It’s Back! Panini America to Return Popular NBA Player of the Day Hobby Shop Promo

With the NBA All-Star Break and trade deadline now behind us, players returned to the court last night (some in new locations) intent on making a second-half playoff push. For their part, NBA trading card collectors are invited to participate in the second annual Panini NBA Player of the Day promotion at 400 hobby shops nationwide to win more than 50,000 prizes, including the chance to spend a day with an NBA player.

Every time a collector purchases a pack of Panini America NBA trading cards at a participating hobby shop during the 30-day period between February 27 and April 15 will be one step closer to spending the day with an NBA player or winning one of the 50,000 prizes. For a complete list of participating hobby shops, visit the Panini NBAPOD Hobby Shop Locator at www.PaniniPOD.com.

“The Player of the Day promotion helps hobby shops sell more trading cards while rewarding collectors who purchase Panini products,” said Jason Howarth, Vice President of marketing for Panini America. “We are thrilled to support hobby shops selling our NBA trading cards by expanding this proven promotion to even more hobby shops. Last year we were able to  make one collector’s dream come true by giving them the chance to spend a day with Karl-Anthony Towns. We look forward to creating a memorable experience for another fan this year.”

Last year, Brian Bolanda of Apple Valley, Minn., spent the day with Towns, the Timberwolves rookie sensation. The event included a private party for Bolanda, his friends and family, and then a free autograph session for the community at his favorite hobby shop, The Ballpark in Apple Valley. Here’s a video with highlights of the special day.

To officially tipoff the 2017 Panini NBA Player of the Day promotion, Panini America will host a free autograph session next Thursday with Milwaukee Bucks rookie Thon Maker at Name That Card in Milwaukee (check out the flier above for details).

So, how does the NBA Player of the Day program work? Glad you asked. The centerpiece of the promotion is a poster featuring Panini America NBA trading card images of one player from each of the 30 NBA teams. Each day during the promotion, a different player on the poster is designated as the “Panini NBA Player of the Day” while Panini spokesmen Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving serve as “Wild Cards” for the duration of the promotion. Every time a collector purchases a pack of officially licensed Panini America NBA trading cards and pulls a card of the designated Plater of the Day, they win a prize. Each week, stores will conduct a drawing from all daily winners to award a weekly prize. Then, at the end of the month-long promotion, each store will award a grand prize to its store winner and enter them into the national sweepstakes.

Each participating shop receives a free merchandise kit with the materials needed to run the promotion, including promotional posters, shopping bags, exclusive Panini NBA Player of the Day promo packs, an exclusive Panini NBA Player of the Day autograph card, Panini NBA sticker books, T-shirts, ear buds, drink coozies and Ultra Pro card holders emblazoned with the Panini NBA Player of the Day logo.

Each participating hobby shop also receives 150+ Panini NBA Player of the Day promo packs featuring two cards from the promotion-exclusive NBA Player of the Day set. This year’s set includes a 30-card base set and a 10-card rookie set with two parallel sets of each: Escher Squares are numbered to 150 for the base and 50 for the rookies and Wind Chimes are numbered to 75 for the base and 25 for the rookies. Additionally, there is a 25-card rookie memorabilia set with cards randomly inserted into packs.

The 33 exclusive autograph cards are slabbed in a protective case by Beckett Grading. The checklist boasts an impressive lineup of rookies and young stars including Brandon Ingram, Jaylen Brown, Hassan Whiteside, Otto Porter, Aaron Gordon, Kris Dunn, Buddy Hield and more. Each shop receives one autographed card to award their grand prize winner.

Collectors will also get to enjoy the promotion and win autographed cards and other promotional items via social media by following @PaniniPOD on Twitter and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/PaniniPlayerOfTheDay/.

To get you properly prepared for next week’s tipoff, we provide a must-see sneak peek at the promotion-exclusive card set, including base cards, parallels, memorabilia cards and the autographs. Enjoy . . . and stay tuned to The Knight’s Lance for continued coverage.