2017-18 Vanguard · parallel

Samples

Print run: unnumbered
Serial numbered: no
Family: other

Where it was sold

not documented

Applies to

the full 100-card base set of 2017-18 Vanguard

Notes

tcdb sid 500971, "Total Cards: 100", heading "2017-18 Panini Vanguard - Samples". UNNUMBERED RESTS ON A POSITIVE DISCRIMINATIVE TEST, NOT ON A BLANK COLUMN: the flag column is demonstrably live on these very rows - it renders the token "SAM" on ALL 100 of them - and carries NO serial token on any, while the same renderer prints SN49 on the parent and SN10 / SN25 / SN1 on this product's three colour sids. Enumerated over all 100 rows on two differently-parameterised fetches of https://www.tcdb.com/Checklist.cfm/sid/500971/2017-18-Panini-Vanguard-Samples plus https://www.tcdb.com/Checklist.cfm/sid/500971/Vanguard-Samples-2017-18-Panini-Basketball-Cards?sort=0 (rows 71-87) and https://www.tcdb.com/Gallery.cfm/sid/500971/2017-18-Panini-Vanguard-Samples?PageIndex=9 / ?PageIndex=10 (rows 81-100). tcdb's own set note reads "Partial parallel set consisting of the first 100 cards from the base set. Cards feature a large black printing of the word 'SAMPLE' across the back. These cards were issued early to dealers in a special pack, and do not have a known print run (though it is assumed to be relatively low)." - so the QUANTITY is explicitly unknown while the SERIAL axis is settled; see gaps G-007. tcdb files this under a "Promo Sets" heading on the parent Inserts.cfm rather than under "Parallel Sets", and cardboardconnection lists it as a base-set parallel spelled "Sample*" at https://www.cardboardconnection.com/2017-18-panini-vanguard-basketball-nba-cards; sportscardchecklist does not list it at all. tcdb's spelling "Samples" is used. The distribution fact "issued early to dealers in a special pack" matches no value in the channel enum, so it is described here rather than forced into a near-miss value (EXTRACTION_SPEC 2.3). SINGLE-SOURCE on the print run: two tcdb endpoints are still one source. CHANNEL NOT ASSIGNED, DELIBERATELY. No source found in this build asserts channel EXCLUSIVITY for this product or for any tier of it. The two strongest statements anywhere are both PRESENCE statements in the sense of reference/caveats.csv CAV-010: Panini America's own blog says "On average, each hobby box of 2017-18 Vanguard Basketball (five cards per box, six boxes per case) will deliver four autographs and one base card or parallel." (https://blog.paniniamerica.net/the-panini-america-quality-control-gallery-2017-18-vanguard-basketball-50-images/) and cardboardconnection says "Formerly a Pacific brand across several sports from the early 2000s, each Hobby box of the basketball product averages four autographs." (https://www.cardboardconnection.com/2017-18-panini-vanguard-basketball-nba-cards). Both describe what a hobby box CONTAINS; neither says the product is sold only through hobby. channel is therefore UNKNOWN with an EMPTY channel_basis and an EMPTY channel_confidence, which migrations/003_parallels.sql requires (basis_iff_channel_known rejects channel=UNKNOWN with channel_basis=unsupported). See gaps G-004.

Draft — sourced but not independently verified. How this catalogue is built