Dapper Labs, the creator of the CryptoKitties game, is helping the National Basketball Association (NBA) become a magnet for digital collectibles.
NBA Top Shot, a marketplace for non-fungible tokens (NFTs), has sales of over $ 230 million, according to Dapper Labs. NBA Top Shot is based on Dappers Flow blockchain and allows users to purchase “packs” that contain in-game moments. Since the packs are almost always sold out, a secondary marketplace is the only way for users to access specific moments.
A LeBron James highlight recently sold for $ 200,000. A Zion Williamson headlight sold for roughly the same amount.
NFTs that exist entirely on the blockchain are revolutionizing the traditional trading card model. With NFTs, the value of a given moment is subject to the same laws of supply and demand, even though ownership is entirely digital. The blockchain also eliminates the risk of damage, theft, and fraud.
Dapper Labs has grown into one of the leading companies in the NFT market. The Flow blockchain is still in beta, although the company has released updates pointing to a full mainnet launch in the foreseeable future.
The NFT market has quadrupled over the past year as arts and sports memorabilia on the blockchain caught mainstream attention. According to Crypto Slam data, NBA Top Shot is one of the largest markets. Tens of thousands of dollars in sales were only reported in the last hour.
Beyond sports, NFTs are starting to permeate the creative arts. As Cointelegraph recently reported, a company called Async Art is leading the programmable arts movement after securing over $ 2 million in seed investments. The Silicon Valley NFT platform achieved sales of over $ 1 million in its first year of operation.
