1981/82 Georgetown Hoyas Basketball Police Set

The Georgetown Hoyas basketball team was the subject of yearly police card sets that were first issued during the 1981/82 season, and continued through the late 1990s (up to the 1996/97 season, I believe). Quick backstory: The modern police card era began with the NBA's 1977/78 Portland Trailblazers set, while with college basketball the first modern examples were released in 1980/81 for both the Arizona Wildcats and Wichita State Shockers; Georgetown followed with their first set a year later.

The 1981/82 Hoyas police set consists of 20 cards, and consists of fourteen players, four coaches, a team photo, and a mascot card. Card fronts feature black and white portraits, flanked by a dark, large blue border with white edges. Each player's name, uniform number, position, height, college year and home town are listed across the bottom fronts. Each card back features a basketball term and safety tip, as well as a Safeway sponsor logo across the bottom. Sets were printed on very thin white cardboard stock, which makes them very condition sensitive to corner wear and "toning" on the backs.

Whether by design or luck, Georgetown's first police set has the distinction of featuring a card of freshman center Patrick Ewing, who would of course go on to make eleven All-Star appearances in the NBA, be a two-time inductee into the Basketball Hall of Fame, and be voted to the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team (Ewing is also featured in the next three Georgetown police sets). Senior Eric "Sleepy" Floyd, who is also represented, went on to play thirteen productive seasons in the NBA. Another card of note is that of legendary head coach and Hall of Famer John Thompson, who guided the team quite successfully from 1972 through 1999.

These 80/81 cards seem to be pretty scarce. I have been on the police card prowl for many years, and rarely do I see these sets hit the market; even on eBay at the time of this writing, only one incomplete set and two graded Ewing singles are to be found on the entire site. I'm not sure if the production numbers were ever released for any of the Georgetown cards, but later Hoyas issues are certainly much easier to find than this inaugural set. 

The next year's 1982/83 set is very similar in appearance, but lacks "GEORGETOWN BASKETBALL" across the top fronts of the cards. On the lower backs of the 1982/83 cards, the "GAMES PRODUCTION, Inc." name is found in the place of Safeway.

At one time, during the glory years of Patrick Ewing as well as the glory years of speculative card collecting, this 1981/82 set was known to sell in the $100 to $120 range. Today's value is more likely in the neighborhood of $75 to $100.

Random Fact: According to the back of the mascot card, collecting a complete set of these cards would have won two free tickets to a Georgetown basketball game. 

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1. Jack the Bulldog

2. Elvado Smith, G, Freshman

3. Eric Smith, F, Senior

4. Pat Ewing, C, Freshman

5. Anthony Jones, F, Freshman

6. Bill Martin, F, Freshman

7. Bill Stein, Asst. Coach

8. Norman Washington, Grad. Asst. Coach

9. Ed Spriggs, C, Senior

10. Eric Floyd, G, Senior

11. Gene Smith, G, Sophomore

12. Fred Brown, G, Sophomore

13. Mike Hancock, F, Senior

14. Kurt Kaull, G, Junior

15. Ed Meyers, Asst. Coach

16. Ron Blaylock, G, Senior

17. David Blue, F, Junior

18. John Thompson, Head Coach

19. Ralph Dalton, C, Freshman

20. Team Photo

1980-81 Arizona Wildcats Basketball

The Wildcats basketball team were featured on their first police card issue during the 1980/81 season. A large color, borderless, posed photo dominates the front of each card, with a white stripe across the bottom stating the player's uniform number and name. Card backs feature a short player bio, a basketball term and safety tip. Sponsors are listed at the bottom: Golden Eagle Distributors, Mr. Bill Clements President and the Tucson Police Department. Cards are not numbered, with the exception of player uniform numbers.

Ten-year Wildcats head coach Fred Snowden is probably the best-known name in the set. Two cards (Greg Cook and David Mosebar) were pulled before distribution and are extremely scarce -- fortunately, we somehow grabbed examples of both for our collection, and I'll try to add scans of them when I dig them out. Because the two "short prints" were never officially distributed, many collectors consider the set complete at 17 cards.

The cards are not easy to find. A lack of big names keeps the value modest, probably in the $25 to $30 range for a set without the two short prints. A set with the short prints (19 cards) might sell in the $100 range, in the unlikely event that one comes up for sale.

It is interesting to note that the design of the Arizona sets (basketball, football and baseball) changed very little during their run of ten-plus years. To make matters worse, the first two basketball sets were printed without any mention of the year of issue. One way to distinguish the two years is by looking at the player's uniform number and name across the front bottom of the card. The 1981/82 set features a black circle between the number and name, while the inaugural 1980/81 set features nothing but a space. In addition, the backs of the 1981/82 set give the Golden Eagle business address at the bottom (705 E. Ajo Way).

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(10) Russell Brown, G

(12) Ricky Walker, G

(14) John Smith, G

(15) Ron Davis, F

(21) Robbie Dosty, F

(24) Jeff Collins, G

(31) Frank Smith, F

(34) Harvey Thompson, G

(35) Donald Mellon, F

(41) Jack Magno, F

(52) Charles Miller, F

(55) John Belobraydic, F

Greg Cook (Short Print)

David Mosebar (Short Print)

Mike Frink, Asst. Coach

Len Gordy, Asst. Coach

Mike Green, Asst. Coach

Fred Snowden, Head Coach

Ernie Valenzuela, Equip. Mgr.

1989/90 Denver Nuggets Police

Twelve player cards comprise the 1989/90 Nuggets police set. Large game-action photos of the players in their white jerseys account for the majority of the card fronts. A vertical white bar on the right side of the front featured the player's name and uniform number, and three color sponsor logos are lined horizontally across the bottom (Denver Nuggets, Pepsi and 7-Eleven). Card backs contain a safety tip and contact info for the Denver Children's Hospital, all printed in blue. Cards are not numbered except for uniform numbers and the year of issue is not mentioned. Stars Alex English and Walter Davis are the key cards in the set.

The 1989/90 Nuggets police issue seems to be easier to find than the older Denver sets. A fair current value is in the $2 to $4 range.

(1) Eddie Hughes

(2) Alex English

(6) Walter Davis

(12) Lafayette Lever

(14) Michael Adams

(21) Todd Lichti

(23) T.R. Dunn

(24) Bill Hanzkik

(34) Dan Schayes

(35) Jerome Lane

(41) Blair Rasmussen

(45) Tim Kempton

1977/78 Portland Trailblazers Police

Considered the first "modern" police/safety set, the 1977/78 Blazers issue established the prototype look, size and feel for the majority of future public service giveaway sets. Consisting of fourteen cards (eleven players and three staff members), the semi-glossy fronts feature large game-day photos surrounded by thick, white borders. A Trailblazers logo can be found at the top right of the photos. Backs are white with a square red border surrounding a "Tip from the Blazers" and a basketball term. Near the bottom of card backs is an NBA logo and a line stating, "Courtesy of your area Kiwanis Club and Police Dept." Cards are not numbered except for player uniform numbers, and the year of issue is not mentioned. The majority of the 1976/77 NBA Champion squad is represented, with the key cards being early issues of Hall of Fame center Bill Walton and forward Maurice "The Enforcer" Lucas.

These cards may be a bit tougher to find than most other police sets of the era, but are certainly not scarce. A fair current value for a nice set is in the $25 to $40 range.

(10) Corky Calhoun, F

(13) Dave Twardzik, G

(14) Lionel Hollins, G

(15) Larry Steele, G

(16) Johnny Davis, G

(20) Maurice Lucas, F

(23) T.R. Dunn, G

(25) Tom Owens, C

(30) Bob Gross, F

(32) Bill Walton, C

(36) Lloyd Neal, F

Ron Culp (Trainer)

Jack McKinney (Asst. Coach)

Jack Ramsay (Coach)