The first major set dedicated to basketball alone! (In fact, collectors had to wait until the 1957-58 Topps for the next major basketball card set). Bowman produced plenty of baseball cards in the late 1940’s into the 1950’s, but the 1948 Bowman basketball set is their only complete basketball run until the 1996-97 Bowman’s Best set. (These were actually produced by Topps who purchased Bowman way back in 1956).
If you’ve never seen one of these cards in person, you should. They are smaller than a standard sports card at 2 1/16″ x 2 1/2″. Cards 1-36 were a first series, and cards 37-72 were a second. The second series is noteworthy for two reasons. First, these cards were produced in fewer quantities. Secondly, there are variants with printing issues, either missing ink that causes a gray background, loss of a particular color of ink, or overprinting. See the PSA list here to become aware of these variations.
Obviously the #69 George Mikan rookie is the highlight of the set. But not to be overlooked are the #1 Ernie Calverley rookie (since it is the first card in the first major basketball set), the #32 William “Red” Holzman rookie (a player card of one of the greatest coaches of all time), the #34 Joe Fulks rookie and the #66 Jim Pollard rookie (known for dunking from the free throw line). A unique feature of the set are the “play cards,” diagrams of basketball plays. This clever feature doesn’t get the attention it deserves.
Also, to give more context, this set features BAA basketball players. This was the Basketball Association of America. It’s final season was 1948-49 after which it merged with the National Basketball League to form the NBA. These cards fall into place right during this moment of transition!
Information on Individual Cards:
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