Some Thoughts About Strategy as Series 3 Approaches
Whether you’re a seasoned collector with deep pockets, or are totally new to the platform and have to collect on a shoestring budget, it’s important to keep some big-picture goals in mind.
The 2021–22 NBA season is now well underway, which means that the start of NBA Top Shot Series 3 is getting closer every day.
It’s only a matter of time before all the drops and goodies teased in the roadmap start seducing you down a number of different paths on which you never had any intention of going down, and if you’re not careful, it’ll be easy to find yourself lost in a sea of Moments you have a minimal long-term interest in, Dapperless and unable to purchase the Moments you care most about.
This is why you need a strategy and plan in place before things get out of hand.
Now, it’s important to mention that everyone’s Top Shot strategy is going to be unique based on their NBA fandom passions and how much money they’re willing (or able) to commit to the platform.
For me, after floundering around like a fish out of water for the first several months I spent on Top Shot, trying desperately to chase every new shiny object I thought I could afford, I finally succumbed to my better instincts and have shifted my focus almost exclusively to my favorite team (the Boston Celtics), rookies, and a handful of my favorite non-Celtics players (Dame, Ja, SGA, Sexton).
I own every common and rare S2 Celtics Moment, all the 40K S2 Base Set rookies and a handful of 3-star rookies, and some assorted Moments of my favorite players.
There are exceptions, of course, like my Zion All-Star Game Moment, or my recent decision to sell my Jaylen Brown S1 TSD — just weeks after buying it and swearing I’d hold it forever — in order to complete the Archive Set.
Flexibility is key — there are many surprises around the corner, and it’s okay to change your mind about what you value most — but so is being honest with yourself and ensuring that you’re not just chasing shiny new objects and abandoning your strategy in a way that you’ll later regret.
In the end, this is what works for me right now. For many, their strategy could look similar, focusing on completing their favorite teams, but at varying financial levels. For others, the focus may be on maximizing their Collector Score to qualify for the best chances at Legendary Set drops. Set completions, pretty serial numbers, important milestones, future Hall of Famers…all of these could be part of any individual collector’s strategy depending on what their interests and ultimate goals are.
If you’re new to NBA Top Shot, learn from my mistakes and take it slow. Take some time to familiarize yourself with the platform and its mechanics, watch and learn from others in the space, and try to figure out what your ultimate goals are here. Once you’ve got it all figured out, stick to them as best you can and build a collection you’ll truly want to hold onto.
If you’re a seasoned collector, take a good long look at the roadmap, consider the implications of what it all could mean, and build your S3 strategy based on whatever long-term goals you have for this season and beyond. There’s no reason we have to repeat the mistakes many of us made in S2 again this time around now that we’re more knowledgeable and understand the dynamics at play.
No matter what your financial level is, who your favorite teams and players are, and what you ultimately hope to accomplish here, there is one bit of advice that everyone should follow:
Collect what you love, and you’ll never be disappointed.
