LeBron James Cleveland Cavaliers 2004-05 Upper Deck Exquisite Collection Patches Quad Parallel #E4P-LJ BGS 9.5 | 1-of-1 | Game-Used Patches

On June 4, 2004, the world of sports cards changed forever. On this date, Upper Deck released the first year of Exquisite Collection Basketball. Released at what was then the jaw-dropping price of $500 for five cards, 20-years on this product line continues to be a byword for excellence in high-end trading cards.

The crossover between what would become perhaps the single most premier product in the hobby and the entry of one of its most transformational stars into the NBA was no coincidence. The creator of Exquisite Collection, Karvin Cheung, had been looking for the right player to serve as the centerpiece for a new high-end set that would feature highly-limited rookie patch autographs. Cheung has cited the moment he saw LeBron James on the cover of Sports Illustrated in February 2002, under the headline “Chosen One”, as the moment that he knew he had his player. What followed was history: in its time, Exquisite Collection Basketball has seen records tumble and captured worldwide fascination, becoming the cornerstone of many of the most important trading card collections and earning a place on the Mount Rushmore of trading card sets for many enthusiasts.

The 2004-05 product introduced dual logoman autographs and triple logoman cards in Exquisite. Collectors understood that many of the best cards available each season for their favorite NBA rookies, stars, and legends would be found in Exquisite. In the decades since, NBA fans have come to expect just as much excellence from the product as they would from its standard-bearer.

Much like the great athletes depicted in its checklists, Exquisite Collection continues to influence the trading card space today. Creator Karvin Cheung joined Panini in 2011, where he created a product that, like Exquisite, features highly sought after RPAs as well as singular logoman cards and patch autographs of legends and stars, Immaculate Collection. Since its creation, Immaculate has featured some of the most highly desired cards for rookies and stars across a multitude of sports. Nat Turner, CEO of Collectors Universe, the parent company of PSA, credits the influence of Exquisite with the founding of National Treasures and Flawless, some of the most marquee products on the market today. Without LeBron James and the drive and creative vision of Cheung, the trading card landscape would look very different today.

With game-used/worn patch relics becoming more and more uncommon with recent high-end sports card releases, this card is exceedingly special and highly desired amongst the biggest basketball card collectors in the world. Upper Deck’s pairing of a 1-of-1 quad game-used multi-color patch of King James with the incredibly important Exquisite Collection brand makes this card not only unbelievably rare but also sought after by James and Exquisite collectors alike. Upper Deck, Cheung, LeBron, and the basketball world did not know quite how historic the set, and its initial inspiration, would become 20 years later.

The card commemorates LeBron’s, and Exquisite Collection’s, sophomore season, when he made his first trip to the All-Star game and became the youngest to do so since Kobe Bryant. He also took home his first All-NBA honors as a member of the Second Team. His statline from that season, like the four game-used patches on the card, is a relic from another era in which he played an astounding, league-leading 42.4 minutes per game while turning in top 10 finishes in points and assists per game.

James’ marquee moment from the season came on March 20, 2005 at the Air Canada Centre while playing against the Toronto Raptors. In the midst of a playoff push in the crowded Eastern Conference, LeBron laid it all out on the court in a Sunday matinee. The young King played all 48 minutes and wound up crossing the 50-point barrier for the first time in his career, becoming the youngest player in NBA history to do so. The 56-point performance, at the time, was a Cleveland Cavaliers franchise record for most points scored in a single game. At the time of cataloging, this outing is one of fourteen in which he has crossed the half-century mark. Adding on the fact that he also recorded ten rebounds in the contest, he is among the top five in NBA history in 50-point double-doubles. James’ also dished out five assists in the contest. With this statline he became the first player in NBA history under the age of 22 to record 50 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists in a single game.

That game, though a loss, invited comparison between James and Michael Jordan with Raptors center Donyell Marshall referencing a similar strategy when defending the Chicago great: “Let Michael score his points, and stop everyone else,” Marshall said. “I think we did that.”

This card has been authenticated and deemed to be in Gem Mint condition, receiving a grade of 9.5 from Beckett Grading Services (BGS). Given the thickness of the card, its 9.5 grade is an impressive feat. The front of the card features four multi-color game-worn patches and a script "1 of 1" stamp to emphasize its unduplicated nature.

The BGS certificate number for this card is: 0012931687.

Going Deeper - LeBron James

The King

LeBron’s legacy began in his hometown of Akron, Ohio. As a high school phenom at St. Vincent-St. Mary, LeBron, and his teammates, dubbed the 'Fab Five', led the school to three state championships in four years. During his high school career, LeBron garnered national attention, appearing on the cover of Sports Illustrated as a high school junior in 2002 with the headline 'The Chosen One,' and achieving honors such as the Gatorade Player of the Year in 2002, and the McDonald’s All-American MVP in 2003.  

At 18 years old, LeBron James was selected first overall in the 2003 NBA draft, directly from high school, by his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers. Immediately making an impact upon entering the league, LeBron became the first player in franchise history and the youngest player in NBA history to win the Rookie of the Year award, doing so at 19. In his first seven seasons in the NBA, James led the Cavaliers to 50 or more wins on four separate occasions, including a franchise record 66-win season in 2008-09. He was twice named NBA MVP and led the Cavaliers to their first trip to the NBA Finals in 2007. Though LeBron and the Cavaliers would fail to bring a championship to Cleveland that year, this would not be his last attempt to bring his hometown team an NBA championship.

After a four-year stint in Miami, dramatically launched by “The Decision” and culminating in two titles and four straight runs to the Finals, LeBron returned to Northeast Ohio in 2014 and made a bold promise: he would make the Cavaliers a champion. This mission set up the NBA’s next great cross-conference rivalry between Lebron’s Cavs and Steph Curry’s “Splash Brothers” Golden State Warriors. In 2015, Cleveland and Golden State met for the first of what would be four straight NBA Finals matchups, a remarkable feat that even the famed Lakers-Celtics rivalry has never matched. It was a tightly contested series, however the Cavaliers would fall in six games to the ascendant Warriors. 

The following season, the Warriors looked downright unstoppable as they set the mark for the NBA’s best regular season record at 73 wins to just 9 losses and returned to the NBA Finals for a rematch with the Cavaliers. After four games, the series stood at 3-1 Warriors, a deficit that had so far proven insurmountable in NBA Finals history. What followed was the greatest comeback ever achieved in the NBA’s championship round. LeBron led an unprecedented comeback, and set up the game winning shot in Game 7 with likely his most lasting and poetic career highlight, a thunderous block against the backboard of the previous season’s Finals MVP Andre Iguodala. Fighting tears as he donned his NBA champions gear, LeBron exclaimed to the largest TV audience for an NBA game this century: “Cleveland, this is for you!”

Even with the new season just underway, LeBron has been busy breaking barriers in 2024. After 12 years, LeBron returned to the Olympics and led the United States to a gold medal in the summer games in Paris alongside longtime rivals Steph Curry and Kevin Durant. To kick off his 22nd NBA season, James became the first father to play alongside his son in league history. Stepping onto the court in his Laker uniform next to his eldest son Bronny, he has officially blazed an unmistakable trail not only for himself, but for his family.