On The Cards - A Podcast about collecting sports cards.

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In this Episode, Hank and Mick discuss everything there is to discuss (within half an hour) about pricing cards. From overpriced cards at card shows, to stores not even putting a price sticker on anything in their display cabinets, we chat about what we love and hate about the fine art of pricing cards.

Hank discusses what constitutes a fair price. Is taking an average of the last 3 or 5 sales a good start? Mick often has trouble finding recent or relative comps for many of the rare modern cards he is hunting and/or selling. At times we get fired up about what annoys us about overpriced or mis-priced card. But at the end of the day... its a fine art, and something that needs to be finessed over time.

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In this Episode, Hank & Mick chat about pulling the trigger on a new purchase. It could be another card for our main PC, or a new player or set. We spend so much time doing research on cards, players and sets we are interested in - but do we back it up enough?

Hank feels like he is caught in a trap, where the cards he wants are now too expensive. Mick discusses how sometimes he will buy a card on impulse, but the real question is, will these card stick in his PC long-term, or will he just as impulsively sell them? Mick is considering maybe adding some vintage cards to his collection. Hank might start adding some Shaq cards... but will they pull the trigger and actually do it? 

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In this Episode, Hank and Mick discuss the Whales of The Hobby. The pinnacle of collectors and their monumental collections. How do we mere minnows feel about it? If often blows us away at how ridiculous these collections are. They feel so unattainable and out of reach. Are we inspired to grow our collections, in the hope of one day joining them... or are they so untouchable that we switch off completely?

One thing we both are positive about, is when we discuss a few key figures running companies in the hobby. Yes, they are business minded, but they are also collectors at heart, who actually care about experience in the hobby. 

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In this Episode, Hank & Mick discuss a couple of hot topics and look at how they possibly affect our collecting approach for the year. We start by discussing the second PSA price hike in the last few months. With grading prices going up and turnaround times getting longer - is it starting to feel like 2020/21 all over again?

We also discuss the big NBA trades that recently happened. With two of Micks side PC players being traded (Harden & AD)... we discuss what this means for his outlook on these players in the short term - and the possible impact on their legacy. 

There is never a dull moment in the hobby. 

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In this Episode, Hank & Mick put each other on the spot, and discuss what cards they would purchase if they had $1000 to spend this week. The rules are pretty simple... we can buy one card or multiple cards, on any sales platform... but the cards must be held in our collection for the next 5 years. 

In a space where flipping cards is almost the norm, this helps to narrow our focus to cards we believe in long-term. Cards that we would want as part of our personal collection. Cards that we love. 

Towards the end of the episode, we even open it up to consider what would purchase in the TCG space. None of what we say should ever taken as investing advice. You would never take investing advice from a couple of degenerate collectors from Melbourne, Australia... now would you? 

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In our 20th Episode, Hank and Mick discuss their hobby plans for 2026. We chat about whether we will continue to hunt for big cards to add to our collections this year. Is the Sports Card market going to have another huge year like 2025... or is it going to cool off or go sideways for a while?

We discuss the recent acquisition of Beckett by Collectors, and if we intend to grade with Beckett this year? Is the One Piece boom going to keep exploding, and will Pokemon cool off a little? 

We also discuss our card show plans for 2026... and yes, it looks like the National is on the cards!

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In this Episode, Hank & Mick discuss the various scandals and headaches that have hit the Hobby in recent months. We chat about the PSA debacle, where a selection of PSA 9s magically were re-labelled PSA 10s. We talk about SNYPE and the monumental disaster that unfolded during its inaugural auction. 

We also hit on the Patrick Ryan shill bidding nightmare, where he live-streamed bidding on his own card, then had a discussion with Dr Beckett about defensive shill bidding. But most importantly, we discuss how we tune out all this noise, to focus on what is most important to us... our own personal collecting experience.  If all the negativity is getting to you - switch it off, or switch it up. Maybe go to a card show. This is your hobby - so, do it your way!

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In this Episode, Hank & Mick discuss their belief that we are at the Top of the current cycle of the Sports Card Market. We discuss how the last couple of months of each year are usually buying months, with prices and sales volumes slightly dipping. Has the Pokemon and TCG boom of 2025 been the driving force behind the market uptick?

We chat about whether Bitcoin and other alternative assets are actually correlated with price moments in trading cards. And both of us, explore the idea that in an increasingly digital world, more and more people are seeking and enjoying physical collectibles like cards, records, comics etc. Enjoy!  

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In this Episode, Hank and Mick chat about the pressure to chase new players and new cards in the hobby. Is it really a smart move? Is it important to keep adding new, fresh things to your collection?... or can your improve your collection by focusing on getting better grades of the cards you love and already own. New is not necessarily better, especially in a hobby with deep veins in history, legacy and vintage cards. 

We chat about Wemby, Zion and Cooper Flagg. We touch on Topps and Panini and Jordan Rookie cards again. Hank discusses the 1 of 1 hunt, and how he feels it shouldnt be a core focus of the hobby,  as card collecting is a shared experience. Mick thinks owning too many of a players pinnacle cards, makes you the Dalai Lama of that player, sitting on the mountain top, looking down at others.

With Topps the new kid on the block again, and Panini over. 

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In this Episode, Hank and Mick do a deep dive on the handover of the NBA Trading card licence from Panini (who have had the NBA licence for the last 13 years) to Topps (via Fanatics) who will be exclusively be printing NBA trading cards for the foreseeable future. 

We discuss in detail the first Topps NBA licensed product to hit the market this week: Topps 2025-26 NBA Basketball. We dig into the details of the 18 page pack-odds document that Topps have posted, chatting about the multitude of inserts, variants and parallels on offer. 

Mick muses about the end of the Panini era, and what that means for his collecting focus. Hank is curiously sitting back, waiting to see what will be the first Topps card that Mick adds to his PC. 

NOTE: To find the pack odds doc... just jump on the Topps website and download the 2025-26 Topps Basketball pdf (its an interesting doc): https://www.topps.com/pages/odds