Autograph, a platform for NFT digital collecting co-founded by Tom Brady, has inked a deal with basketball brand SLAM to create and distribute digital-collectible content on DraftKings Marketplace.
The deal will give Autograph users access to SlAM’s 300-plus cover archive dating back to 1994. SlAM will be a launch partner for Autograph’s basketball vertical with magazine covers that feature players ranging from Allen Iverson and Vince Carter to Devin Booker and Sabrina Ionescu.
SLAM, which started as a magazine in 1994, has since grown into a lifestyle brand and multimedia property with 20-plus social channels, a burgeoning merchandise division and multiple franchise events annually with over 16 million followers worldwide. SLAM is owned by JDS Sports, a sports and entertainment holding company that was also an early backer of Los Angeles-based Autograph.
The Autograph NFTs previously dropped on DraftKings Marketplace (Nasdaq: DKNG), featuring athletes such as Tiger Woods, Wayne Gretzky, Derek Jeter, Naomi Osaka, Simone Biles and Tony Hawk. Autograph recently announced a similar deal with Lionsgate in which the companies will collaborate to create digital collectible content based on the flagship movie franchises later this year.
“We’ve been constructing a portfolio of companies with a specific focus on the intersection of sports media and blockchain technology, and this deal sits squarely at that crossover,” Matt Aronson, president of SLAM parent JDS Sports, said in a press release.
New York-based SLAM previously partnered with New Orleans Pelicans All-Star Zion Williamson for a first-of-its-kind NFT drop in April, which included two SLAM covers featuring Williamson.
