Topps rode the rainbow for its 1972-73 Basketball set, which was even more colorful than their offering the season before, as the brash American Basketball Association was showcasing a more dynamic game than the one played in the relatively staid NBA. The vibrancy of the color palette reflected the ABA's more modern game and quite appropriately this set gave us the rookie card of Dr. J, the upstart league's finest and most electrifying player, who seemed to almost never touch the ground as he traversed the court. Julius Erving's rookie card is the key to the set and appears here in a SGC 6.5 holder, and it happily avoids the two biggest problems encountered with this card, which is often found with poor centering and tilt.
Other graded keys are Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in a real nice looking SGC 8, the rookie of the vastly underrated Hall-of-Famer Artis Gilmore, who commanded the boards like a General during his time with the Colonels, also in SGC 8, Dr. J's All-Star card (somehow he was only on the second team) in a stunning SGC 8.5, big man Wilt Chamberlain in SGC 7.5 and Pistol Pete Maravich, still hugely popular with collectors today, in SGC 5.5.
An overall condition breakdown of the set is approximately 5% NM-MT, 13% NM, 33% EX-MT, 39% EX, 10% VG/EX with a few lesser. The chief condition issue relates to centering. Additional keys are as follows: #10 Haywood (VG/EX), #11 Sloan (EX), #15 Lucas (EX), #21 Unseld (EX), #25 Robertson (EX/MT), #28 Thurmond (NM), #30 Hawkins (VG/EX), #31 Murphy (EX/MT), #32 Jackson (VG/EX), #35 Bing (EX), #44 Barry (EX/MT), #45 White (EX/MT), #47 Scott (EX), #56 Greer (NM), #60 Frazier (EX), #83 Monroe (EX/MT), #75 West (EX/MT), #80 Lanier (EX), #81 Wilkens (EX), #92 Nelson (EX/MT), #97 Bellamy (VG/EX), #103 Tomjanovich (NM), #105 DeBuscherre (EX), #110 Havlicek (EX/MT), #115 Archibald (EX), #122 Bradley (EX), #129 Reed (EX), #130 Hudson (EX), #150 Hayes (EX), and #187 McGinnis (EX).
Overall the set sports 29 hall-of-famers and that's before you even get to the All-Star and Special cards. The pop art appeal is off the charts! 264 cards total.