2012-13 Absolute Basketball Stars in Special Edition of Panini Unwrapped (Checklist)

In this special edition of Panini Unwrapped, Panini America's Scott Prusha and Chris Reed share one box of the new 2012-13 Absolute Basketball. In addition to the sweet contents of their four packs, they also bring a few additional cards for a little game of show-and-tell at the end of the video.

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In this special edition of Panini Unwrapped, Panini America’s Scott Prusha and Chris Reed share one box of the new 2012-13 Absolute Basketball. In addition to the sweet contents of their four packs, they also bring a few additional cards for a little game of show-and-tell at the end of the video.
We’ve also provided a link to the complete product checklist after the video. Oh, and what would any episode of Panini Unwrapped be without the chance for our loyal fans and collectors to win some prizes? After you’ve watched, please leave your candid (but respectfully delivered) feedback on the product in the comments section below. Early next week, we’ll select a few winners and award some of the great cards seen in this video as well as a few boxes of the product.

Here’s the video:


And here’s the checklist: 2012-13 Absolute Basketball Checklist

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93 Replies to “2012-13 Absolute Basketball Stars in Special Edition of Panini Unwrapped (Checklist)”

  1. The Retired series is numbered, good.
    Bigger stickers for the rookie sigs, excellent touch!
    The mirror background on base cards is epic!
    PLEASE tell me these will also be retail!!!

  2. I’m gonna be brutally honest here. Overall, I’d say the autos in this product are alright. Not amazing, but not terrible. Those gigantic stickers on marks of fame kind of skew me away from this, but the possibilities of other incredible pulls keeps me in. Also, seeing a huge name like Tony Parker on a redemption hurts, but I know that you guys do whatever it takes to get that session so it’s just a little wait which would be well worth it. Like the designs on the rookie autos. That kind of makes up for the small odds of pulling a big name rookie like Anthony Davis. The new technology involved with some of the cards is INSANE!!!! Being able to know what games a guy used that jersey in would be sick! Love love love LOVE that ability. I know there’s a lot of risk/reward involved in product with so many guaranteed hits, but this product looks like it’s a sure hit! Hopefully I can rip some soon!

  3. When Prusha was saying Scottie P I actually thought he was talking about Pippen lol. Cards look great and love the experiment with the larger stickers I hope that continues a bit. Wheres Hackler in this video?

  4. Like the base cards a lot adn the Spectrum. Rookie card design is nice too. I didn’t like the bigger stickers though. Stickers are something that should be de-emphasized in my opinion. Like the Hoopla design too.

  5. Thanks for Bringing back an Absolutely must have Basketball Cards!
    To the basketball Genius of Panini Design team to the great inputs of Keith Hower and Wes Elliot, to The ABSOLUTEly addicting Great writing of the rock star of the Hobby World
    Tracy Hackler thanks for giving us the collectors the dedication and innovation using the latest technology for the ABSOLUTEly the best possible in basketball cards! And Ofcourse
    To Scott and Chris for Being our Santa this
    Coming holiday. Very entertaining video.
    That hoopla auto by Kobe Bryant should be a great Stocking surprise. Kobe Bryant My Idol
    Is absolutely the greatest of his generation.
    Well Thanks Panini for an awesome product.
    May you and your family have An Absolute best Christmas!
    Lets include Newtown to our prayers and thoughts to give them the strength to cope.
    Salute!
    Peace!

  6. I think this is a great product. Sure, I would have liked better if there were more on-card autographs but there are great autograph and memorabilia insert sets. Also, I like that the Retired Player Base Set is numbered. I think it would be great if the normal base cards were numbered too. All in all, I really like the product and I will definitely buy a box or two. I would love to win a box here!
    Good job, Panini!

  7. First of all : Where’s Tracy ???
    This is Absolutely Panini !!
    Great Products, Another chance to get a KOBE Auto.
    Rookie cards look great and Retired Spectrum is awesome, of course, Autos and Patches are still the great treasures to find.
    Go Panini !

  8. This looks like another winner. Its understandable that you can’t please everyone but this guy is pleased with the product. The foil tech looks great and the images of the players always seem to get better and better. Even if its only a slight improvement every year. The Kobe Hoopla looked really sharp. And I totally agree that the type-face on the retired numbers insets look great as well. I don’t care what anyone else says, I love Panini products. You can never really go wrong.
    Ps. Scotty P is a good looking man.

  9. Love it. The rookie autos are my favorite. Nice clean simple design
    The Star gazing patch are awesome! I hope this will be an annual release.
    Thanks Panini, cannot wait to get my hands on some of these cards

  10. Great product. But I would definitely like to see more HRX cards in different product or something similar. I know they are in found in packs of Certified but I know every kid would like to get his hands on one. Just a thought. Great cards though.

  11. This product is ABSOLUTELY insane. I cant wait to get my hands on this product evry card in this product looks amazing even the base cards are sick!

  12. Overall, this is a nice looking product but I think the execution could have been better. I like seeing a larger number of non-rookies in this release. The first few releases have been rookie heavy so far this year, so it is nice to see a product where you can expect to get a non-rookie auto when you buy a box. I’m not a huge sticker auto hater, but some of those stickers are large and overwhelm the card. I realize they were made to fit the space on the card, but they stick out a little too much.
    I am a little disappointed in the rookie designs overall across the releases so far this year. The double rookie class offered a unique opportunity for collectors, but I feel like there has been little differentiation across products in the rookie designs. Specifically, Absolute has somewhat of an identity across sports with its triple relic rookie designs, but it continues the trend of no relic, no variation rookie cards. Would have loved to have seen Totally Certified and Absolute break the monotony and bring some relics and patch variations to their releases.
    It is easier to criticize in any analysis of a new product since the things most collectors like about products tend to be similar regardless of the release. The cards look clean and the finish makes them pop, so the aesthetics are very nice. I am excited to see the rest of the ’12-13 basketball releases coming down the pipeline.

  13. ok guys i gotta weigh in on this one. I had the chance to open one of these last night, and it was quite possibly the worst box all year. 2 marks of fame auto’s from nobodies(Dantly and C. Hawkins, prob a 5$ value between em), and a rookie ive never heard of. Absolute has always been my fav. Panini product, and the set looks great!! It just seems like the only way to get decent stuff is to be a case cracker( and i dont make enough for that. 150 retail is more than enough for me). Maybe its just my bad luck this time, but it just seems like everytime you guys do legend cards like marks of fame, you have 2 or 3 greats, and its padded with very uncollectible guys. And they are thick like a patch card for no reason at all… didnt understand that at all. The set looks great though guys, with a lot of monster hits. Keep up the good work!! Until Lebron James is sellin popcorn in the United Center, make mine Panini!!!!
    p.s. Bring back the Hack!!!!!!!! Unwrapped just aint the same without u Tracy!!!!!!!!!!!

  14. Another great Panini release and Unwrapped video. I really like the base cards and how there’s the shiny back. I wouldn’t say the box break was the greatest hits, but I’m sure there are many out there that are filled with amazing autos.

  15. The game used are becoming rarer, I think that’s a great idea.
    The jumbo sticker autos show a big improvement by Panini, and the “Heroes” autos are just amazing.
    Continuing with the Absolute tradition, the prime jumbo patches are still there!
    Overall: best product of the year so far, congrats!

  16. This is a must have. Great looking autograph cards, nice memorabilia and a good amount of hits per box. I must also mention that it’s a well balanced set with the retired players , rookies and superstars of the sport. All of them in one cool product. 2012-2013 Absolute Basketball has all the good stuff. Thanks for another well made unwrapped episode guys. Keep up the good work people at Panini. 🙂

  17. The base cards look stunning as is always the case with Absolute base. I love the foil, and well all things shiny for that matter. I’m not sure if I like the jumbo stickers or not. I think it’s a great idea for those guys that can only seem to cram 2 letters of their name onto a smaller sticker, but they also kind of look a little gaudy. I love the idea of tracking when and where a jersey was worn. I also love the increasing rarity of nicer patches. Nothing lets me down more than to get a one colored jersey swatch numbered /999 that is worth $5 if it’s someone good. All in all another great product though. As of right now I still have to give my edge to prizm though. I just like the way the base looks a little better.

  18. Awesome product. Love the new design. I’d also LOVE to receive that KOBE HOOPLA!!! =] Great vid guys but where was Tracy?! Thanks!

  19. Man I have been collecting cards for a long time and those cards are sick. The details on them and the pulls are insain . I have to get me some. I wanted to say thinks for letting us as viwers to get a peek.

  20. Big fan of Absolute, so glad to see the new stuff. My favorite thing about the last couple years of Absolute were the rookies with the NBA GU/Ball/GU and Auto and it seems those have gone away for just a cleaner Auto card. At first it seems like a bit of a downgrade, but the cards do stand on their own, as well as the rest of the set. I think the overall design on all of the cards are better than it has been in the past for this product and I’m happy I can see it evolve in this manner. The Heroes cards are my favorite. They look simple, but are fantastic looking with strong, but subtle design elements that make the card great. Fun break to watch as always!

  21. The cards do look nice, but Im just not fond of all of the sticker autographs. I also think one of the iconic sets of the Absolute line were the RPMs as well as all of the patch and ball variations which I wish were back. otherwise the products looks good .

  22. It looks to be a solid product. Here are my pros and imporvements:
    Pros:
    I really like the On-Card Heroes set
    Every Player Every Game Patch!!
    The continued use of Jumbo Prime Patches
    Improvements :
    Jumbo Sticker Autos…not a fan. Good idea but we want to see less of a sticker.
    Lack of RPA. I don’t think any product so far as RPA’s.
    Trios Jersey/Patch cards. I feel like you could get more of each player’s jersey in there.
    Stay Humble and keep improving. You have a huge responsibility being the EXCULSIVE trading card company of the NBA. We have seen much improvement over the past year. Keep it up!

  23. I love the overall design of cards, especially the spectrum. What hurts it for me are the big stickers. I love large autos, but I don’t like them on stickers because then you have less actual card and picture. But otherwise, nice product, just a bit out of my price range for a whole box.

  24. 2012-13 Absolute Basketball was not what I hoped it would be. The overall design of the base cards was average-the silver foil finish helped but was not in my personal interest. The autographed cards are a bit of a disappointment to me mainly because they have thicker card stock but are not die cut like Prominence Football and are not on card. The sticker autos are great but I don’t think I will put my money towards them. Absolute Basketball this year will not be in my stockings over Black Football or Limited Basketball simply because I enjoy some of the other attributes limited & Black have to offer. The older players base cards are cool-they hold the filmy black and white essence of the 70s & 80s + they are #d. I think any memorabilia cards from this product would be awesome because the card would state what game that player wore the swatch of jersey. That is probably the only insert I will consider buying though. Overall I was a little disappointed, but I know better brand are still to come-so I will keep that in perspective. Thanks again for another generous giveaway Panini.

  25. I was never a big basketball card guy until this year, starting with hoops and threads, heading into prizm and totally ceritified, and now limited and absolute, I would say most of those products are rather good, prizm being my favorite. As for absolute it has always been a fun product and is at a relatively good price point for the value you get. The only thing that I would take issue with is redemptions, some breaks I’ve seen have had 4 or so redemptions in a 3 box span, but I guess if one of them is for Larry Bird you can’t complain too much. Heh.

  26. The design is very nice. The giant stickers for the autographs are a little odd to me but besides that the overall look/design is nice.

  27. Very interesting
    Pretty Expensive i think but amazingly made
    the on card retired number autos are sick and i love the tandem patches… especially my amare melo one
    miss the rpa autos but love the different sizes of patches and variation of players for auto
    thank!

  28. The cards look great. On the base cards I love the fact that in the background it displays the team color of the players team that he’s on. The rookie autographs look sick also, especially 1 of my favorite players Draymond Green’s autographed card! They have great designs in my opinion and overall a great product and definatly will try to get a box one of these days. Great job Panini!

  29. Another solid release for hoops fans, definitely digging the oversized stickers for some of the retired players. One of the big issues with current card grading is autographs going off the sticker and I believe that would be a good way to prevent to prevent that from happening while still addressing the time issue with getting the cards in the packs. Thanks Scott and Chris!

  30. I like it. I love the Brooklyn Nets cards, now that they are in their BKN jerseys. I do miss the Rookie Premier Materials set, but I love the shine on the cards. I also like the bigger stickers, no more autographs getting cut off!

  31. I love absolute every year! I just wish those big stickers autos were on card instead but the rookie autos have a very nice design same with the hoopla cards! The base cards have a nice design every year! I’m definitely spending my Christmas money for a box of absolute!!!!! Well done, Panini.

  32. I especially like how you incorporated the use of white space on the side to make the Hoopla autograph set, well done!

  33. Always love this product! The big stickers are a cool new twist. I love the design, great autographs, and awesome patches!

  34. Well I am a huge fan of the Absolute Series! I love the shiny look as it makes the player and their uniform pop out of the card. The colors are vibrant and eye catching giving the card a modern rich look that any autograph seeker would want. I think the biggest plus to these cards are the large signatures which makes me want to run out an buy some. What did get me excited was the Kobe Bryant card that had the auto on the side which to me is very unique. I cant wait to get my hands on these cards!

  35. Tracy, U know I can’t wait to pull an iconic jersey auto… Its cruel that it was the redemption. Oh thats right, I still have to comment…. Your redemption card is well designed 🙂

  36. I love the frequent flyers set and the star gazing patches. they are huge and sweet and you just gotta love them.

  37. It’s not the “Armageddon” Hysteria I’m waiting for! It’s every Panini Unwrapped Edtion. As always, every product is well noted. Happy Holidays!

  38. I’ve always been a strictly basketball collector and these cards are awesome! The team color in the back is really cool. Please pick me for one of the giveaways! I’m one of the few kids still collecting and you cant imagine how much I would appreciate a christmas gift as amazing as that!

  39. Pros: The black and white retired cards. The Hoopla autographs. The regular cards with the team colored backgrounds. The idea that you can trace the jersey or patch swatch to a particular game.
    Cons: Ehh on the rookie auto cards (design-wise anyway).
    Unsure: The big auto stickers. I think if the auto is big or personalized a bit, then they are fine. If the sig is smallish, then I think the huge sticker takes away from the card front!
    Merry Christmas to everyone in the comments and to Panini, Scott, Chris and Tracy!!
    Keith S

  40. not huge into basketball, but i give it a try from time to time.. i think this product is a hit though, nice designs, cool autos and stays with the tradition of absolute but also with a few new twists, like the acetate trophy autos! pretty nice, was a fan of the acetate in elite so good to see cross brands(sports)! thanks for the previews enjoy watching you guys crack stuff open and let us see! and of coarse get chances to win some stuff! much appreciated! happy holidays!

  41. absolute is always the product I look forward to every year.It delivers many different varieties of autos and mem cards and really has something for every kind of collector. Like lots of rookie autos, NBA legend autos, and lots of autos from all our favorite current NBA stars. In my opinion the only thing that could make this product and better would be the RPM cards that were in 2009 and 2010 absolute. Those cards defined what absolute is all about. And its a shame that they weren’t put in this years. I was really of looking forward to pulling my own Kyrie Irving RPM!!!! but unfortunately i guess not this time. Overall great product I think its the best so far this year awesome job again Panini! 🙂
    ps (all i want for Christmas is to win one of these contests) lol just kidding but it would be really cool if i did!!

  42. The base design looks amazing this year. I am a bit disappointed this year that there are no RPM autos. I’m thinking that the relics are harder to acquire this year than before, maybe thats why you guys haven’t made any RPMs yet. I am excited about some of the sets in this product, especially the HEROES set which I think is pretty awesome. Thanks again for sharing Scott & Chris!

  43. Thanks for the contest guys!! Absolute is really nice this year. LOVING the HEROES autographs set. Think the design is just beautiful and the on card autos are a very sweet touch. Cards look great. Of course there’s gonna be differences of opinions about the bigger stickers. I really see some pros and cons in it. For one you can give the players much more room to sign… I’ve talked to some people that hate sticker autos that love the big stickers in this product. The cons are obvious…the sticker is much more prominent on the card and takes your eye off the player and the design of the card. Other than that, the memorabilia is very nice and the checklist has some really interesting players. I wish you guys could have fit in some RPA’s into the release, but looking forward to them in future products! Happy Holidays!

  44. Nice cards… my favorite is the Spectrum Parallel… as a Warrior Fan, the David Lee card was the parralel highlight of the video.

  45. The return of Absolute will sure to have us all Star Gazing again! Thats what leads me in to my personal favorite of all. The Star Gazing inserts in the Absolute series. Though these wern’t featured in the unwraped preview do yourself a favor if you havent already and view the checklist. The prime versions are quite possibly some of THE SICKEST patches i’ve seen yet. The hero inserts I am also digging. Hitting an auto of the big o in a Cincinnati Royals jersey would be unbelievable for me. The large sticker autos are great. Yes we all love on card autos, but hey the signatures on these large stickes are big crisp and clear from what i’ve seen so who can complain? Absolute is not only a classic, but a favorite of mine. If you’ve got a winner all you can do is improve and build on it. Mission Accomplished! The Every Player Ever Game card is huge. Being able to back track that piece to possibly a historically significant game or series….WOW. Thats a win anyway you look at it.
    Thanks again for another great preview and another great product.

  46. The 2012-13 Absolute Basketball “Rookie Auto’s” look really clean. That “Hoopla Kobe Bryant Card” would be an insane pull. I personally like the Fat Stickers, it provides more room for a bigger Auto. Overall, product looks good and I would recommend to everyone!

  47. Hello Absolute Basketball! Thanks Scott and
    Chris for unwraping another great Panini
    product. I Love that Panin Design team are mixing and modifying it. The serially numbered patch is an awesome idea which we could tract what and when did the player used that particular jersey. Another panini first and the innovation is absolutely second to none.
    thanks for all the great contest. Panini giving
    back especially for tis time for giving. Happy Holidays! Tracy nice work on the camera, its just different. It seems different.

  48. I like the fact that you increased the size of the sticker. There is nothing I hate more than getting an awesome auto with either the top or bottom of the signature off the sticker. Unless they go completely wild with their auto, it should all fit on there. Great looking product, and I’m not even a big basketball guy. Maybe a box of this could change my mind, WINK WINK!!!

  49. Thanks Chris and Scott for this video. I’m glad to see the effort made ​​by Panini on the design of the inserts (Star Gazing, Hoopla, Every Player Every Game). It looks like the design of some well known collections of the 90s. For me, the inserts of the 12/13 nba collections (eg threads and prestige) are not attractive and flashy enough. You could even take these cards for base cards! So I’am also very pleased that this effort continues with the design of the 12/13 Select, that looks very flashy.
    Happy holidays to all.

  50. I really like the appearance of the cards. They’re sharp. Also a big fan of the retired cards featuring players that may not have been superstars but were stars and deserve recognition.

  51. Nice photos, good number of player autographs and I’m always a fan of including retired player cards. My only criticism would be that I’m not crazy about redemptions but understand why they are included. Overall, looks great once again.

  52. The 1/1 mem cards look great, and it isn’t a short checklist either. A lot of great cards to pull, like the bill Russell heroes autograph card.

  53. In my opinion, it is a good idea to have more autos rather than jerseys. The “Heroes” and “Iconic” sets are just amazing.
    Wide checklist with 2 rookie classes and some of them on card. Very nice job!

  54. First off, Merry Christmas Panini & fellow collectors! I’m writing this on my iPad so I will keep it short. That foil look is sexyyyy. The colored background on the cards really give the players a nice pop! Y’all had me sold with that Hoopla card of Kobe! I love how well that card is put together with the stand up photo and the unique twist of doing the auto on the side. Very cool! These guys did pretty good on breaking but Tracy you’ve got to come back next episode lol.

  55. First of all I have to comment on the packaging. Nice twist! The boxes remind me of Mickey Dees Apple Pie boxes. So that’s a Plus 10 right there. I love the silver foil and how the colors match the team. It looks awesome. My favorite cards are the Mark of Fame and Retired cards. Basketball was at its best in the 70s-80s and I loved watching those guys play when I was a kid. The black n white fit the retired cards perfectly. Nice touch there. My 2nd favorite are the Rookies. Just such clean, clear, crisp, color to them. And there’s not either to much or to little on them as far as whether their to “busy” or not. Just right! Finally I just want to mention the Kobe cards. I neither like or dislike him. And I know the packs are in all your sets. But I think if you had spread the packs out they would’ve had more meaning and value to them. I think NOT being in every box would’ve made them more exciting to pull. As well as made more people hunt for them. I know everyone likes them but just a thought. Overall I think these are great. Just classy and sharp! Anyone that has read my comments on previous posts know I call it like I see it. Great job guys!! If I don’t comment again before Xmas, everyone have a great Christmas and Happy Holidays! Maybe a post of everyone’s favorite Xmas hit? Cheers to all!!

  56. this is one of those panini products in which the base cards actually look like inserts.. BIG BONUS for guys like me who actually collect selected base sets..
    sticker autos are a drag but I wouldn’t complain as long as you can get a chance to pull out one of those Heroes or Private Signings autos..
    Looking forward to this product. Merry Christmas Panini!

  57. The retired subset reminds me of Donruss Classics, looks great. Great job on the oversized stickers, now those full vet autos won’t have to be cut off or squeezed in.

  58. Love the base card design with the silver foil, well done with the rookie autos too!
    Checklist is great, nice names in there!
    Merry Christmas panini!!

  59. Honestly, I think that Absolute Basketball is the perfect product to end the year. Let’s start off with the Base Cards, the base cards looks nice with the “mirror-effect” foil which makes it looks shiny, overall I think the Base cards are just amazing and stunning as expected, and they are also a lot better compared to the previous Absolute Basketball Base Cards. I also like the fact that the Retired players Base set are numbered. Going on with the Rookie Cards, design-wise I think the card is great but I know you could have done a lot better comparing with the previous Absolute Basketball Rookie Cards which have Ball/Game-used Jersey or Patch/Autograph at the same time on one card but I think Absolute Basketball Rookie Cards this year is still going to be a Bang! considering 100 rookies in this Double Rookie Class with big names like Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving, and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist etc. I think the Absolute Basketball Spectrum Parallel this year is the best Panini Basketball Parallel for 2012 in which you numbered it to 25(gold), 10(platinum) and 1(black). Every Player Every Game Patch numbered One of One is definitely the highlight of this product, the tag logo on the card is just sick! The Frequent Flyer Jersey/Patch/Auto looks solid yet simple which made the card look great. The Heroes Autographs and Iconic Jersey/Patch/Auto looks vintage with the Black and White Image of the Player like it with the on-card auto, another Thumbs up! The Marks of Fame Autographs would be one of the improvements of Panini this year, the Jumbo Sticker idea is just one of a kind and unique. Panini All-Stars looks great, well-designed and adding some old-school flavor on the card is just awesome and I also like the Private Signings of this for Absolute Memorabilia with big names like Blake Griffin and Rajon Rondo. I really like the short-printed Absolute Basketball Patches really rare. Star Gazing Jersey/Patch looks sharp and is one of the sickest patches I’ve seen though it is not on the video; saw it on eBay, but yeah definitely one of the sickest jumbo patches out there. Team Tandems/Trios Materials are just amazing and a great looking card with 2/3 player memorabilia on one card and I also like the fact that it is short printed. My only issue in this product is the amount of redemption cards but all in all, I think that the product is an Absolutely awesome product, Absolutely worth it and Absolutely one of the highlights of Panini this year. Another job well done for Panini, Keep it up! Thank you Scott and Chris for sharing and thanks for the contest! Good job Tracy for being the camera guy in this video. Most of us are not used to it when THE HACK is not on the video LOL! But Scott and Chris both did a great job in this Panini Unwrapped episode Thumbs up! Merry Christmas to all of you and Happy Holidays and Advance Happy New Year too! God Bless us all! PEACE!

  60. Thanks a ton to everyone who participated in this one. Now as always, you guys and gals are the best collectors on the planet! Congrats to the winners this time around: Simeon, barcafan1033, Ken and Jaymes. We’ll be in touch soon to get your mailing addresses. Thanks again, best regards and happy holidays.

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