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76ers bet on crypto with jersey patch, NFT collection

Philadelphia 76ers President of Business Operations Chris Heck discusses the 76ers new six-year jersey patch deal with Crypto.com and the upcoming NBA season.

Video transcript

ADAM SHAPIRO: All right, we talk a lot about crypto, we talk about NFTs, we even talk about the Federal Reserve and whether they're going to do a digital currency. Well, let's talk about something that's truly fun, and that would be what's going on with the NBA, specifically the 76ers. And just so you know, Seana is the 76ers fan. How I got the intro to this segment is beyond me, since she should be the one doing this.

But I want to bring in right now Chris Heck, who is the 76ers President of Business Operations, along with a team member here at Yahoo Finance, Josh Shafer, who is a certified sports nut. And then we're going to get Seana get in on this as well, but we can only do a three-box, Chris. So let me start with you real quick.

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You got the new crypto.com patch on the jerseys. How big a deal is this? Because I know NBA teams are always looking at generating new revenue.

CHRIS HECK: Yeah, it's a big deal, literally through the contract and the length of the years, was six years, but it's also a big deal that we're entering into this new space that's really exciting. We think it's going to take the sports world by storm, much like social media did and the internet before that. So we're excited about crypto.com.

- And, Chris, I guess why crypto? And how do you think fans sort of received that? I know you go back five years ago, fans weren't exactly excited when packages did start coming on jerseys, how has that maybe sort of changed over the past five years?

CHRIS HECK: Yeah, five years ago, we were the first team in North American sports in the four major leagues to have a jersey patch and a partner on the actual uniform. And you know, it proved to be beneficial, not only to the franchise in raising money, but it proved to work well for our fans too. And that was where we were integrated into our ticketing system. We think the same thing applies with crypto.com where our fans will be able to experience our team and our legends from the past and our history, whether it's through NFTs or using cryptocurrencies to buy certain products down the line and certainly in the future.

SEANA SMITH: Hey, Chris. Like Adam said, I'm a big Sixers fan. I'm from right outside of Philadelphia. So I've been trusting the process now for quite some time. So I need to bring this up, because we were given a bunch of press material, and we noticed that Joel Embiid, obviously, was modeling the new patch. Ben Simmons, there wasn't a picture of him.

We know there's reports about him not reporting to training camp next week. What can you tell us about that and, I guess, how you navigate a situation similar to this as president of the organization?

CHRIS HECK: Yeah, listen, Ben's been with us a long time, and we hope to have him in the future. I trust Doc Rivers, and Daryl Morey, and Elton Brand to manage the basketball operations. And they are the head of the class in their jobs. So we're not too concerned.

But you know, we love our players on our roster, and that includes Ben. And mind you, Ben was the, let's say, spokesman for our jersey last year with our city edition uniform. So we do mix it up with our star players. And we have a little Tobias Harris this year and a little Joel Embiid. So we're just spreading the wealth.

ADAM SHAPIRO: Just real quick-- I'm hooked on "Ted Lasso," and I'm wondering if this is a "Ted Lasso" potential moment for the Sixers, especially with Ben, who's maybe a little bit Jamie Tartt, if you know the show right now. He's facing, what is it-- he gets 50% of his salary prior to October 1. He could be held-- they could hold that up, couldn't they? I mean, how is this going to play out? Is everyone going to make up nice?

CHRIS HECK: It's a little complicated, but, you know, our players, and the league, and the teams have a complete 50-50 partnership. So I have all the faith in the world of Adam Silver as well as with our ownership. We're going to be just fine. I really don't lose any sleep over this.

And you know, the NBA is built to last and is truly an international league that has a foundation of partnership with our players. So I think that, you know, the media and social media is making more of this than what it should be.

- And, Chris, with the jersey patches, I was curious-- you know, we see the NHL is going to be adding a jersey patch after doing a helmet sponsor, they're kind of getting more sponsors on there, right? Is that something you think the NBA might be headed toward, a second jersey patch or something on the shorts? Is that something that could happen in the future? And is there any case where, you know, maybe it's too much and we just need to stick to one sponsor?

CHRIS HECK: Yeah, listen, I remember-- well, it was before my time, but looking back at how race cars had no sponsors, and they have multiple now. I'm not saying that I am voting for that by any means. We have the ability to use a small portion of our uniform for one sponsor. It's working well.

I think the best deals that are around the world, particularly in European football, is with one partner, but it's in a larger platform than the NBA. So all of these things are being analyzed and studied every single day by the league office as well as the teams. And in our case, you know, we like to choose a partner on our patch that is integrated into our team business. We think it makes it more authentic. And it's true to us serving what's the best interest of our fans.

SEANA SMITH: And, Chris, speaking of fans, the season is, what, less than a month away right now-- a lot of fans cannot wait to get back in their seats. How are you handling the health protocol going into this season? Because with the Delta variant surging, still lots of concern about what the potential numbers-- or what the numbers could potentially look like over the next couple of months.

CHRIS HECK: Yeah, we work on a week to week basis with the league office who has been exceptional from the bubble onto last year where there have been zero cases reported over two seasons-- or at least a portion of two seasons. And going into this season, we worked with our city and state governments, as well as our partners at the arena we play in, and it's something that we take very seriously. We will have a mandate to start the season where you have to wear masks.

We're doing everything possible to encourage vaccines. And you know, our business, our front office are 100% vaccinated. And we think that we can move our fans to that same number. And that's the goal here-- to get 100% of the people that are at our games vaccinated.

ADAM SHAPIRO: And, Chris, what about the players? Is it going to be a, quote unquote, "normal season" for them? Or will they potentially face possible restrictions?

CHRIS HECK: Yeah, we have a very large number-- I don't know the exact throughout the league, but it's trending in the right direction for vaccinated players. And they will have the freedoms that the rest of us have. Some of the non-vaccinated players will have a few more restrictions and protocols-- and it's all for their own safety and the safety of others. So we, again, just like our fans, are really, really pushing to get all of our players vaccinated as well.

ADAM SHAPIRO: Chris Heck, 76ers President of Business Operations, along with Josh Shafer, our backroom sports analyst, good to have both of you here.