Shaq Topps rookie error?

[slidekellyslide]

Has anyone ever seen this before?

[Big J]

Is one of them possibly a card that came with his rookie starting lineup figure? I know that Topps had cards in the package with the 1992-93 basketball players.

[slidekellyslide]

The starting lineup rookie cards all have "starting lineup" printed on the front of the card.

[Big J]

Oops. Yeah, I forgot about that. Good luck trying to figure it out. Hopefully it's something really rare for you.

[Cliff Bowman]

Cool print error card. I know nothing about 90's cards especially basketball, but as soon as I saw it I figured it was the top of the uncut sheet. Sure enough, I was able to find an uncut sheet and the O'Neal is on the top (or bottom) row. I have seen other Topps baseball sheets where cards on the top or bottom row have similar print flaws. I looked through hundreds of the O'Neal card on eBay and COMC and didn't see another one. The other ten players on the same row as O'Neal should have the same print flaw, but who knows how many sheets were printed with the flaw before it was caught. ETA, one sold yesterday May 3 on eBay for $23 at 4 PM, too bad I didn't start looking sooner.

[JustinD]

Most definitely a true reoccuring error.

I was able to find a copy to add myself -

[Cliff Bowman]

There should also be the same print flaw of the other ten cards that were on the top row with Shaq. Christian Laettner, Todd Day, Tom Gugliotta, Robert Horry, Tracy Murray, Tony Bennett, etc., but I was never able to find any.

[Cliff Bowman]

The only ones I can find are in the eBay sold section . Here is a PSA 9 that sold for $101, but what is interesting about this one is that the print flaw extends further than the other examples, it goes well below the Topps logo.

[JustinD]

Interesting that the “experts” at PSA looked right at it and saw nothing, lol.

As soon as I saw this post I started looking, a reoccurring error on one of the most important basketball rookies of the past 30 years is a nice find. I saw mine ASAP after it was posted and got it for a 35 dollar best offer. Super happy to check it off before it becomes well known.

[JustinD]

After researching this, I believe the reason for not finding matching cards is that the error originated on the O'neal card. Most likely it was a chemical spill on the black plate that spread over the print run of (?).

Here is a card in my collection showing the earliest sign of the "blacklessing" near the hand extending into the border.

Shaq phase one.jpg

Next we have a card that sold last night I missed out on. This card shows the "blacklessing" extending from the original point.

Shaq phase two.JPG

Third we have the full top error of spread on this card in my collection -

shaq phase three.JPG

The extended PSA error you showed a couple posts ago would be the next phase of this.

[Cliff Bowman]

With that evidence you are probably right that it doesn't affect all eleven cards along the top row but I would say it is very likely that it at least partially went into Robert Horry to the left of Shaq and Christian Laettner to the right of Shaq.

[Cliff Bowman]

I found a Laettner with the print flaw across the whole top of the card so that leaves the possibility that more cards other than Shaq were affected on the top horizontal row of the sheet.

[JustinD]

Awesome, i'll add to the search.

[Cliff Bowman]

I finally got one of these, for a song and a dance no less. I still haven't found any others besides the Christian Laettner, there should at least be Robert Horry to the left of O'Neal and Todd Day to the right of Laettner with the flaw.

[JustinD]

Good find!

You did get it for a song too and that was great searching as those dried up quick after that thread. I have still been looking for more on occasion but haven’t seen a thing.

[Cliff Bowman]

Finally found another one, Robert Horry is to the immediate left of Shaq. That means so far Horry, Shaq, and Laettner are confirmed affected and Tony Bennett and Todd Day are at the very least partially affected.

[JustinD]

nice!