You likely first caught wind of Panini America’s mysterious new Noir Basketball brand on Instagram. That’s where we flashed initial glimpses of the high-end heat-maker in a signing-session recap collage featuring Los Angeles Clippers superstar Chris Paul. Not long after that we posted a few of Paul’s 2014-15 Noir Basketball card images right here on The Knight’s Lance — and then quickly removed them as the product wasn’t quite public knowledge at that point.
The rapid removal of those images certainly wasn’t missed by astute collectors, who were more than curious regarding the reasons surrounding their disappearance. But now, the full story can be told. To be sure, 2014-15 Noir Basketball does exist and it’s coming.
The newest ultra-high-end release from Panini America was initially slated as the second and final international-only release of the 2014-15 NBA product season. But late last week, company officials announced that an extremely limited amount of the already-short-printed product would be made available to U.S. distributors. Set to release September 16, every 12-card box of 2014-15 Noir Basketball will deliver seven autograph or memorabilia cards.
Everything else you need to know about the uniqueness of Noir can be gleamed from reading the product’s official Product Information Document, much of which is detailed in the preview gallery below. But here are some of the highlights . . .
- The all-new, high-end collection features unique styling and beautiful photography of the NBA’s top rookies, veterans and legends.
- Just like the mystery of a film noir, the Autograph Patch (rookies) and Autograph Prime (current stars and legends) chases have two stories to tell. Each player in the sets has color and black-and-white versions that feature mirrored designs and stunning contrast.
- Noir is the only product where you can land jumbo game-worn swatches from the 2014-15 NBA Chinese New Year celebration.
- The newest members of the NBA are featured in Noir’s Rookie Patch Autographs sequentially numbered to 99.
- Every autograph in the program is an on-card signature.
- The Spotlight Signatures insert brings the collector stunning photography paired with beautiful autographs signed in paint pen.
- In 2015, the NBA celebrated the Chinese New Year with specially themed jerseys. Noir is the only place to find patches directly from the Houston Rockets and Golden State Warriors jerseys worn in those games.
All information is accurate at the time of posting – content is subject to change. Card images are solely for the purpose of design display. Actual images used on cards to be determined.
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