NBA Top Shot incorporates the best historical and memorable NBA shots that go down in the history books, embedded into an interactive cube as a short clip! In the company’s own description a person can “own the best moments from NBA history”… and a whopping $230 MILLION USD worth of these new interactive digital collectables have been sold to date! The idea of NBA TopShot is very innovative and has set the stage for applying NFTs built on blockchain to the concept of trading cards for the 90s kids, but with a digitised model… Perfect for the “Generation Z”. The digital collectables platform was launched by Dapper Labs, the same firm that caused the “Gas Wars” and hell for traders because of ETH network congestion through the last crypto bull run in the end of 2017. Dapper Labs raised over $250 million USD and currently has a $2 Billion USD valuation.
Looking deeper into the Top Shot Beta the functionality and user experience is quite interactive and similar to an in-game market place… By that I mean going towards similar layouts and interface to shopping at a Gun Shop in GTA or getting your car mod’ded in a Midnight Club or Need for Speed type of game. Hint Hint - the next craze for NFTs.. Go and head over to the car industry and racing games, and license to provide fully exclusive, rare and customized cars that can be played in games such as Need for Speed Underground. Well guess what?! It's happening with Dapper Labs' new project.. And what does it entail?? - In game Motorcycles! Keep up with our series blog for the next review.
Currently the TopShot series is categorised into 4 category tiers – Common, Rare, Legendary and Ultimate… Meanwhile within the interactive digital cubes there are also relic categories such as Metallic Gold cubes, Series 1 Legendary’s and various shots from different years’ league games and within various venues, across different rivalries… This is what makes the applies the attachment of fandom and a human desire and attachment to that particular basketball shot reel. The exclusivity of them is complimented by being minted individually, with systematic organisation in a tracked line of order, as blockchain based NFTs. We can go deep with the levels of the concept… Which shot is the baddest, on the best metallic gold, platinum cube related to the year it was when the match happened, the best players in that year, in competition with their ultimate rivals. It’s like Magic vs the Lakers NBA Finals 2009! The baddest most memorable, artistic, unforgettable shots with the rarity of the cube mint and ranking, bring its uniqueness and value… Although, one negative aspect can be identified – although the older generation are getting more tech saavy as years go along, the target market would be teenagers, towards uni student age groups. And, if the cards can be sold for dollars, what kind of tax does that incur? How could minors under 16 years be able to legally partake and trade in this digital trading card-like “game-craze”? As far as researched, the digital packs could only be purchased through bank transfer and there was no cryptocurrency or underlying token within the digital collectible application. Maybe, it could be something to be introduced, which would then make it like a some-what reddit coin being used within the eco-system for add-ons, rewards and bonuses of some sort. The possibilities are endless but the idea and innovation combined with the framework of CryptoKitties and capacity to move as a fast player into the market is what counts.
Currently the price on the second hand market to purchase a cube of normal standards is around $10, but these are not rare and the company doesn’t guarantee that more of the same type will be minted. Further there are many that range in the $50’s to $100’s to multiple thousands of straight Uncle Sam's US Dollars range. Meanwhile at the wealthier end of the interactive cubes, the highest price listing is for a LeBron James HoloMMXX Legendary Series 1 which lists at $250,000. Also in the 4th highest listing is Zion Williamson at $210,000, however there are 3 listings, as oppose to only 1 in the LeBron… A Legendary Le Bron James featuring a “From the Top Dunk” was previously listed for $166,866 and now currently only 2 weeks later is $213,000, that is nearly a 40% increase! A Steph Curry HOLO MMXX Legendary edition features a mere Assist play, however due to the rarity and player category this is listed for $100,000…
Although, it sounds promising, the value derives from the Fandom, and these high prices can also be analysed as a deterrent for people using the trading collectable game or progressing further. For instance, it’s all good if you invested $50 and got a high value ask potential from getting some exclusive cube, but how does that leave the market open for others to buy that from you... By this I mean the high prices bring in limitations for the target audience, because a normal university teenager probably doesn’t have more than max $200 to put into developing a collection. Unless there are some very dedicated fans who hold up most sincere fandom to NBA and that particular team - with that particular player - in that particular game - and attachment to the specific shots and moments in that cube… I don’t think someone is forking out more than a few hundred bucks, I know the average person isn’t spending thousands of dollars for a cube unless it’s some crazy Kobe Bryant memorable moment that goes down in the history books.
My point is that if you want a game concept to attract everybody, yes the purchase price of an NBA Top Shot pack is initially reasonable $10-$60 depending on type of packs; base packs, premium, rookie debut’s, run it back series’, however, rarer and premium editions have been launched such as Series 1 NBA 2020 Finals, Lace ‘em Up and a new cosmic release that retailed at $230 but contain those high value cubes that are reselling for extraordinary prices on the second-hand marketplace. Now the question lies that how sustainable is this model, and is there any initiative after there first rounds of pack sales that actually encourage or provide basis for new people to even be financially capable to develop a collection, let alone manage to accumulate these high priced cards. Because as it seems, unless you buy a pack and know about your basketball and manage to get a high value card, there's a high price barrier for new entry into the Top Shot Ecosystem if you are a uni student or having equivalent financial capacity of a regular middle class working person, there isn't much place for you to enter to profit, unless you dig deep and find gems, which are more than likely fished out quite quickly, and bought up.
However, it seems this one YouTuber has managed to buy a Legendary pack for $199 and just held them, his immediate value was worth $4000 and 2 weeks later his cards are now worth a whopping $11000. So in some cases the flip is real and it is possible to get lucky with these cubes, however, who will actually buy from him. What seems to be apparent is that there is big money trading activity happening within the Top Shot ecosystem and how the young generation have reacted is that it's being treated similar to a stock market concept and these specific players and moment flow in line with what is happening with games in the current season, and fluctuate with regard to that team or player's performance within the real NBA league. Kind of unique in that sense, however, for how long will it be sustainable. Maybe it will just be a craze for a little while and then phase out.
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