Price Guide

How much is that card worth anyway?

Pop Report: Basketball Reclaims Top Spot as PSA’s Grading Volume Jumps 14%

PSA’s grading volume jumped by 14% to nearly 170,000 items last week as basketball also reclaimed the top spot as the most graded category. TCG slipped to No. 2 with a slight dip in grading activity week-over-week.

Read this week’s Pop Report for the latest data and news on PSA’s grading trends.

From a category perspective:

  • All five of the major sports saw increases in grading activity last week, led by a big jump in basketball.

The mix of the top 50 players (and characters) graded during the period were as follows:

23 – Basketball

14 – Baseball

8 – Football

5 – TCG

Below you’ll find a list of the top players graded for each category. 

An important consideration is what to make of this list. In the current situation where fears of junk slabs dominate the hobby, ranking high on this list likely is negatively correlated with price as that signals a meaningful number of slabs could move into the market in the near future. However, under normal circumstances, it could potentially be a leading indicator of positive price correlation as the list more accurately represents forward looking activity (i.e. bets being placed on players) and price potential.

BASKETBALL

Top 10 Most Graded Players & Top Graded Card (during the 1 week period)

Noteworthy moves:

  • UP: Zion Williamson, Ja Morant, Kobe Bryant, Trae Young
  • DOWN:  LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Luka Doncic, RJ Barrett, Coby White
  • OUT OF TOP 10: Shaquille O’Neal

BASEBALL

Top 10 Most Graded Players & Top Graded Card (during the 1-week period)

Noteworthy moves:

  • UP: Ken Grifffey Jr., Mike Trout, Gavin Lux, Juan Soto
  • DOWN: Randy Arozarena, Kyle Lewis, Yordan Alvarez
  • OUT: Ronald Acuna Jr.

FOOTBALL

Top 10 Most Graded Players & Top Graded Card (during the 1-week period)

Noteworthy moves:

  • UP:  Jalen Hurts, Jordan Love, Justin Jefferson, Jordan Love
  • DOWN: Josh Allen, Kyler Murray
  • OUT:  Lamar Jackson

SOCCER

Top 10 Most Graded Players & Top Graded Card (during the 1-week period)

Noteworthy moves:

  • UP: Erling Haaland, Ansu Fati, Christian Pulisic, Pedri
  • DOWN: Jadon Sancho, Neymar Jr. 
  • OUT: Giovanni Reyna, Zlatan Ibrahimovic 

Note: Hockey and soccer lists are more volatile because grading activity is lower. Much smaller moves in grading activity can have a big impact on these lists.

HOCKEY

Top 10 Most Graded Players & Top Graded Card (during the 1-week period)

Noteworthy moves:

  • UP: Jaromir Jagr, Mario Lemieux, Bobby Orr, Patrick Roy, Guy Lafleur, Jack Hughes, Gordie Howe, Mark Messier
  • DOWN: Steve Yzerman
  • OUT: Alexis Lafreniere, Sergei Fedorov, Sidney Crosby, Nick Suzuki, Elias Pettersson

Note: Hockey and soccer lists are more volatile because grading activity is lower. Much smaller moves in grading activity can have a big impact on these lists.

Data in the Sports Card Investor Pop Report series is provided by GemRate. Follow GemRate on Instagram and Twitter for more on the latest cards graded by PSA.

Track your collection and maximize your profit with Market Movers, the hobby’s most powerful sports card pricing platform! Learn more here.

Note to readers: If you purchase something through one of our affiliates we may earn a commission.

Newsletter Icon

GET SPORTS CARD INVESTING NEWS & TIPS BY EMAIL

Don’t Miss Out!

Get the latest news, tips, and exclusive deals delivered right to your inbox with the Sports Card Investor newsletter!