For those collectors who grew up watching NBA basketball in the 1990s, Shawn Kemp rookie cards are among the most sought-after of the era.
And that's despite Kemp never panning out as a Hall-of-Famer...
During his prime, he was one of the biggest superstars in the league.
Known for his incredible leaping ability, Kemp built a reputation for posterizing many would-be defenders by dunking right over them.
He was incredible to watch.
And he almost won a ring.
Kind of...
He and Gary Payton took the SuperSonics to the 1996 NBA Finals but soon found themselves down 3-0 to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.
Despite a valiant effort to bring the series to 3-2, they fizzled out in Game 6.
Still, Kemp and crew put up an admirable fight against a stacked Chicago Bulls team.
That series solidified Kemp's legacy as one of the most popular players of the 90s.
And in this guide, we'll take a detailed look at Kemp's rookie cards.
Let's jump right in!
1990 Fleer #178 Shawn Kemp Rookie Card
Estimated PSA 10 Value: $30
PSA 10 Population (Rate): 3,203 (37%)
As a sign of growing interest in basketball cards throughout the hobby, Fleer boosted its 1990 set checklist by 30 cards from 168 cards the year before to 198.
Michael Jordan brought on much of that increase in demand.
But Shawn Kemp and other up-and-coming superstars certainly played a big role.
Collectors could find rookie cards of future Hall-of-Famers Vlade Divac, Tim Hardaway, Sarunus Marciulionis, and big-name players like Shawn Kemp, Glen Rice, and Mookie Blaylock.
Despite not being in the Hall of Fame, Kemp's rookie is arguably the most sought-after of any of the rookies in the set.
That's how popular he was during the 1990s.
When this set debuted, Fleer had been in the basketball card business longer than Hoops and SkyBox.
Yet, despite the increased experience, I always thought their 1990 set design was the worst of the three companies.
Don't get me wrong, it's not bad.
But compared to the Hoops and SkyBox designs, 1990 Fleer basketball just seemed a bit bland.
However, the image of Kemp soaring up for a monster dunk is arguably the best of his three rookies.
And this is the easiest of his rookies to find in PSA 10 condition: over 3,000 examples of this card have ended up in a PSA 10 holder which is more than three times the amount of his Hoops and SkyBox cards combined.
1990 Hoops #279 Shawn Kemp Rookie Card
Estimated PSA 10 Value: $50
PSA 10 Population (Rate): 426 (13%)
Clocking in at 440 cards, the 1990 Hoops checklist is the largest of the three mainstream card manufacturers on this list.
1990 SkyBox was close, with 423 cards in the set, while 1990 Fleer was a distant third at 198 cards.
With all that extra room in the checklist came more rookie cards.
Compared to three Hall-of-Fame rookies in the 1990 Fleer set, there are five in the 1990 Hoops checklist, with Drazen Petrovic and Gary Payton joining the other three mentioned earlier.
Kemp's rookie joins them as one of the keys to the set.
The gray borders of 1990 Hoops are instantly recognizable, and the bright yellow "Rookie" icon adds some much-needed aesthetic pop to the card.
I say that because, compared to the other action shots on his other rookies, the image of Kemp posting up may seem a bit dull to some.
Still, it's hard to argue with any Kemp rookie.
And this set overall remains extremely popular throughout the hobby.
Because of their very different cameos, the Mark Jackson and Sam Vincent cards have brought extra attention to the set in recent years.
This is Kemp's toughest rookie to find in a PSA 10 grade.
1990 SkyBox #268 Shawn Kemp Rookie Card
Estimated PSA 10 Value: $30
PSA 10 Population (Rate): 572 (21%)
The gold borders and futuristic-looking graphics of 1990 SkyBox basketball formed arguably one of the most recognizable designs of any sports card set of the 1990s.
There was simply nothing else like it on the market.
And Kemp's rookie card is one of the best-looking in the checklist.
Many of the players in the set were isolated.
And that's fine since it directly brought the collector's focus to that individual player.
However, some cards, like Kemp's, featured multiple players in action.
For example, on Dennis Rodman's card, he's shown battling Larry Bird for a rebound while Charles Barkley fights off a pesky Dennis Johnson on his card.
But Kemp's card contains one of the best multi-player action shots in the entire set: Kemp shooting over the top of Lakers Hall-of-Famer James Worthy's outstretched hand.
It's an incredible image.
Kemp wasn't known as an outstanding shooter around the league and was more popular for his high-flying, powerful dunks.
Still, whenever you get two NBA legends on the same card, it's a win.
The Shawn Kemp Rookie Card Review
Now that we've gone through the list, here are some of my thoughts on Shawn Kemp's rookie cards:
Most Valuable: Kemp's most valuable rookie card is his 1990 Hopps #279, which can be worth over $50 in PSA 10 condition.
Least Valuable: Both the Fleer and SkyBox Shawn Kemp rookies go for around $30 in PSA 10 condition.
My Favorite: I have to go with the 1990 SkyBox as my favorite and it's all because of the design.
The computer-generated graphics in the background and gold borders are about as iconic as it gets for a "Junk Wax Era" set.
My Least Favorite: The 1990 Fleer Shawn Kemp contains arguably the best image of the high-flying dunker but, overall, the rest of the design makes it a bit more bland than the other two.