TL;DR
- Karl-Anthony Towns, Knicks center, enjoys opening sports trading card packs.
- Towns sold a Yoshinobu Yamamoto rookie card for $72,000 via Fantics Collect auction.
- The card, a 2024 Topps Inception MLB Logoman, features Yamamoto's autographed game-worn jersey.
- Towns, a New York Yankees fan, sold the Dodgers card to someone who would appreciate it more.
It's fun to learn about the New York Knicks players' hobbies off the court.
Karl-Anthony Towns, the Knicks' center, enjoys opening sports trading card packs and discusses his enthusiasm for cards on his Instagram page, Big Bodega Cards.
Towns achieved a record $72,000 sale on Thursday night for a Yoshinobu Yamamoto rookie card through a Fantics Collect auction. Yamamoto, a right-handed pitcher with The Los Angeles Dodgers, was recently named the 2025 World Series MVP for his play against the Toronto Blue Jays.
This 2024 Topps Inception MLB Logoman card features a fragment of Yamamoto's game-worn jersey. Yamamoto has autographed the card, which PSA (Professional Sports Authenticator) has awarded a Gem-Mint 10 grade.
Towns posted a video of him pulling the card on his YouTube page nearly two months ago.
What Towns commented regarding the Yamamoto card
With a $53 million salary for the 2025-26 NBA season with The Knicks, Towns isn't in urgent need of the funds he gained from Selling Yamamoto's rookie card.
He informed the New York Post's Stefan Bondy that the New York Yankees stand out as his preferred MLB squad, even though he drew a scarce Dodgers card.
“I think the world of (Yamamoto) as a player. I love watching him pitch, one of the best in the game, especially as a pitcher growing up, it’s always great when you see the best go out there and play chess with some of the best hitters in the world,” Towns said. “I’m just a Yankee fan. That’s really it. Sometimes someone will appreciate the card more than I will, and I want to make sure that’s how the story went.”
In the Knicks' 113-111 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday, Towns achieved a double-double with 18 points and 14 rebounds. The five-time All-Star is currently averaging 21.5 points and 12.8 boards across 33.2 minutes per game in 14 appearances.
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