If I could be recast in card form as any basketball product in the entire collecting universe, I think I’d want to be the breath of fresh air that is 2010-11 Panini Gold Standard (and I’m not just saying that because I work here). The uniquely themed high-end offering, due out May 25, is unapologetically lustrous from beginning to end — packed with enough…

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smxr6vIx3QM&w=545&h=439] Join Scott Prusha and Tracy Hackler for six unscripted Tuesday-morning minutes inside the Panini America marketing office. No, you won’t get these minutes back. But, hey, it’s better than watching paint dry — barely.

It’s been a busy few weeks for us here at Panini America. So busy, in fact, that I thumbed across a few photos on my trusty iPhone today that I somehow forgot to share with the loyal readers of The Knight’s Lance. That’s simply unacceptable. (more…)

It’s a shame, really, that Panini America Production Manager Jeremy Johnson spends much of his time on tone-setting, first-impression aspects of our products that most collectors can’t wait to destroy. Johnson, a Michigan native, is the Prince of Packaging around these parts; the guy people visit when talk turns to boxes. Certainly Johnson’s Midas touch will be all over 2010-11 Gold Standard Basketball when the brand new product releases…

There’s something indescribably cool about having a native Australian refer to you as “mate.” It was a thrill I first got to experience via Twitter thanks to passionate basketball collector Rhys Evans, a resident of Tasmania and a huge fan of Ray Allen and the Boston Celtics. Evans has been collecting in the land down under — which in and of…

Just more than a week ago, as part of our Panini Unwrapped episode for 2010-11 Absolute Memorabilia Basketball, we asked viewers to post a picture of them with their favorite Panini America basketball card pull of the year on The Knight’s Lance for a chance to win some of the hits. True to form, you did not disappoint. (more…)

In an effort to bring the feel-good hobby vibe of the 2011 Industry Summit to collectors at home, we conducted a contest earlier this week to award Black Boxes to five lucky Panini America video box busters. The rules were simple: Go to your local hobby shop and purchase a hobby box of Panini America trading cards, video the break at the…

It’s been way too long since last we visited the fabled Panini America Routing Table, what with its seemingly never-ending stack of early looks at products in various stages of early development. Admittedly, its location in the new building near Product Development and Design — far, far away from the marketing department — makes frequent sojourns to its four-legged loot more difficult, but…

You could say 2011 marks a new chapter in the hallowed history of Donruss Elite Football. More accurately, though, it marks a completely new book. For the first time in company history, Panini America will produce multiplayer autographed memorabilia booklet cards and will unveil the concept — no doubt to considerable fanfare — in the June release of 2011 Donruss Elite Football on the popular…

The men and women in the Panini America Customer Service department have been working virtually around the clock in recent weeks feverishly fulfilling redemption card requests, and overcoming the short downtime and technical glitches associated with our recent relocation. While we continue to strive for the nirvana that would accompany a zero-redemption marketplace, rest assured that we’re doing everything in our power to get…