NBA Mavericks hold Dogecoin: Crypto assets are gradually accelerating to the mainstream

Original title | NBA Mavericks holding dog

This week, Dogecoin (DOGE) once again gained momentum, rising 90% in 3 days to $0.695, setting a new record high. Coincidentally, NBA Mavericks owner Mark Cuban seemed to play the role of "Mr. Key". He promoted Dogecoin on the American TV show "The Ellen Show", further expanding the popularity of Dogecoin.

As early as March this year, the Mavericks official store announced that it would accept cryptocurrencies such as Dogecoin and Bitcoin, which fans can use to purchase tickets, jerseys and other merchandise. Currently, the NBA Kings and Rockets also accept cryptocurrencies for payment, and the Kings are even considering paying players with Bitcoin.

In fact, many NBA players are interested in the world of crypto assets. NBA star Durant once invested in Coinbase and received a return of more than 60 times after its listing. Spencer Dinwiddie, who plays for the Brooklyn Nets, also invested all his salary in Bitcoin. Due to the continuous rise of Bitcoin, his annual income can reach 84.5 million US dollars, almost twice that of Curry, who ranks first in salary.

The NBA has also delved into the NFT field. The Golden State Warriors, the No. 1 draft pick Zion, and even the retired basketball superstar Yao Ming have combined the NFT concept to launch digital collections with team or personal elements. Star NFT collections have also been welcomed by the market, with a LeBron James star card selling for as much as $100,000.

The NBA has an ongoing relationship with the crypto assets and blockchain industries. This influential top basketball league has brought endless vitality to the emerging crypto world.

On the eve of DOGE's surge, the Mavericks owner strongly promoted

On May 5, Dogecoin (DOGE) once again showed an impressive trend, rising from an opening price of $0.529 to $0.695, with a daily increase of more than 30%. This week, Dogecoin opened at $0.358 and achieved a growth of more than 90% in just three days, once again demonstrating that "rising prices win people over".

Dogecoin continues to climb to all-time highs, creating a number of millionaires. One year ago, the market price of DOGE was only $0.0026, and now it has increased 267 times. This means that if an investor spent 10,000 yuan to buy DOGE on this day last year, the assets would now reach 2.67 million yuan.

The surge in Dogecoin has once again swept the social networks, and some old players who have been in the circle for a long time said that they "don't understand it". In the past, Silicon Valley "Iron Man" and Tesla founder Elon Musk has been promoting Dogecoin on his personal Twitter, attracting a lot of capital injection. This time, Dogecoin has risen again, and new heavyweights have joined its supporters.

On May 3, before this violent surge, #NBA team owner strongly supports Dogecoin# became a hot search on Weibo. The owner is none other than Mark Cuban, the world's top billionaire and owner of the Dallas Mavericks. Not long ago, he talked about Dogecoin on the famous American TV show "The Ellen Show". He said that Dogecoin is the craziest story ever. He and his son started investing in Dogecoin when it was less than 1 cent, and its value increase is incredible.

As one of the most well-known investors in the United States, Mark Cuban believes that although Dogecoin cannot be said to be the best investment in the world, it is much better than lottery. "It is a good way to learn and understand cryptocurrency."

Cuban even tried to convince Ellen DeGeneres, the host of The Ellen Show, to accept Dogecoin, suggesting that the latter's "Ellen Store" consider using Dogecoin as a payment method.

Obviously, Mark Cuban is open to crypto assets. According to foreign media reports, Cuban has long been advocating the entertainment and educational value of Dogecoin. In March this year, he also announced that Mavericks fans can use Dogecoin, Bitcoin and other crypto assets to purchase game tickets, jerseys and other merchandise.

As an influential top billionaire and NBA owner, Cuban's public promotion of crypto assets such as Dogecoin has undoubtedly further enhanced the popularity of Dogecoin and contributed to the rise of DOGE to a certain extent.

NBA teams and players embrace crypto assets

In fact, the NBA has a long history with blockchain and crypto assets. In addition to Cuban and his Mavericks, there are many other teams and star players who have a soft spot for crypto assets.

On April 29, the Houston Rockets in Texas, USA, announced on their official Twitter that their official store supports BTC, BCH, ETH, DOGE, GUSD, USDC, PAX and BUSD as payment methods. Some fans in the comment area expressed their support, believing that this is a trendy and cool payment method.

Houston Rockets accepts BTC and other cryptocurrencies for payment

It is worth mentioning that earlier, Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta said that all, or 80% to 90% of its restaurant brands will plan to accept Bitcoin or other crypto assets for payment within 90 days. In addition, his luxury car dealer Post Oak Motor Cars has also accepted Bitcoin payments since 2018.

In addition to official stores accepting crypto assets for payment, some teams have even thought of paying players’ salaries with Bitcoin. On April 6, according to Coindesk, Sacramento Kings team president Vivek Ranadivé revealed that the NBA Kings will become the first team to offer Bitcoin salary payment options to all players and staff.

The NBA team has been enabling fans to purchase everything from game tickets to hot dogs with bitcoin since 2014, and in 2019 it launched rewards tokens for fans.

Another team that has a connection with the crypto asset industry is the NBA Miami Heat. In April this year, the NBA Miami Heat officially announced that the crypto asset trading platform FTX has obtained the exclusive naming rights for the Miami Heat’s main stadium for the next 19 years, and the Heat’s main stadium will be named FTX Stadium in the future.

As the world's most prosperous professional basketball league, the NBA's acceptance of crypto assets is increasing day by day. This is not only reflected in the fact that many NBA teams accept crypto assets for payment, but also in the fact that some star players' investments in crypto assets have attracted much attention.

On April 14 this year, the crypto asset trading platform Coinbase successfully landed on the Nasdaq. According to media reports, NBA superstar Kevin Durant is one of the investors behind Coinbase. When Durant invested, Coinbase's market value was $1.6 billion. After Coinbase went public, its market value once exceeded $100 billion, and Durant received a 61.5-fold return from it.

The wealth effect brought by crypto assets has also been realized in another NBA player, Spencer Dinwiddie. He currently plays for the Brooklyn Nets. Compared with his teammate Durant, he is not very famous, but he has become a winner in life by investing in Bitcoin.

In December 2018, Dinwiddie signed a three-year, $34.4 million contract, but unlike other NBA players, he insisted on investing all his salary in Bitcoin. Since the salary in the contract had to be paid in installments, Dinwiddie also raised funds in advance to buy Bitcoin by guaranteeing his contract. According to foreign media reports, the cost of his purchase of Bitcoin was around $8,000.

Today, Bitcoin has risen to $55,000, and Dinwiddie's return on investment has reached 687.5%. This year, his salary is $12.3 million. If the increase in Bitcoin is taken into account, his annual income can reach $84.5 million. You should know that Stephen Curry, the highest-paid NBA player this year, only has an annual salary of $43 million. Dinwiddie has achieved a "reversal outside the court" by investing in Bitcoin.

NFT becomes NBA's favorite field

The NBA has not only opened its arms to crypto assets such as Bitcoin and Dogecoin, but also

In blockchain products, its combination with NFT (non-fungible tokens) has created a lot of value.

Since the second half of last year, the concept of NFT has become increasingly popular, and NBA top shot, officially authorized by the NBA, has become a star project in the NFT field. In NBA top shot, users can use encrypted assets to purchase the shining moments or signature moves of various NBA stars. These cards are presented in the form of NFT. In January this year, the daily transaction volume of NBA top shot reached 1 million US dollars. Among them, a LeBron James star card sold for as much as 100,000 US dollars.

After seeing the business opportunities, NBA teams and players have also tried NFTs one after another. Recently, the NBA Golden State Warriors launched a collection of digital collectibles of major events on OpenSea, auctioning a large number of commemorative collectibles related to the team, including several Warriors championship ring NFTs and commemorative ticket stub NFTs.

NBA Warriors launches NFT collection

In addition, NBA draft pick Zion Williamson recently collaborated with basketball magazine SLAM to launch NFT star cards. It is reported that the SLAM x ZION series will launch two types of star cards, including the basic version, gold version, gold signature version and 1/1 platinum signature version. NBA rookie Jalen Suggs also auctioned his "Best Moment" video NFT earlier, attracting a group of fans to compete for it.

It is quite eye-catching that Chinese basketball superstar Yao Ming has also added NFT elements to his business territory. On April 26, the wine estate "YAO Family" founded by Yao Ming launched a new wine brand "THE CHOP" and limited edition NFT collectibles. This is the world's first winery to auction with NFT digital collectibles.

Currently, the NFT collection is being auctioned on the NFT trading platform Opensea, with an average selling price of 0.22 ETH. Each NFT corresponds to a physical bottle of THE CHOP wine and is accompanied by a certificate of authenticity signed by Yao Ming.

In the eyes of industry insiders, NFT with its visual characteristics is an area where the NBA is more likely to combine with blockchain. By launching various digital collectibles, NBA teams and players have more channels to monetize their influence. At the same time, the NBA has a large number of fans and attention around the world. Its acceptance of encrypted assets and blockchain can allow more people to understand this emerging industry and accelerate the development of the industry.