This Week in NFTs 📦
Top Shot Redemption Updates, A big burn, NHL comes to web3, and UFC Strike may or may not be a Dapper Labs project anymore.
Nothing like the playoffs folks.
Just a week ago, I predicted that the Golden State Warriors would win it all.
In fact, I even made a bet with a TFM community member (s/o SamJ015) that Klay Thompson would go deeper in the playoffs than Kevin Durant.
My my, the things that can happen in a week.
Things weren’t just wild on the court, but also in the NBA Top Shot streets, as Dapper’s latest pack experiment (Redemptions) launched to mixed reactions.
Although the pundits (i.e. content creators, like me) largely welcomed the new mechanic - where a “Redemption” moment functions as a player-specific mint pass for a future playoff moment - the community was not so sure.
The packs not only failed to sell out (only about 40% were sold in the first 24h, and 70% as of this writing), but the collector base may have missed the point entirely.
However, this confusion was not necessarily bad, as some pointed out in-depth mechanics are often a good thing in NFT land.
Some placed the blame on the execution of the campaign and its underutilization of the platform’s features (highly recommend Jon Boy’s thread below).
But by far the BIGGEST QUESTION surrounding the campaign was:
What would happen to unsold packs once the first round of the playoffs ended?
The concern here being that first round exit players (Trae Young, Anthony Edwards), would see their redemptions lose value and utility following the first round - hence, it would be bad form to sell packs containing them once the cards could no longer be redeemed for an actual moment.
Luckily, this question was answered late Thursday, as TS declared that all remaining packs and their supply would be burned on May 1st.
Rejoice!
Now the games truly begin. With a burn on the horizon, Top Shot may also be trying to drive sales by creating some form of scarcity. Will it work? Guess we’ll find out on April 30.
In the meantime, let’s get onto all the action from this past week.
Here are some JUICY opportunities in NFT land:
📽️ Mint a FREE Dead Ringers NFT | 60 seconds
This one is on FLOW, and from the same company (Juke) that launched Ace Ventura NFTs. Dead Ringers is a 1980s film, now being re-made as an Amazon series.
🥅 Sign up for NHL Breakaway Beta Access | 60 seconds
The NHL is coming to NFTs, via a licensee named Sweet. No packs yet, but more news is coming this week. Apply here for Beta Access!
⛳ Open a FREE Draft Kings PGA Pack | 60 seconds
To celebrate its launch of the PGA product, Reignmakers has a free pack available right now with NFTs that can be used towards upcoming tournaments.
🏒 The NHL is coming to Web3 (finally)
Way back in June 2022, Sweet announced they would be the NFT partner for the NHL, with a collection scheduled to arrive during the 2022-23 season.
And just in the nick of time, the company has announced NHL Breakaway!
What we know so far:
The collection will be on Polygon.
Payments will be accepted with credit card and crypto.
There will be PACKS, and the main content will be past + present video highlights.
My favourite part so far is the promise that they will not mint a “Random 2nd period goal in the 18th game of the season”. Damn, a shot fired right at NBA Top Shot!
More to come April 30.
🥊 Is UFC Strike still with Dapper Labs?
Yes, it is.
But there was some confusion around the matter earlier this week, after a bizarre update was posted in the Strike discord.
It was later clarified that Dapper is now sharing the Strike platform with Concept Labs, a game-maker that was brought on to develop the collection into a game.
As you may recall, the game was announced just two months ago, along with a new General Manager in Rob Winkler.
More news on the game is expected in Q2 2023.
🏅 ALL DAY records 13,500 Users in Q1
Thanks to community favourite Diamond, we now have an excellent flow chart for NFL ALL DAY users and volume!
The dashboard tracks things like:
Daily volume
Daily top sales
Pack marketplace sales
And tons more.
You can track the dashboard here, and read more about in Diamond’s thread below.
There are tons of great highlights we could feature here from both the NHL and NBA playoffs - but this is The First Mint, not Sportscentre.
So instead of inspiring moments, here is a collection of the top goon plays and memes, starting with the Bruins.
And the Draymond drama.
And no goon section is complete without the ultimate king of the goons:
You know what? Have another:
**This is not financial advice. Nothing in this newsletter, podcast, or publication should be considered financial or trading advice of any kind. Please do your own thorough research and make your own trading decisions. This is not advice.”
About The First Mint
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