1986 Star Magic Johnson Set - Star Basketball Cards

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Fast Facts

Year(s) Issued: 1986
Number Cards: 10
Common Card Value (Ex Condition): $25
Estimated Production Run: Unknown, but likely less than other sets (Some estimates say <2000)

Full 1986 Star Magic Johnson Checklist

1986 Star Magic Johnson Set on EBAY

KEYS FOR COLLECTORS

A tribute set from Star for Lakers great Magic Johnson–one of five Star sets dedicated to players produced from 1984-1986
The set highlights Magic’s career and despite the 1986 date, was issued years later
Notably, the Magic set featured less cards (10) than the Erving, Bird and Kareem sets, but the same as the previous year Michael Jordan set.
Still fairly affordable as unopened sets can often be found for under $300
You won’t find bagged Magic sets as these cards were sheet cut and issued in 1990

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1986 Star Magic Johnson Set – Summary

This tribute set to Magic Johnson features 10 cards for the Laker great. Each card highlights Magic’s career, ranging from his collegiate to playoff stats and two MVP awards. The #9 Playoff MVP card features Magic in a picture with Isiah Thomas at the All-Star game, which is a bit of a peculiar choice. Maybe Star mixed up photos, as his #5 All-Star Stats card features Johnson during a regular game.

As mentioned above, you won’t find a poly bag of this set, as the cards were sheet cut and issued in 1990, four years after what should have been their original release date. The cards were a part of the same sheet as the Best of the Best set. The cards were released into the hobby following an auction of Robert Levin’s collection of Star cards in 1990. The great ‘Basketball Gold’ site also provides some great intel:

Another criticism is that the 1986 Best of the Best and Magic Johnson subsets were not released to the market until after the Star Co. auction in 1990 and there is no proof when the cards from those subsets were printed. But Star veterans and purists often do not collect those two subsets and find it easier to ignore them.

1986 Star Magic Johnson Set – Gallery

1986 Star Magic Johnson Set – Checklist

1 Magic Johnson (Checklist), Los Angeles Lakers
2 Magic Johnson, Collegiate Stats, Los Angeles Lakers
3 Magic Johnson, Regular Season Stats, Los Angeles Lakers
4 Magic Johnson, Playoff Stats, Los Angeles Lakers
5 Magic Johnson, All-Star Stats, Los Angeles Lakers
6 Magic Johnson, Career Info 1, Los Angeles Lakers
7 Magic Johnson, Career Info 2, Los Angeles Lakers
8 Magic Johnson, Top Performance, Los Angeles Lakers
9 Magic Johnson, 1980 Playoff MVP, Los Angeles Lakers
10 Magic Johnson, 1982 Playoff MVP, Los Angeles Lakers

Most Watched 1986 Star Magic Johnson Set on eBay