This article was originally published on www.si.com/collectibles as Top Rookie Cards for early NBA MVP candidates.

In Calabasas, CA, Lakers fandom has found a new home at a coffee shop. However, this epicenter of purple and gold has nothing at all to do with espresso, but rather everything to do with cardboard.

Luka Doncic has been a superstar right from his first year in the NBA. Since his arrival at the Dallas Mavericks as the third overall pick of the 2018 NBA Draft, he has gone from strength to strength, with his cumulative averages of 28.6 points, 8.6 ...

Downtown cards are some of the biggest chase cards in the hobby today. When grading modern cards a ten is usually the only way to increase the value of the card. With Downtown cards, bringing in a nine still brings in value.

For what it’s worth, Nowitzki was not alone in his take. Fellow Mavs legend Steve Nash also named Doncic when asked about his MVP prediction, while sports reporter Taylor Rooks had the same thoughts and mentioned how she was impressed by the Slovenian star’s conditioning during the offseason.

If I stop now, it was all for nothing.” That’s been Luka Doncic’s mantra since joining the LA Lakers, focused on winning his first championship. His mission started strong with back-to-back 40-point games,