting items in this week's roundup ...

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One of the greatest players in Philadelphia 76ers history is gone.

Hall of Famer Hal Greer, a 10-time All-Star, member of the NBA at 50 team and guard on the team's 1966-67 NBA championship squad, has died. He was 81.

"Greer was the first player to have his number retired by the 76ers organization when the team retired his No. 15 in 1976. To further celebrate his place in team history, Greer also became the first player to be honored with a sculpture on 76ers Legends Walk," said a statement from the team. "In addition to his historic contributions on the court, Greer will forever be remembered as a true gentleman who used the tremendous platform of basketball to uplift and inspire others."

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Now that the National Sports Collectors Convention is completed for today, the spotlight selectively turns to this year's Panini VIP Party, which will include some big-name guests, big-name signers and some big-name cardboard.

Black boxes, Gold packs, autographs and more are the mementos of the event, but the memories are made with the interactions between the collectors and the stars.

We'll help take you behind the rope virtually right here with a gallery of images from tonight's event.

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Who's the newest Panini VIP Party guest? Looks like we have an answer.

Panini America revealed that new Basketball Hall of Famer and former Philadelphia 76ers great Allen Iverson will be in attendance at tonight's event in Atlantic City, N.J. He's the sixth star announced for the event.

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Way back in 1999, Elton Brand was a star center for the Duke Blue Devils -- a center from tiny Peekskill, N.Y., who was about to make a big impression as the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft.

Fast-forward to today and the former Chicago Bull is coming out of retirement to join the NBA's worst team -- the Philadelphia 76ers, owners of a 3-33 record -- to help mentor another former Blue Devils star and first-round pick, Jahlil Okafor. Okafor, of course, has had issues off the court this season while also picking up the NBA game quickly. It's a match made in Blue Devils collecting heaven.

"He's not unlike most 20-year-olds you probably know, and he's definitely not at all different than most of his fellow players," Brand wrote in a piece for Sports Illustrated's website. "... if camera phones were around when Brad Miller, Ron Artest and I were Jahlil's age, we might've been banned from the league altogether, never mind suspended for a few games."

So, what about Brand on cardboard?

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This in from the Philadelphia Daily News after the NBA debut of Jahlil Okafor Wednesday night in Boston ...

It is impossible to overstate the significance of Jahlil Okafor . . . though the Philadelphia region seemed mystifyingly indifferent. Think about it: The Sixers finally added a complete player.  This is Eric Lindros, Jim Thome, Donovan McNabb and Allen Iverson.

With apologies to Sir Charles, Okafor is the best real big man to hit town since Moses [Malone], rest his soul, except Moses wasn't a savior. Jahlil Okafor brings salvation in short pants.

Okafor scored 26 points, grabbed seven rebounds and blocked a pair of shots in his debut. Said his coach later in the story about his ability to work on the court: "That's a hint of Tim Duncan."

We'll have to wait a while to see if he's the next Timmahhh, but we can start by looking at Okafor's early cardboard.

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