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Welcome to this week’s edition of The Baseline!

Let’s jump right into your weekly blueprint for basketball culture…

MARKETING BLUEPRINT

You have no idea but the next version of The Last Dance is already being filmed by one of the NBA’s biggest stars.

This is all part of the athlete’s YouTube strategy, as his latest video series has been averaging over 500,000 views in under 24 hours after posting.

Each video offers fans a rare behind-the-scenes look at Anthony Edwards’ day-to-day life, while most athletes rarely post or even film any BTS content.

Despite falling short in the postseason, Anthony Edwards vlogged his entire playoff run, meaning every view, fan engagement, and brand deal went directly to his team.

That also meant they had full creative control and ownership without relying on algorithms or a media partner changing his narrative.

This isn't anything new, as Ant has been building this blueprint with his business partners, Justin and Tre, since high school.

Now he’s scaling his athlete enterprise one upload at a time.

Because in today’s sports media landscape, if you don’t own your story—someone else will monetize it for you.

And when Anthony Edwards wins his first NBA championship, every second of his team’s behind-the-scenes footage will be worth billions of dollars.

Because every Hollywood film studio will want to create Ant’s version of Michael Jordan’s The Last Dance.

And with Ant’s personality, that documentary will be one of the most entertaining cinematic sports masterpieces ever made.

FREE THROWS

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

🎨 Deck Inspiration - Get inspired for your next deck with these tools from Adolescent Content.

🎥 OpenCut - A simple but powerful video editor that’s open source and works on any platform.

🤖 Delphi - AI digital minds that can serve as your personal business coach, available 24/7 to chat with experts like Codie Sanchez (Contrarian Thinking), Lewis Howes (24/7 Greatness), and others.

4 Titans of the Creator Economy. One Stage. One Day.

You know their names. You’ve followed their success. But you’ve never seen them all in one place—until now.

On July 16th, four of the most influential minds in the creator space are coming together for a live, virtual event: The Creator Business Summit.

Shaan Puri. Codie Sanchez. Chris Koerner. Tyler Denk.

They’ve built newsletters, brands, and 7-figure companies. And they’re breaking down how they did it. For free. For you.

From audience growth to monetization to long-term brand strategy, this is your chance to learn directly from the best.

Whether it’s day 1 or you’ve been building for a while, this is the one event you can’t afford to miss.

Save your spot now.

FAST BREAK

Here’s what you missed this week:

🥇 Cooper Flagg’s social media manager was busy on Draft Day, as they posted over 10 pieces of brand and media partnership content, including New Balance, AT&T, Foot Locker, Sports Illustrated, Uber Eats, Dunkin' Donuts, Boss, Fortnite, GQ, Gatorade, Chime, and, of course, the Dallas Mavericks (with an Academy sponsorship).

3️⃣ Candace Parker had her #3 jersey retired by the LA Sparks, and adidas celebrated the moment with an arena t-shirt takeover and custom flower bouquets to honor the basketball legend.

👓 Oakley and Meta have partnered to introduce new performance AI glasses coming this summer, as they launched on social with athletes, artists, and creators showcasing the latest tech-enabled eyewear.

🌎 The WNBA announced three new expansion teams: Cleveland (2028), Detroit (2029), and Philadelphia (2030). Each new franchise will be backed by NBA ownership.

🐍 Nike Basketball dropped a Caitlin Clark Kobe 5 Protro PE with a Mamba-inspired video, while Foot Locker hosted a pop-up experience in Indiana for early access to the shoes.

💻 Derik Queen was selected as the 13th pick in the NBA Draft by the Atlanta Hawks, but his rights were traded to the New Orleans Pelicans and he immediately posted his new job position on LinkedIn.

👟 Jordan Brand unveiled the signature Jordan 40 sneaker, their latest game shoe designed for the next generation of greatness.

📹 Ja Morant announced his own media company, Catch 12, which will create original content across sports, storytelling, and social impact.

📕 Devin Booker threw the first pitch at a Detroit Tigers game and hooked the team up with custom Nike Book 1 baseball cleats.

🐐 Michael Jordan’s rookie card sold for $2.5 million through Pharrell’s Joopiter auction house, making it the most expensive Jordan rookie card ever sold and the third-highest overall Jordan card in history.

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POST-GAME

Thanks for reading and hope you have a great July 4th weekend!

- Jeff Chen | 🏀💡👨🏻‍💻