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Welcome to this week’s edition of The Baseline!

We’re covering the latest across basketball culture for:

💡 Brand Insights

♟️ Marketing Strategy

🧰 Creator Tools

📚 Business resources

Let’s jump right into it…

ATHLETE BRANDING BLUEPRINT

Pascal Siakam is rewriting the athlete branding playbook.

Which started with one key hire that most athletes aren’t even thinking about.

Because the reality is just having a social media manager isn’t enough anymore.

The old playbook of tunnel fits and game highlights don’t cut it for fans that want unique content from their favorite players.

That’s why when Pascal Siakam brought on a creative director, his entire feed transformed into a cinematic universe.

Every post creates this experience of a mixed media mood board that drives a ton of engagement.

Now his audience is immersed in a world of storytelling beyond his stats and highlights.

These unique visuals create a sense of purpose and connectivity to a player who’s traveled over 6,000 miles from Africa to play in the NBA.

In the future of athlete marketing, having a creative director will be an essential role on the athlete’s team.

Because the blueprint isn’t just about creating content but about making your biggest fans feel like they’re a part of your world.

FREE THROWS

Sharing the tools and resources that I’m using this week:

🏟️ Anvara - A new tech-enabled marketplace allows brands to access experiential sponsorship opportunities at leading sports and entertainment events.

💥 SMASHD - Sometimes the best lessons and insights come from outside your industry. Watch this video case study on Drink SMASHD’s viral social media strategy.

🤖 Ballin AI - Founded by former Division I athlete Nyla Pollard, this new tool is helping reshape the athlete scouting process using AI-driven player evaluations.

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FAST BREAK

Here’s what you missed this week:

🏆 Shai Gilgeous-Alexander won his first MVP award and dedicated the new Hail Clay colorway of his Converse SHAI 001 sneaker to his wife. He also gifted his teammates a giftbox that included a Rolex watch, iPhones, Beats by Dre headphones, and custom-embroidered Canada Goose jackets.

🔥 Cash App and Playa Society partnered to make a bold statement for women’s sports with their newly designed Atlanta Dream basketball court.

🐈‍⬛ SLAM and Karl-Anthony Towns collaborated on this Bodega KAT t-shirt, paying homage to the neighborhood spots that make New York truly unique.

✍️ Hunter Dickson is one of the leading athletes in LinkedIn’s latest NIL campaign, as they partnered with NOCAP Sports to bring on over 325 current and former college athletes in on-campus events and social media activations.

🐐 One of Jordan Brand’s creatives shares insights with Complex on the difficulties of reaching younger consumers, as the brand continues to emphasize storytelling through subtle details in its brand and products.

🤼 Topps created a limited edition Tyrese Haliburton and Jalen Brunson trading card from their WWE appearance that previewed the Eastern Conference rivalry.

🚏 The city of New York renamed various streets across the city after the New York Knicks roster. The behind-the-scenes content is great, but is this too early of a celebration?

🪞 Sports betting startup Novig partnered with The Last Take (a highly accurate parody First Take show on TikTok) to host a viral Jalen Brunson look-a-like-contest.

🔎 The internet is speculating that Tyrese Haliburton has been wearing his new Puma signature logo, but neither he nor the brand has confirmed anything yet.

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POST-GAME

Thanks for reading—I’ll see you back here next week!

And if you enjoyed reading today’s newsletter, please share it with one friend.

- Jeff Chen | 🏀💡👨🏻‍💻