NEW YORK — Cooper Flagg worked tirelessly in his sophomore history class at Montverde (Fla.) Academy for a big moment in his NBA career: the signing of his coveted Topps Chrome Rookie Debut Patch card.
Instead of frantically scribbling notes about United States or world history, the Dallas Mavericks star admitted during Fanatics Fest at the Javits Center on Friday that he was actually daydreaming about his own future.
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“I would just sit there and practice my autograph for the entire class,” Flagg said on stage during an interview with ESPN personality Kevin Negandhi as they unveiled the card. “I have the notebook that had all of the different iterations of my autograph. I’d change it up for a long time and tried to really perfect it.”
Flagg signed the most important card of his young NBA career in a private room within the Topps booth just before taking the stage, fulfilling the ultimate payoff to his persistent work during that history class.
“I was a little nervous. I’ve signed a lot of cards, but that one was a little nerve-wracking,” said Flagg, the reigning NBA rookie of the year.
Because the highly coveted one-of-a-kind autographed card, which bears the Debut Patch that Flagg wore on his Mavericks jersey during his first NBA game, is too precious to risk damaging in a pack, a placeholder redemption card will be randomly inserted in a pack of 2026 Topps Chrome Basketball Update Series in its place. That set will hit hobby shops and retailers on Aug. 6.
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Other players with highly anticipated NBA Rookie Debut patch cards within this set include Kon Knueppel, Dylan Harper, Derik Queen and Ace Bailey. A preview of the Flagg card hovers above the entrance to Fanatics Fest, with the Statue of Liberty holding a mocked-up version of it in one hand in place of its tablet.
Topps unveiled the Debut Patch program in partnership with MLB in 2023. The first Debut Patch cards were included in Topps Chrome Update Series Baseball released later that year. The unique cards caught national attention during their second year, though, with the popularity of Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes and the hefty public bounty for the card that included offers from the Pirates and Skenes’ famous girlfriend, Livvy Dunne.
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As Fanatics gobbled up sports licenses such as the NFL, NBA and others, Topps extended the Debut Patch programs into those sports. The NFL PREM1ERE patches appear within the 2025 Topps Chrome Football set. NBA Debut Patch cards will be part of a future set that has yet to be announced. LeBron James also wore a series of special patches unique to him and his historic accomplishments throughout last season that will probably end up in Topps cards, as well.
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Other sports and entertainment companies with Topps Debut Patch cards include or will include Formula 1, UFC, MLS and WWE, with other sports and leagues with licenses possessed by Topps likely to be added.
Skenes’ Debut Patch card holds the record for the most expensive of any card in the various Debut Patch programs across all sports, with Dick’s Sporting Goods purchasing the card through a March 2025 Fanatics Collect auction for $1.11 million.
Given the hype surrounding Flagg following his stellar rookie season, during which he averaged 21 points per game, his Rookie Debut Patch card will probably sell for much higher than the Skenes card if it ever hits the open market, assuming it gets redeemed. The full jersey Flagg wore in his NBA debut, to which the patch was affixed before being removed to go into the card, sold in a private sale facilitated by Sotheby’s for $1 million in February.
And would Flagg pursue the card himself, given that it possesses a milestone relic from his first start in the NBA? A seven-figure price tag might be too much for Flagg’s budget … for now.
“Maybe eventually. I might end up waiting for a second contract or something down the road. But maybe eventually,” said Flagg, who’s under a rookie contract worth $62.7 million.
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