Many collectors fondly remember the second year of the popular premium brand from SkyBox, which built on the success of the 1996-97 E-X2000 set–an experimental release that utilized a plastic stock, intricate layering, and die-cutting. For the 80-card follow-up series, 1997-98 E-X2001, the company put a twist on the Credentials parallel with a new plastic stock, unique serial numbering, and two tiers that offered more scarcity.
The 1997-98 SkyBox E-X2001 Essential Credentials Future parallel features a pink color scheme and serial numbering that runs in inverse order of card numbers. With Shaquille O'Neal’s card being #7 is, this parallel is /74. He also has an Essential Credentials Now parallel that's green and numbered /7, the same as the card number.
“I had had that plastic sitting around in my magic book for a long time,” said Jean MacLeod, one of the lead designers at Fleer/SkyBox in the 1990s. “It was called a glow edge. When you held it, it had that ‘glowing edge’ to it.”
Much like their Metal Universe PMG contemporaries, Essential Credentials cards have ascended into the upper echelon of basketball card collecting thanks in large part to how difficult it is to find high-quality examples.
The certification number on this card has been checked against the third-party grader's online database and is active as of 07/02/2026.
