For the third year in a row, Topps went with a 132-card basketball set in the standard size and without any subsets. Despite giving the cards a more contemporary look for the new decade, it is one of the lowest-valued basketball sets of the era.
Card fronts featured a player photo, which was usually a game-action photo. Below the picture is a banner icon, which wraps around a basketball. The part of the banner around the ball contains a team name, with the player's name over to the left on another part of that banner. The player's position appears below that. The back has the requisite basketball icon with the card number in the upper left hand corner, with the player's name inside a stripe extended from that ball. A team quiz cartoon appears below inside its own box, with the player's vital stats to its right. A year-by-year career statistic display and write-up follow. A black stripe with a position, city and team name runs along the right horizontal side.
Once again, All-Star players are credited on their base cards with a circular icon indicating which team they made. The rookie crop is thin this year, with Alex English being the most noticeable player. Other rookies include Reggie Theus and Mychal Thompson.
Very short on Rookies. Decent design but the game shots never impressed me.