If you’re a basketball card collector, odds are you’re familiar with the Chicago Bulls’ iconic red and black jerseys and their legendary players like Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. But did you know that the Bulls released some great oddball trading card sets through the years? These sets were often used as promotions to entice fans to attend games, and they feature some pretty quirky designs. Whether you’re a die-hard Bulls fan, a Michael Jordan Master Set collector, or a hobbyist looking for something a little out of the ordinary, one of these ten nifty oddball Chicago Bulls team sets is sure to pique your “collecting” interest.
1969-70 Pepsi Chicago Bulls
I’ve already highlighted the 1969 Pepsi Chicago Bulls basketball set on the Oddball Archive, but the 101 is that Pepsi sponsored this 13-card set of 8’’ x 10″ black-and-white player portraits.
1970-71 Chicago Bulls Hawthorne Milk
The 6-card Hawthorne Milk set is probably the toughest set on this list to track down. The “cards” are cut-out side panels of milk cartons; five cards are 3-1/4’’ x 3-3/8″, but the second Weiss card is a little larger. Bob Love is the set’s key card.
1977-78 Chicago Bulls White Hen Pantry
The 1977 Chicago Bulls White Hen Pantry set is made up of seven high-gloss player photos that were printed on super thin paper. Each borderless photo is 5’’ x 7″ and features a game-action photo and a facsimile autograph.
1979-80 Chicago Bulls Police
The 16-card Bulls Police set showcases a player photo on the front within a white border. The slightly odd-sized, 2-5/8’’ x 4-1/8″ cards have Kiwanis, La Margarita Restaurant, NBA, and Azteca Tortillas logos along the back’s bottom. The set can also be found with rounded or square corners making a master set 32 cards in size. It’s especially tough to complete since Reggie Theus and Coby Dietrick are considered short prints.
1985 Boy Scouts Interlake Chicago Bulls
I wrote a detailed article about this “set” in October 2021. I say “set” because there are only two cards in it; Michael Jordan and Orlando Woolridge. At one point, Jordan’s were breaking the 6-figure price point.
1987-88 Entenmann’s Chicago Bulls
Twelve cards make up this set which the Bulls gave away to each fan at one of their 1987-88 season home games. The cards are 2-5/8’’ x 4″, with Michael Jordan being the key card. However, the set does feature the first cards of Scottie Pippen and Horace Grant.
1988-89 Entenmann’s Chicago Bulls
Entenmann’s again sponsored a Bulls set for the 1988-89 season as a home-game promotion. This set also has 12 cards with the same form factor as the 87s. You’ll find both the Entenmann’s Bulls sets ordered by the player’s uniform number on checklists.
1989-90 Wisconsin Dairy Council Chicago Bulls
I had never heard of the 1989 Wisconsin Dairy Council Bulls set before researching content for this article. The Dairy Council of Wisconsin Inc. sponsored the 4’’ x 8″ 6-card set to promote milk for health. The cards showcase player caricatures with the line “Grow Like a Pro” printed on them.
1989-90 Equal Chicago Bulls
Equal Brand sweetener sponsored this 12-card, 3’’ x 4-1/4″ sized set of full-bleed Chicago Bulls cards. The Bulls gave away approximately 10k at their April 17th home game.
1990-91 Equal/Star Chicago Bulls
You’ll sometimes see this 16-card set advertised as the Star Equal Chicago Bulls Silver Season set as it celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Bulls franchise. The cards are standard-sized and were given away to fans at the Bulls’ April 9th home game. Star Company produced approximately 10k sets.
I hope you enjoyed this list of oddball Chicago Bulls team sets. If you like these write-ups, check out the Oddball Archive for deeper dives into a little over 100 non-mainstream sets, and happy collecting!
PS, I occasionally highlight regional-card releases, food issues, retail issues, and other teams’ releases in The Post War Cards Newsletter.