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Welcome to Friday’s edition of The Baseline!

Every end of the week, I break down what you missed in basketball culture. 

This 3-minute read shares the latest marketing and creator insights across the industry.

Let’s jump right into it…

FAST BREAK

Here’s what you missed this week:

🎙️ adidas Basketball signed Jeff’s Teague Club 520 Podcast, making them the first podcast with a sneaker deal.

🧡 Michael Jordan’s latest segment from NBA on NBC’s MJ: Insights To Excellence shared his story about his Love of The Game contract clause and what personal branding means to him.

👑 Nike Basketball announced their upcoming Chosen 1’s activation, a high school basketball showcase across Los Angeles, New York and Akron as part of the Forever King campaign.

🏀 The Next Chapter continues to lead the 1v1 movement, as their upcoming TNC 03 event just partnered with PrizePicks to give fans an opportunity to win money on their highly anticipated matchups.

👟 Shaq is bringing back The Shaq Brand with an all new SHAQ Dunkman 1.0 sneaker, that will premier on his new show: Dunkman Slam Dunk Contest, on TNT Sports and HBO Max.

🟥 Converse Hoops and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander are dropping a pair of their own Red October’s December’s (Shai 001: Winter Red), a perfect colorway just in time for the holidays.

👞 Tyrese Haliburton gave a sneak peak at a new Puma Hali 1 colorway inspired by his iconic media day loafers.

🚙 Carmax announced the signing of Donvoan Mitchell, as he becomes the latest hooper to join the used car dealership platform.

🗽 The New York Knicks have one of the NBA’s longest-standing logos, as Complex shared the history behind the creator Michael Doret and his early design drafts from 1992.

Shoppers are adding to cart for the holidays

Over the next year, Roku predicts that 100% of the streaming audience will see ads. For growth marketers in 2026, CTV will remain an important “safe space” as AI creates widespread disruption in the search and social channels. Plus, easier access to self-serve CTV ad buying tools and targeting options will lead to a surge in locally-targeted streaming campaigns.

Read our guide to find out why growth marketers should make sure CTV is part of their 2026 media mix.

Learn more.

THE POINT FORWARD

This is a the section of our newsletter where I point out one thing worth sharing with someone in your network—whether it’s a job, a resource, or just an idea or inspiration.

Forward this to someone to debate the use of AI in sports creative, as James Harden stated that this "was the best commercial he's ever been in," even though he never set foot on the set since it was entirely created by AI.

Read the entire thread to watch Harden’s reaction to the commercial and then reply and let me know your thoughts on AI in sports marketing!

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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 | 🏀💡👨🏻‍💻