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Partnership with Opendorse set to help players enhance marketability, seamlessly align with sponsors and licensees for social media campaigns

 

NEW YORK, NY, June 25, 2020 -- The National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) and its for-profit arm, THINK450, today announced a partnership with Opendorse that will provide NBA players and brand partners with a platform for easy content management and campaign execution on social media. The agreement aims to provide continual value and educational resources to help players build and monetize the value of their name, image, and likeness rights.

With Opendorse, brand partners, sponsors, and licensees can design NBA player-driven social media campaigns in one easy-to-use platform. Once a campaign’s participants are identified, brands use Opendorse to send players tap-to-publish posts, allowing for accurate and on-time activations that are tailored to deliver the brand’s desired outcomes. Once published, brand marketers can measure the success of individual posts and full campaigns in real-time.

The program aims to make collaboration and paid opportunities easier and more frequent for players. Each player participant can approve and publish content to their personal Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram channels with a single tap.

“It is our mission to provide our members with as much value beyond the court as possible,” said Payne Brown, President of THINK450. “We recognize that our players have incredible reach and influence on social media, making them powerful voices in their communities and valuable additions to brands’ ongoing activations. This partnership with Opendorse means more opportunities for players to use their platforms and work with organizations that align with their core values.”

"It's exciting to see the NBPA take the next step to help the players and brands work together,” said NBPA member and Brooklyn guard Caris LeVert. “As NBA players, we are always juggling different obligations and having a tool like Opendorse to streamline the process of working with brand partners makes our lives that much easier.”

There have never been more eyes on social media, with user-engagement estimated to be up as much as 75% during the coronavirus outbreak. And in North American sports, no group of athletes can match NBA players’ reach and engagement to their fans. In 2019, NBA players produced more cumulative social media engagements (1.6 billion) and video views (1.52 billion) than any other group in North American team sports despite having the fewest active athletes.

“By the numbers, NBA players are the most marketable in North American sports,” said Opendorse CEO Blake Lawrence. “We aim to not only bring these athletes more opportunities, but also make their influence on social more accessible to the brands who support them. I’m thrilled to join the NBPA and THINK450 in maximizing value and marketability for NBA players with social media.”

 

About Opendorse

Opendorse is the social publishing platform designed to help the world’s most influential athletes and individuals post with a single tap. Today more than 10,000 athletes around the world Opendorse to publish content from partners including the PGA TOUR, NHL, NFLPA, MLBPA, WNBPA, LPGA, over 100 professional and collegiate sports teams, and hundreds of brands.

The platform is purpose-built to help athletes make the most of their moment and to capture this massive opportunity alongside the organizations they’re connected to. From All-Americans to All-Pros to CEOs – when important people share content on behalf of their partners or organizations – they share it through Opendorse.

About the NBPA

The National Basketball Players Association is the union for current professional basketball players in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Established in 1954, the NBPA’s mission is to protect and support the rights and talents of our players, magnify the power of their collective will, and amplify their voices as leaders who will transcend sport and society globally.

The NBPA advocates on behalf of the best interests of all NBA players, including the negotiation of collective bargaining agreements, the filing of grievances on behalf of the players, or counseling players on benefits, educational and post-NBA career opportunities. Business opportunities are generated by THINK450, the for-profit subsidiary of the NBPA charged with managing the players’ group licensing rights.

Dedicated to preserving the legacy of its members, the NBPA Foundation provides support and assistance to persons, communities and organizations around the world that seek to improve the lives of those in need.

About THINK450
THINK450 is the for-profit subsidiary of the NBPA, focusing on innovative business opportunities in various industries including, content & media, grassroots events, licensing, marketing and technology— among others. In representing every current NBA player, THINK450 partners with leading companies and brands to help its members capitalize on the unparalleled value they bring as cultural influencers and community leaders. For more information, visit THINK450.com.

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The Team

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Clarence Nesbitt

Chief Legal Officer

Josh Goodstadt

Chief Commercial Officer

Dan Gladstone

Senior VP, Business Development & Key Initiatives

Brian Lee

Senior VP, Player Marketing & I.D.E.A.S. Lab

Mark Rejtig

Senior VP, Brand Partnerships

Keisha Wright

Senior VP, Partnerships & Purpose

Daniel Anyaegbunam

Associate Counsel

Latoya Sterling

Vice President, Player Marketing & I.D.E.A.S. Lab

Chris Jean

Senior Director, Business Development & Key Initiatives

Neil Hegde

Senior Director, Player Marketing & I.D.E.A.S. Lab

Oliver Costamagna

Director, International Market Research

Brianna Dawson

Director, Partnerships & Purpose

John Feuerstein

Director, Licensing

Khadija Campbell

Senior Manager, Partnerships & Purpose

Katrina Clayton

Manager, Player Marketing & I.D.E.A.S. Lab

Troy Bynum

Licensing Manager

Troy Bynum

Licensing Manager

Lexie Dames

Licensing Manager, Apparel

Ayana Hazeley

Manager, Player Marketing & I.D.E.A.S. Lab

Andrew Godnick

Senior Coordinator, Player Marketing & I.D.E.A.S. Lab

Phil Rivers

Coordinator, Partnerships & Purpose

Khabira Crawford

Administrative Assistant