2022-23 Donruss Optic: Banchero's Rated Rookie Goes Chrome

2022-23 Donruss Optic is the chrome sibling of base Donruss, and it earns its place in the Banchero rookie conversation for one reason: it pairs the instantly recognizable Rated Rookie designation with the same Optichrome finish that powers the Prizm and Select families. It’s the rookie card that looks like a classic Donruss and shines like a Prizm.

Why this set matters for Banchero collectors

• It delivered a chrome Rated Rookie during the 2022-23 rookie season — the Donruss rookie banner collectors have chased for decades, now on a premium finish.
• The un-numbered Holo parallel is Optic’s answer to the Silver Prizm — the key mainstream chase and the card most player collectors want first.
• A full colored-parallel rainbow (the numbered Optic parallels) builds above the Holo, topping out at the scarcest one-of-one.
• Because it shares Optichrome stock with Prizm and Select, an Optic Rated Rookie rounds out a “chrome trio” of Banchero’s flagship 2022-23 rookies.

We don’t publish print runs or fixed prices — the live eBay links below and across the site show exactly what these cards are trading for right now.

The parallel structure, quickly

• Base Rated Rookie — the accessible chrome rookie and the natural first copy.
• Holo — the un-numbered silver-prizm-style chase; the mainstream key card.
• Numbered colored parallels — the Optic rainbow (velocity, colored, and serial-numbered variants) that climbs to the top one-of-one.

Confirm which parallel a listing actually is before you buy — a base Rated Rookie and a numbered Holo variant can look similar in a thumbnail but sit far apart in value.

Optic vs. the other chrome rookies

Optic, Prizm, Select, and Mosaic are the four 2022-23 chrome rookies, and Optic’s edge is its lineage: it’s the only one of the four built on the Donruss brand, so it’s the only chrome rookie carrying the classic Rated Rookie banner instead of a plain base design. Prizm remains the name-recognition leader and the Silver Prizm the single most-chased card in the class; Select spreads its rookie across three tiers instead of Optic’s single Rated Rookie-to-Holo ladder; Mosaic swaps the refractor look for its own prismatic pattern. For collectors who specifically want the Rated Rookie designation on chrome stock, Optic is the only set that delivers it.

Buying it safely

For anything beyond a low-grade raw copy, buy graded so both authenticity and condition are guaranteed — Optichrome cards live and die by centering and edge chipping, exactly like Prizm. Run a scan through the card centering tool before you buy raw, and if you’re deciding whether to send a raw copy in for grading, check the math first on the grading ROI calculator — Rated Rookie and Holo copies routinely justify the fee, but always confirm against current PSA 10 comps before you ship a card in. When comparing prices, look at sold comps rather than asking prices, and make sure the slab label matches the parallel you think you’re buying.

New to his rookies? Start with the collecting guide for how to pick a card and spot altered slabs, use the rookie card checklist to see every 2022-23 brand at a glance, and browse the rookie-cards top list to open live eBay listings for every 2022-23 Banchero rookie.