Cooper Flagg spent the weekend opening a trading-card store in Maine. Then one of the strangest pieces of his own memorabilia walked through the door.
Jason Williams, the South Carolina collector who owns Flagg’s one-of-one Rookie Debut Patch Autograph, traveled to Bangor for the grand opening of Flagg Trading Co. and handed Flagg the redemption card that started a multimillion-dollar chase.
Flagg looked it over and joked that Williams might not be getting it back.
He did.
Williams then shook Flagg’s hand and summed up why he made the trip.
“I couldn’t not come support you, you blessed me,” Williams told him in video shared from the opening.
That is not much of an exaggeration.
Cooper Flagg Card Has Reached $2.64 Million With Premium
Williams spent $515 for the Dallas Mavericks in an August 10 livestream break conducted by RhodyBreakers, according to CNN. His spot produced the redemption for Flagg’s Rookie Debut Patch Autograph — a one-of-one card built around the patch Flagg wore during his first NBA game.
A month later, the numbers have become considerably larger.
Fanatics Collect currently lists a $2.2 million bid on the card with 36 bids recorded. The company’s Premier Auctions carry a 20% buyer’s premium, putting the present purchase price at $2.64 million before applicable taxes and other fees. The auction runs through September 24.
The $2.64 million figure is not the hammer bid shown on Fanatics’ auction page; it is the price after the buyer’s premium is added.
The bidding also has some ground left to make up on an earlier offer.
Alt’s unusual “Bounty Auction” for the card reached $3.8 million before Williams chose to consign with Fanatics instead. Because the card was never consigned to Alt, that amount never became a completed sale.
Now the actual auction gets to settle the question.
Jason Williams Brought Flagg’s Card Back to Its Namesake
Williams had another reason to be in Bangor besides checking an auction app.
Flagg Trading Co. officially opened September 12 at 35 Main Street, with Flagg launching the shop alongside his cousin Tyler Flagg. Hundreds of people attended, and some collectors began lining up hours before the doors opened.
Flagg told the Portland Press Herald before the opening that his own interest in collecting helped drive the business. The store includes high-end inventory but is intended to give collectors of different experience levels a place to buy cards and spend time in the hobby.
Then Williams arrived carrying perhaps the most famous Flagg card of them all, or at least the piece of cardboard proving he owns it.
Williams also posed for photos during the trip with Flagg’s girlfriend Arianna Roberson, his parents Kelly and Ralph Flagg and cousin Tyler, according to social posts provided to Heavy.
For Williams, it completed another part of an unlikely month.
CNN reported that the machine-shop owner and father of five dropped to the floor after realizing his $515 break spot had landed the card. He later described the pull as life-changing.
The Mavericks even tried to get it from him before the auction houses did.
Dallas offered 32 years of premium lower-level season tickets — matching Flagg’s No. 32 — along with signed memorabilia, a meeting with Flagg and other experiences. Williams ultimately passed and took the card to market.
So there was some symmetry in handing the redemption to Flagg himself this weekend.
Just not enough to leave it with him.
Flagg gave the card back.
With millions of dollars currently attached to it, that was probably wise.
Dallas Mavericks Star Cooper Flagg Gets $2.64 Million News — Briefly