Panini's Imaginary Cat Story

Back to basketball tonight and Cat Barber cards.  They have been a little bit on the high side for the past year and half since he left college after his junior season at NC State.  While he was in Raleigh he became one of the best point guards in the ACC.  His main weapon on the basketball court is his extraordinary quickness.  Some would say he's shifty.  If you are unfamiliar with Cat here's a quick look....

I have already picked up one of his cards earlier this summer....

Based strictly on appearance I could understand why some of the sellers on Ebay are looking to get a little bit of money out of these cards, but at this point Cat was a really good all-conference college player who is going to end up having a nice long career playing basketball over in Europe.  I keep a close eye on things over on Ebay, and every once in awhile one of these cards ends up in an auction and they sell for $5 or less.  Sounds like a better price for someone I really liked watching while they were in college.  


Luckily, I was able to recently pick up another Cat Barber autograph.  Who wouldn't want a card that is just simply signed "Cat"?  Plus it features him in an NC State uniform and has a white, red, and black jersey swatch I would guess comes from a home jersey.

I love the design of this Immaculate Collection cards.  I know that Panini also makes college baseball cards with similar designs.  I have a few of guys like Trea Turner and Carlos Rodon, but I did not pull them out for comparison.  The signature is on-card too, which is just the icing on the cake for this card.  Well, that was until I turned the card over to the back......

and we get some suggestion about how Anthony Barber gained his "Cat" nickname due to his agility and quickness on the basketball court.  Please.  It takes about a thirty second internet search to find half a dozen stories explaining the origins of Anthony's "Cat" nickname.....

Apparently the story revolves around a 4 year old Cat Barber's love of Oatmeal Cream Pies, not basketball quickness.  

A box of Little Debbie's has more of a place on the back of these cards than whatever drivel Panini wrote.  From ACC Media Day in 2015:

"When I was little, I used to climb on a lot of stuff to get into cabinets for snacks and stuff,'' Barber said. One day, he was going after some oatmeal cream pies located in a cabinet over the stove. He stepped on the stove, burning his foot.

"My mom was like 'Stop climbing around like a little cat','' he said. "My sister started calling me that and it blew up.''

And there you have it, nothing to do with basketball.  Even Cat's Wikipedia biography has the nickname origins correct.  When you're more inaccurate than Wikipedia, well....I am sure that the back of the Cat Barber card wasn't a huge priority for whatever employee writes the little blurbs on the backs of the cards, but it would be nice to at least make them somewhat accurate.  

Interestingly enough, Cat does have a basketball nickname he picked up from his time at NC State which he uses in his Instagram user name.....

Honest.  Former NC State coach Mark Gottfried explains the origins of that nickname.....

“There’s nothing fake or phony about Cat.  He is who he is. What you get every day is the real Cat.”

Honestly, this is still a very nice looking card even if Panini is unwilling to put in a little leg work to find some interesting facts out about a Cat.   For example, he hates being called Anthony.  He also hates made up stories....

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/college/acc/nc-state/article46449005.html#storylink=cpy