Saturday, August 22, 2026 brings another all-day Magic: The Gathering Casual Commander session at CJ Sports and Collectibles inside Cottonwood Mall, running 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM Mountain Time. Saturdays draw a noticeably different crowd from the Friday sessions — bigger, younger, and more family-heavy, with pods turning over steadily from late morning straight through evening. If you have only ever played Commander with the same three friends at a kitchen table, this is the low-pressure way to find out what the rest of the Albuquerque metagame looks like.
The format is open pod play. Show up with a hundred-card singleton deck built around a legendary creature, find or form a table of four, and go. Nobody is tracking standings and nobody is handing out packs for winning, which is precisely the appeal — the games are longer, the politics are better, and people actually explain their combos instead of silently executing them. Deck power is negotiated at the table before the first shuffle. Straight-out-of-the-box preconstructed decks are common and completely welcome; so are upgraded precons, budget builds, and janky pet decks that have been getting refined for years. Staff can sell you a precon on the spot if you arrive empty-handed and want to jump in.
What makes CJ Sports worth the drive is the second half of the store. This is a genuine sports card shop as much as a trading card game shop — MLB, NBA, NFL, and NHL singles and sealed wax, vintage through current-year Panini and Topps, PSA and BGS graded slabs in the case, autographed memorabilia, and regularly scheduled box breaks. Between Commander games you can browse Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, One Piece, and Riftbound singles, or pull a raw vintage baseball card out of a box for a couple of dollars. Very few stores in New Mexico let you do both under one roof.
Find it at 10000 Coors Bypass NW, Suite C-204, inside Cottonwood Mall, Albuquerque, NM 87114. That puts you in the far northwest metro, an easy drive from Rio Rancho, Corrales, Paradise Hills, Ventana Ranch, and the entire west side, with plenty of free mall parking and no parking meters or garage fees. The mall setting also means climate control, clean restrooms, and food a short walk away — convenient when a Commander game runs two hours. Store hours are 10:00 AM to 8:00 PM Monday through Saturday. Phone 505-832-7499.
This session suits families, teenagers, first-timers, lapsed players, and anyone who wants to play Magic without a tournament clock. Bring your deck, a playmat if you have one, and some cash for singles. Arrive around noon or early afternoon if you want the most pods to choose from, or come after 5:00 PM for a quieter, more conversational evening crowd. Be honest about your deck's power level when you sit down; it is the single biggest thing that makes a pod fun for all four people. Entry pricing is not published on the shop's calendar — call ahead if you need to know. Updates post to Instagram at @cjsportsabq and to Facebook at CJSports33.
