Return to Simplicity: 1996-97 Fleer can be summed up in one word, classic. It was probably a reaction to the previous ’95-96 set and its busy designs. For this season, Fleer priority was back on the full-bleed photo, apart from the name in the lower-left corner. The last name and a splash of paint outlining a basketball were printed on the card and the first name and team name appeared in gold foil on top. The company and season are in gold foil in a top corner. Very minimal. The reverse was simple as well. Horizontal back with full statistics…no other information. There are a few carefully selected design features including another photo of the player and the background consisting of a basketball texture and the team logo. Finally, the structure was classic as well. Two series at 150 cards each. Players organized alphabetically by team and last name with subsets ending each series. Even the eleven-card packs at $1.99 felt like a return to classic collecting. Keep purchasing, complete that set, and find those inserts! Honestly, it was refreshing to return to an affordable, organized, classically-designed set.
With this return to simplicity, there’s not much to say about this card specifically. One interesting detail is the inclusion of the phrase “Voluntarily Retired” in the statistics box. I get what they were going for, but “retired was enough. “Voluntary” implies there’s “involuntarily retirement” and we definitely don’t want that!
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