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Welcome to the newly updated edition of The Baseline!

Last week, I asked if you preferred one longer newsletter or two shorter newsletters, and the response was in favor of the shorter format.

Starting today, on Wednesdays, you'll receive the Marketing/Creator Blueprint and Creator Tools/Marketing Resources.

On Fridays, you'll get the weekly roundup of Basketball Culture Insights and our new section, The Point Forward.

Let’s jump right into it…

MARKETING BLUEPRINT

These abstract creators are taking over your basketball algorithm but instead of highlights, it’s videos of marbles racing or fried rice art.

These video formats are the type of addictive, satisfying content keeps people watching from Start To Finish.

That strategic insight is key to the NBA’s latest marketing campaign because social media platforms don't care who you follow anymore, only what keeps you watching until the end.

That’s why the NBA partnered with 12 of the internet’s most inventive creators to help promote this season’s NBA kickoff.

Each of the creators made unique visuals through their own craft that reimagined the journey of an NBA season.

From sand art, to rug making, to slime, these viral videos led millions of new fans into the NBA’s ecosystem.

As viewers loop each of the creator’s videos, it creates a halo effect for the NBA, meaning our watch time signals Instagram and TikTok to show us more content from the NBA.

This was more than a marketing campaign but a creative algorithm takeover as the league reverse-engineered how fans doom scroll.

By tapping into our watch time, the NBA turned woodworking and bedazzled art into brand awareness and league tune-in.

In today’s game and for creators on social media, it’s not just about the hook anymore but keeping audiences locked in and just like the NBA season itself—the process of the stories unfolding is what keeps us watching from Start To Finish.

Will A Book Grow Your Business?

No one buys a beach house from selling a book. They buy the beach house from the opportunities the book gets them.

Author.Inc helps experts, executives, and entrepreneurs turn expertise into world‑class books that build revenue, reputation, and reach. 

Their team—behind projects with Tim Ferriss and Codie Sanchez—cuts through uncertainty to show whether your book can realistically hit those targets. 

Schedule a complimentary 15‑minute call with Author.Inc’s co‑founder to quantify potential ROI from your offers, speaking engagements, royalties, and more. 

This isn’t writing advice. It’s a strategic consultation to decide whether now is the right time to put pen to paper. 

If it’s a go, they’ll show you how to write and publish it at a world-class level. If it’s a wait, you just avoided wasting time and money.

Get Your Free Book ROI Assessment.

FREE THROWS

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

🤖 Grokipedia - The AI-powered online encyclopedia developed by Elon Musk to compete with Wikipedia, utilizing the Grok language model to create and edit articles.

💡 Business Idea Generator - Easily generate over 50 new business ideas designed to stimulate your brain into thinking of new concepts.

🏆 TikTok Awards - TikTok is hosting its first-ever awards ceremony, presented in front of a live audience to honor TikTok’s community of creators who have inspired, entertained, and connected audiences.

From Boring to Brilliant: Training Videos Made Simple

Say goodbye to dense, static documents. And say hello to captivating how-to videos for your team using Guidde.

1️⃣ Create in Minutes: Simplify complex tasks into step-by-step guides using AI.
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3️⃣ Global Accessibility: Share guides in any language effortlessly.

Make training more impactful and inclusive today.

The best part? The browser extension is 100% free.

Check out Guidde

POST-GAME

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

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

- Jeff Chen | 🏀💡👨🏻‍💻