The mystery surrounding Cooper Flagg’s record-setting $8 million rookie card has taken an unexpected turn.
Less than a month after the Dallas Mavericks star’s one-of-one NBA Debut Patch Autograph sold for $8.04 million at Fanatics Collect, the card has resurfaced as the centerpiece of a new digital sports card repack product from PrizePicks.
And Flagg’s card isn’t alone.
The company also acquired the NBA Debut Patch Autographs of Dylan Harper and Kon Knueppel, which sold for $2.88 million and $2.34 million, respectively, during the same September auction.
That’s $13.26 million in recent auction sales now represented in PrizePicks’ inventory, although the company isn’t disclosing what it paid to secure the cards.
PrizePicks Keeps Details of $13.26 Million in Rookie Cards Private
PrizePicks announced the launch of PrizePicks Packs on October 21, revealing the three record-setting NBA rookie cards among its highest-valued collectibles.
The cards were among the biggest attractions at Fanatics Collect’s September Premier Auction, where Flagg’s PSA 10 became the most expensive single-player basketball card ever sold.
Harper’s PSA 9 and Knueppel’s PSA 10 also established new records for cards featuring their respective players.
While the original auction results generated considerable attention, the identities of the winning bidders weren’t publicly disclosed.
According to Sports Collectors Daily, PrizePicks subsequently acquired Flagg’s card from a third party rather than winning it directly at auction.
Heavy contacted PrizePicks seeking additional information about how the company acquired the cards, including whether they were obtained together and how much the transactions cost.
A company representative declined to provide further details, citing proprietary information.
That leaves a significant distinction between the $13.26 million the cards collectively fetched at auction and the undisclosed amount PrizePicks ultimately paid to obtain them.
Cooper Flagg’s $8 Million Card Can Now Be Pulled From a $1 Pack
Perhaps the most striking development is what PrizePicks intends to do with the cards.
Rather than holding the historic collectibles in a private collection, the company has placed them into PrizePicks Packs, a digital repack platform offering opportunities to pull physical trading cards.
Customers purchase digital packs ranging from $1 to $2,500, with each opening revealing an actual trading card stored in a secure facility.
According to PrizePicks, every basketball pack tier offers a chance to pull the Flagg, Harper or Knueppel cards. More expensive packs offer better odds of landing premium collectibles, although the company does not guarantee a particular card.
Customers can request physical delivery of their cards or accept a buyback offer based on PrizePicks’ calculation of fair market value.
PrizePicks also advertises a 1998 Japanese Pikachu Illustrator card graded CGC Mint 9, carrying an estimated value of approximately $2.81 million.
That brings the company’s four advertised headliners to more than $16 million in stated value.
PrizePicks’ Record-Breaking Cards Highlight the Rise of Digital Repacks
The launch represents an unusual next chapter for cards that already produced some of the hobby’s biggest headlines.
Flagg’s debut patch was originally pulled during an August break after collector Jason Williams purchased the Mavericks spot for $515, according to PrizePicks. Williams eventually sent the card to auction rather than accepting earlier offers.
Now, the same card is being used to attract customers to a product in which collectors can theoretically acquire a multimillion-dollar collectible through a comparatively inexpensive pack opening.
For PrizePicks, the attraction is clear: few collectibles command more attention than a one-of-one rookie autograph that recently shattered an industry record.
For collectors, the arrangement presents a different proposition from traditional sealed wax. The featured cards have already been discovered, authenticated and assigned public market values. The uncertainty lies in which existing collectible a customer receives.
There is also a meaningful difference between the advertised auction values and what a customer might ultimately receive through PrizePicks’ buyback process. The company’s terms state that fair market values are determined using third-party valuation data and other relevant factors, meaning an offer is not necessarily guaranteed to match a previous auction result.
And while PrizePicks isn’t revealing the financial details behind its acquisitions, the destination of three of basketball’s most valuable modern rookie cards is no longer a mystery.
They’re back in packs.
Mystery Buyer of Cooper Flagg’s $8 Million Rookie Card Revealed