Just in time for the holidays, Panini has two new hoops releases for the collector as they continue to make the most of their NBA license acquisition. Donruss Elite and Panini Threads hit in December and while vastly different in design and content, both offer up strong possibilities.  Check out the following box break of the Donruss (Panini) Elite product by Card Corner Club. (Picture is sample not actual card pulled.)

A hobby box of Elite contains 20 packs and can be purchased from Cherry Collectables for $131.95 HERE. NBA fans that have been followers of Donruss/Playoff sets from the past will enjoy this first Panini Elite release. The schematic and designs are similar to previous editions. Those that have collected Elite before know that it is loaded with enough foil cards, inserts, parallels and die-cut cards to have your eyes popping with excitement from pack to pack.

The checklist maintains a balance of 120 commons, 40 retired legends and 40 autographed rookies totaling 200
cards. You'll find Kobe, LeBron, Wade, Duncan and your favorite current roster stars mixed with a little Kareem, McHale, Bird, Drexler, Rice, and of course Magic mixed in.

If you want rookie cards that will maintain their value, look no further. Elite contains 40 autographed rookie cards including Blake Griffin, James Harden, the red-hot Tyreke Evans, Brandon Jennings, Tyler Hansbrough, Jordan Hill and many others looking to explode onto the NBA scene.

Our box of Elite was excellent. It provided a plethora of inserts and parallels, two autographed rookie cards and two memorabilia cards along with 61% or 74 of the 120-card commons set.

We found:

2 Retired Greats
#128 Paul Westphal - 153/499
#155 Xavier McDaniel - 494/499

2 Status Parallels
#3 Josh Smith 57/95
#126 Phil Jackson 24/82

2 Prime Targets
#2 Kobe Bryant
#3 Dirk Nowitzki

2 In the Zone
#10 Al Horford
#20 LaMarcus Aldridge

1 A-R-C-eologists
#12 Vince Carter

1 A-R-C-eologists Parallel
#2 Steve Nash - 175/249

1 Elite Series
#24 Amare Stoudemire

1 Elite Series Parallel
#22 Dwight Howard - 128/249

2 Teamwork
#18 Brook Lopez/Devin Harris
#19 Chris Paul/David West

1 Teamwork Parallel
#5 LeBron James/Shaquille O'Neal - 136/249

1 Passing the Torch
#12 Dan Majerle/Chris Kaman

1 Passing the Torch Parallel
#5 Moses Malone/Yao Ming - 105/249

2 Clutch Performers
#3 Jason Terry
#4 Manu Ginobili

1 Clutch Performers Parallel
#16 Gilbert Arenas - 46/249

2 Base Jerseys
#72 Chris Paul - 98/99
#122 Chris Mullen - 45/99

1 Autographed Rookie
#169 Brandon Jennings - 80/499

1 Autographed Rookie Redemption
#198 Marcus Thornton

A pretty solid box a top 10 pick auto with Brandon Jennings and a very active 2nd rounder with Thornton. This will be the first time I am using Panini's online redemption system, so I am curious to see how it works and what the turnaround time will be. As for the other cards, the parallels are beautiful and both memorabilia cards are of quality players --the retired great Chris Mullen and current superstar Chris Paul. However my favorite card from the box is the Teamwork parallel card that features Shaq and Lebron. I've been a big fan of Shaq since his days with the Magic and the 25 year-old Lebron is showing no signs of slowing as he seeks an NBA title. Currently leading the East with a 26-8 record, they seem to be poised to represent in the finals. With the Lakers dominating the West, you just know the NBA suits are frothing at the mouth for yet another Shaq/Kobe showdown. Odds are it will happen, and millions will be watching every minute!