University of North Carolina star Caleb Wilson is a one-of-one, a firmly unique dunker who can craft electricity merely by cocking back the ball in his hand and unleashing. It's an act that works much better with an audience, though. After all, it's tough to electrify a crowd when there's no one in the arena.
It's also difficult to derive collecting value from a player whose in-person experience is so intrinsic to his on-court success. If Wilson falls into the right situation (and develops into a more complete player, harnessing his post moves and improving his ability to cash in on non-dunks), he'll be instantly beloved, a ringleader of a revolution. If he lands in a stale city that's apathetic about the NBA experience, his dunks may fall on deaf ears, and his ascent could stall. That potential looming drudgery could affect his collectibles prices as well.
Wilson is featured in the brand new (licensed!) 2025-26 Bowman Basketball, featuring the five-star forward in his aesthetically appealing baby blues. Odds are his smiling face and scrawled auto are going to be a marquee attraction in the interim period ahead of the draft, an extremely wise short-term investment if you happen to have the means.
But when the draft arrives, Wilson will face a similar problem to the one that's bedeviled many investment targets over the years. Most of the teams atop the NBA Draft are quite bad. If he falls into the wrong hands ... what happens then?
1 advantage Caleb Wilson has to combat post-NBA Draft value plummet
In Wilson's defense, he isn't an analytics darling or someone who doesn't leap right off the page/enthusiasts must make an impassioned case for. The killer instinct, the mid-range, the motor, the rim-rocking — it's an eye-popping game. Once you see him, you will believe. He should be an instant favorite among the younger sect.
If the Chicago Bulls fall close to the top of the lottery, or Wilson is selected second overall by the more-marketable-by-the-day Atlanta Hawks (as he was in Yahoo!'s latest mock), his cards will be catnip. But if the Kings end up selecting him and he falls into the Marvin Bagley Trap of Irrelevance, it'll be a collecting nightmare — any early investors will have to hold until he inevitably demands a trade.
Brooklyn. Utah. Memphis. All terrifying.
Just like attempting to stand in front of a full-steam Wilson dunk and draw a charge, this isn't for the faint of heart. It might be a good idea to sell at least a few early unless you're ultra confident in the Hawks, Bulls, or Oklahoma City Thunder's ping pong balls winning out and falling right.
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