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Welcome to this week’s edition of The Baseline!

Every Wednesday morning, I share the blueprint for basketball culture, covering industry insights, marketing strategies, and creator tools and resources.

Let’s jump right into it…

MARKETING BLUEPRINT

WNBA All-Star Weekend is quickly becoming one of basketball’s fastest-growing tentpole events.

As the league continues to reach record audiences (73 million unique viewers through 117 national broadcasts) and sell out arenas (record 19,783 fans filled Chicago’s United Center), here’s how brands activated around WNBA All-Star Weekend:

🤳 The StudBudz partnered with AT&T, Twitch, and State Farm during their WNBA ASW live stream takeover, and even got early access to the Caitlin 1 sneakers from Caitlin Clark herself.

👚 Limited edition merch and exclusive designs were everywhere all weekend long, including a special WNBA bag charm with Coach, the WNBA x SLAM capsule collection, and the Round21 Collection designed by Shema Love.

🌹 NBA2K partnered with Derrick Rose’s Rose’s Flower Shop to surprise each All-Star with roses and heartfelt letters from their biggest fans.

📲 Nike and Jordan Brand celebrated their athletes' on-court moments, with the Jumpman highlighting Azzi Fudd’s 3-Point Contest win and Nike Basketball reminding everyone that Jonquel Jones has Been Like That as she took home the All-Star Game MVP.

🧡 Bumble sponsored the league’s Orange Carpet to kick off the WNBA All-Star 2026, which featured iconic outfits and looks by the league’s stars A’ja Wilson, Gabby Williams, Paige Bueckers, Olivia Miles, and many others.

🎙️ The game's biggest athletes and brightest leaders spent time on different stages and panels discussing the current and future state of women’s basketball, with brands like Nike and the Obama Foundation hosting various panels around the city.

👟 Playa Society hosted their Merch Cookout experience at WNBA Live and announced an upcoming A’Two collaboration with Nike Basketball and A’ja Wilson.

🛌 Google Pixel built an immersive “Hoop Dreams” activation that brought creators like Briana Green to their fan-first experience buildout.

☕️ Unrivaled hosted a Coffee Club pop-up shop, complete with their athletes taking shifts as baristas, including a viral moment from league co-founder Napheesa Collier.

3️⃣0️⃣ The WNBA created a special Season 30 chain that found its way onto every celebrity, influencer, athlete, and creator courtside at the game.

🏀 The business of women’s basketball continues to grow as more and more brands invest and activate around WNBA All-Star Weekend, including Skechers, Panini, Wilson, Stanley, Tissot, Chase, and Procter & Gamble.

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POST-GAME

Thanks for reading! Here are a few ways we can stay connected:

🤝 Partner With Me: I work with brands, athletes and creators across their brand strategy, digital media, creator programs, partnerships, and marketing growth. Interested in working together? Get in touch here.

📊 Be First: I’m building Future Blueprint Sports — the definitive discovery and intelligence platform for sports marketing and creator culture. Get early access today.

👋 Stay Connected: Enjoyed this newsletter? Share it with a friend or colleague. Also follow me on LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok for more sports marketing and creator insights.

Thanks and see you later this week!

- Jeff Chen | 🏀💡👨🏻‍💻