The Founders Interview: Trevor Morgan of Rare Air Collectibles

“Our mission is not to rewrite history, but to document it accurately, preserve it for future generations, and equip collectors with the research, knowledge, and confidence to make informed collecting decisions.” — Trevor S. Morgan, Founder

EDITOR’S INTRO — If you’ve followed this site for any length of time, you know where I’ve stood on the Shop-at-Home cards. Our price guide lists every Shop-at-Home set separately from the original Star releases, with a disclaimer, for one simple reason: these are 1997 issues that were sold — then and for years afterward — as original mid-1980s Star cards. Too many collectors have bought a Shop-at-Home Gatorade or Lite All-Stars believing they were getting the authentic 1985 issue, and unscrupulous sellers have exploited that confusion for years. The original 1983–1986 Star cards remain the significantly more valuable cards, and protecting collectors from that mix-up has been a priority here from the start.

That’s exactly why this interview matters. Nobody has done more to untangle this murky chapter of Star’s history than Trevor Morgan and Mike Mix of Rare Air Collectibles, who are now authenticating, grading, and encapsulating Shop-at-Home cards — clearly labeled as 1997 issues. Trevor sent back eleven pages of answers to my questions; what follows is a condensed version, edited for length with Rare Air’s blessing. The words are Trevor’s.

Q: How did you first get into Star Basketball cards, and what drew you specifically to the Shop-at-Home sets?

Like many collectors, my journey started with a passion for basketball and the incredible players of the 1980s. As I immersed myself in Star Basketball cards, I became fascinated by the Shop-at-Home issues because there were so many unanswered questions surrounding their history. The deeper I researched, the more I realized that decades of misinformation had created widespread misconceptions throughout the hobby. Rather than accepting those stories at face value, I wanted to trace everything back to its source and understand what had really happened.

One thought kept coming back to us: had the 1997 Shop-at-Home cards simply been recognized for what they actually were — a 1997 release — much of the confusion could have been resolved years ago. Because no major company was willing to authenticate them as 1997-issued cards, that vacuum allowed misinformation to persist, and far too often it enabled dishonest sellers to misrepresent them as mid-1980s Star cards. Ironically, the people most affected were many of the original Star collectors from the 1980s — the unresolved questions surrounding one chapter of Star’s history cast a shadow over the entire brand.

What started as simple curiosity became a long-term commitment: preserving an overlooked chapter of basketball card history, separating documented fact from long-held hobby myths, and giving collectors trustworthy information. That journey ultimately became the foundation for Rare Air Collectibles.

Q: How did Rare Air Collectibles come to be? What’s the origin story with you and Mike Mix?

I founded Rare Air because I saw a need for something missing in the hobby: a company dedicated to historical research, education, and preserving the stories behind some of the most significant sports collectibles ever produced. My research has always extended beyond Star — decades studying 1970s and 1980s Nike history, the 1985 launch of Air Jordan shoes and apparel, rare overseas trading cards, and other historically significant memorabilia.

I had known Mike Mix for years; he originally reached out because of our shared passion for vintage Nike trading cards. If I was going to bring someone aboard, it had to be someone who shared my commitment to integrity, collector education, and earning the trust of the hobby. Mike shared the same values — the belief that collectors deserve facts, transparency, and accurate information.

Q: Over the years of reviewing hundreds of Shop-at-Home cards, what were the biggest surprises?

One of the biggest surprises was the remarkable print quality of many of the 1997-issued cards. In some cases, iconic images from the original 1985 and 1986 Star releases were reproduced with noticeably greater clarity — the 1997 White Gatorade Michael Jordan, which uses the same image as the original 1985 Gatorade Jordan, is a great example.

Another significant discovery was the White and Black bordered Chicago Bulls Team Sets, including the White and Black bordered #101 Michael Jordan. Although these sets were never distributed through the Shop-at-Home Network, our research shows they were printed by Star Co. and sold privately by Robert Levin, before the Shop-at-Home sets were offered. Each set included a gold foil Certificate of Authenticity individually hand-signed by Levin — unlike the photocopied letters that accompanied the Shop-at-Home releases. That added another well-documented chapter to Star’s history and helped establish a clearer timeline.

Q: Walk me through the authentication process. How do you distinguish an authentic Shop-at-Home card from a fake?

Every authentication begins with the Rare Air Research & Authentication Methodology — and it starts with research and documentation, because understanding an item’s historical context is just as important as evaluating its physical characteristics. Once the item is in hand, we perform a comprehensive examination using multiple magnification methods and specialized lighting, reviewing the printing process, halftone dot patterns, print matrix, image quality, paper stock, gloss, registration, borders, cutting characteristics, edge fibers, dimensions, and other manufacturing details. We then compare each item against documented authentic examples from our research library.

There isn’t a single characteristic that determines authenticity — every decision is based on the totality of the evidence. Counterfeits may successfully imitate some features, but it’s far more difficult to reproduce the complete combination of manufacturing characteristics found on authentic examples. And while we’re committed to educating collectors, we deliberately don’t disclose every identifying characteristic publicly. The 1997 Star releases have been counterfeited just as the original 1980s cards have, and revealing every marker would only help counterfeiters improve future fakes.

Q: Are the fakes concentrated in certain sets or players?

Counterfeits aren’t limited to a single player or a handful of cards, although Michael Jordan cards naturally attract the greatest attention from counterfeiters. As collector interest in the 1997 Star releases has grown, we’ve seen not only an increase in the number of counterfeits, but a noticeable increase in their quality and sophistication. Counterfeiters and their technology continue to adapt over time; our responsibility is to keep researching, documenting, and adapting with them.

Q: There’s been a lot of debate over whether Shop-at-Home cards should even be graded. What’s your perspective?

From my perspective, the question isn’t whether these cards should be graded. The question is whether they can be accurately identified and honestly represented for what they are.

Our research has shown these are authentic Star-produced cards issued in 1997. Once that historical context is established, authenticating, grading, and encapsulating them as 1997-issued Star releases provides collectors with greater transparency and reduces the likelihood of future misrepresentation. When we announced we would grade these cards, every holder was intentionally labeled as a 1997 issue, with an educational statement on the back of each label explaining that all Star cards released in 1997 were distributed without proper licensing.

It’s also important to recognize that authentication and grading are not endorsements. They’re services that identify and document what an item is. Every collector should decide for themselves what they collect — my hope is simply that those decisions are made with accurate historical information. We believe clearly identifying these cards as 1997 Star releases allows them to be evaluated and traded within their proper historical marketplace, and that this only helps preserve the integrity and legacy of the original 1983–1986 Star releases.

EDITOR’S NOTE — This is where Trevor and I land in the same place from different directions. My concern with these cards has never been their existence — it’s the decades of collectors being sold a “1985” Gatorade or Lite All-Stars that was printed in 1997. A holder that says “1997” in plain text on the label attacks that problem directly. Whatever you think these cards are worth, a clearly labeled 1997 slab is a better outcome for the hobby than a raw card in an eBay listing titled “1985 Star.”

Q: What about the White & Black #101 sets? What’s their origin, and what makes them tricky to authenticate?

The White and Black bordered Chicago Bulls Team Sets are one of the most fascinating discoveries from our research, because they’re often associated with the Shop-at-Home cards even though they were never sold through the Shop-at-Home Network. Our research clearly shows these sets were printed by Star Co. in the lead-up to the Shop-at-Home releases and sold privately by Robert Levin in 1995, each with the corresponding #101 Michael Jordan card and a hand-signed gold foil COA.

Also in 1995, Levin created an additional 250 sets of the original 1991 Bulls Equal 16-card set with a glossy surface — different from the glossy Shop-at-Home version released in 1997. Levin included a letter dated September 15, 1995 stating that all “200” of these sets were sold to collector Bud Tompkins in Minnesota, but there were actually 250, as evidenced by the star sticker added to the back of the cases and as documented in the 1995 SIXSPORT Dealers Certified Price Guide.

Evidence also points to the original transparencies being used to print the White and Black sets. On the black and white #101, the Jordan image is more zoomed out than on the original red #101 — you can crop less of an image easily, but creating more of an image without the original transparency would be extremely difficult. The bluish area near Jordan’s elbow on the original red #101 is also clearly evident on the black and white versions. The transparency was then sold by Star to William Schonsheck in 1996, as documented.

Like the Shop-at-Home cards, these sets have been counterfeited, making careful authentication essential.

Q: Are there any cards you simply won’t authenticate?

Yes. If we cannot authenticate an item with confidence based on the available historical evidence, we simply won’t. We also made the deliberate decision not to authenticate, grade, or encapsulate original 1983–1986 Star cards. We have tremendous respect for the companies that currently provide those services, and we don’t believe there’s a void in the marketplace that Rare Air needs to solve.

Where we believe we can contribute is where significant confusion still exists. That’s why we’ve chosen to authenticate and encapsulate 1986 Star Type II cards — factory rejects that are frequently misrepresented and sold as publicly released cards, and that no other authentication company has formally addressed. Because Type IIs were primarily hand-cut by collectors, we’ll encapsulate them with an AUTHENTIC designation rather than a numerical grade, with a disclaimer on the reverse of every holder stating that “1986 Star Type II cards were never intended for public release.”

Due to overwhelming collector demand, we’ve also committed to fully authenticate and grade the Star Best of the Best set and the Magic Johnson set — sets other companies have generally passed on because of evidence suggesting they were released in 1990 rather than 1986. The philosophy is the same: identify these cards for exactly what they are so collectors can make informed decisions.

Q: What will the service cost, and for collectors sitting on raw Shop-at-Home cards, where should they start?

At launch, Rare Air will offer a simple flat-fee structure rather than multiple pricing tiers — collectors should know exactly what to expect without navigating service levels based on a card’s value. We’ll also offer a 10% discount for complete-set submissions, because we believe preserving complete sets is an important part of preserving hobby history.

For collectors who can’t submit everything at once, my advice is to prioritize based on your grading budget: start with the most recognizable players and the cards that carry the greatest collector demand and value, and work from there.

Q: Do you think Shop-at-Home cards will hold their value after the recent run in pricing?

No one can predict any collectibles market with certainty, so I would never tell someone a card is guaranteed to hold or increase in value. What I can say is that I’ve watched collector interest and values rise as more accurate information has become available — and I believe the market becomes healthier when buying and selling decisions are made with better information.

Rarity plays an important role. A significant number of Shop-at-Home cards were returned for refunds after the original release, and many of those returns were destroyed, greatly reducing the surviving population. Many longtime Star collectors who completed the original 1983–1986 releases are now adding the complete run of 1997 releases as a companion collection — and once complete, they aren’t selling. That scarcity is especially evident with the Crunch and Red Arena sets, and even more so with the 1997 Black & White Bulls Team Sets: our research shows only 250 copies of each were produced.

Rare Air’s goal has never been to drive prices. Our goal is a more accurate and transparent market. The market will determine value; our responsibility is to make sure these cards are accurately identified so collectors can buy and sell with confidence.

Q: What’s the long-term vision for Rare Air beyond Shop-at-Home authentication?

The vision has never been limited to authentication and grading. It’s historical research, documentation, appraisals, auctions, and collector education — and I’m passionate about filling important voids in the hobby wherever careful research can make a difference.

The first major research project after founding Rare Air was documenting the previously unknown 1985 Nike Promo Jumbo Michael Jordan card. Unlike its well-known 3″ × 5″ counterpart, this version measures 6″ × 8″ with a vertical design. After years of research, I presented my findings to SGC, which accepted my recommendation to officially identify the card as the “1985 Nike Promo Jumbo.” The first example was graded in 2024, and SGC’s population report today shows only 14 graded examples across all grades. Based on that documented population, I’m confident stating the 1985 Nike Promo Jumbo is by far the rarest Michael Jordan rookie-era trading card in existence.

There are several research projects I’ve been quietly working toward for years that I can’t share just yet, but I truly believe the future of Rare Air is even more exciting than its beginning. Ultimately, I want Rare Air’s legacy measured not by the number of items we authenticate, but by the trust we’ve earned and the historical record we’ve helped preserve. History isn’t preserved by choosing which chapters to remember — it’s preserved by documenting every chapter as accurately as possible.

Trevor S. Morgan is the founder of Rare Air Collectibles. This interview has been condensed and edited for length.