Lebron James’s $5 Million Trading Card Deal a Turning Point for Industry

A historic deal signed by Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James with Fanatics Collectibles is certain to accelerate a decades-long shift in the sports cards industry away from kids hoping to own a piece of their favorite player to one dominated by well-financed adults, according to an industry expert. Jeff Jensen, manager at Baseball Card King, which sells sports cards out of its three Illinois retail locations, told The Epoch Times that the record deal means that the vast majority of Mr. James’s younger fans will have little, if any, opportunity to purchase the new product launch. “I can pretty much assure that anything to do with this new product with Lebron James is not going to be a product a regular kid can afford,” Mr. Jensen said. “Sports cards have become an adult industry where to be a serious collector you need to spend thousands of dollars and the deal signed by Lebron is only going to make that case more emphatically.”...