Before we get into this month’s Top Shot updates, SAVE THE DATE:
Because you asked for it, next Friday, June 4 at 10 AM PDT, Roham will be joining Office Hours to update you on our progress, address the questions you've raised, and of course, share what's coming. We will open the Discord Office Hours channel for questions the day before per usual.
Until then, and throughout the NBA Playoffs, you can expect more quests, more giveaways, more streams with NBA stars, more exploration, and more updates. The only place we’re tightening up is around pack drops, where our cadence is slowing down – full details below.
Series 2 is Coming to a Close
We have a few more fun drops planned for Series 2, then it’s a wrap! After the drops below, ALL Series 2 Moments will be retired / made Limited Edition and all associated sets will be closed forever.
As we work toward fulfilling all the requirements of beta before the new season begins, a content roadmap will be shared to outline the distribution framework for content. This will include clear limits on the number of plays from a given player that can be made into Moments in higher tier (rare and legendary) sets for example.
Upcoming drops that have been discussed already:
- Holo Icon (Drop 3) - this is the final drop of our Holo Icon series (/99), we expect it to drop next week. [MAY 31 UPDATE: Holo Icon drop will no longer happen this week]
- Premium Pack (Drop 3) to round out the core offerings for Series 2 (/499) – timing and distribution path TBD. [MAY 31 UPDATE: Premium Pack is now likely to precede Holo Icon drop, also unlikely for this week]
As a reminder, rare and legendary drops will have increasingly stringent Collector Score requirements in order to join the queue, so continue to build up and maintain your collection: number of Moments, higher tiers, challenge- and set completion all compound together. We’ll share more details and improvements on the required Collector Scores as we announce each drop. Eventually, you’ll see your collector score in-app and be able to easily know your score and bonuses in real time.
Playoff Drops: What’s Coming
The playoffs are underway and we’re sure everyone wants to know what that means for packs over the next few months. As a reminder, during the 2020 NBA Playoffs at the end of last year, we had five rare drops and one legendary “2020 NBA Finals” drop.
For the 2021 Playoffs we are experimenting with a new approach:
- Common-tier “Playoff” packs (similar to Hustle & Show) – accessible to all collectors by reservation only starting next week;
- ONE rare set celebrating the best Moments from the Eastern and Western Conference Finals; and
- ONE legendary set with the best Moments from the 2021 NBA Finals – both with strict eligibility requirements based on Collector Score.
This approach makes sure Playoff Moments are accessible to collectors that want them – while ensuring appropriate scarcity for rare and legendary tiers.
Beginning this time next week, collectors will be able to reserve the first 2021 NBA Playoffs packs for $14 –– everyone who reserves between next Wednesday, June 2, 5 PM PDT and the Wednesday after, June 9, 11 AM PDT will have the opportunity to purchase the pack between Friday, June 11, 11 AM PDT and Monday, June 14, at 11 AM PDT. These packs will only be available every other week – so make sure to sign up on nbatopshot.com to get the heads up and receive yours when you can.
What about Base Set packs? For a limited time, Playoff packs will *replace* Base Set packs for everyone except new collectors. New collectors will still have the opportunity to purchase Base Set packs to get their collection started if they have not purchased more than one pack to date. Existing collectors will NOT have the opportunity to purchase Base Set packs during the Playoffs except for potential Rebound Packs or Stress Tests requested by the engineering team.
A Marathon, Not a Sprint
We are a multi-generational project, and while we know there are a lot of things we can and will do to make the collector experience more enjoyable, we will also stay measured in our initial tests to optimize for sustained long-term enjoyment and growth. There are no shortcuts, and we will not get everything right, but we will continue to listen, learn and improve.
Updates This Month: May
The response to our April update was hugely impactful and reinforced our community-first focus. Since our last update, we’ve made progress towards making the Top Shot ecosystem vibrant by adding new elements including Collector Score and Reservation Packs while announcing future features like Trade Tickets.
Top Shot by the numbers:
- Over 500,000 Moment-owning collectors (15% of collectors joined in the last 30 days)
- Over 225,000 unique collectors with access to withdrawals.
- Starting today, the default tier for withdrawals is $10k instead of $3k for wire transfers and $2.5k instead of $1k for USDC.
Collectors who have been with us for a few months will know that withdrawal processing times have improved dramatically. Speedy flow of funds in and out is critical for long term consumer safety and confidence and that’s been a huge focus of our team. We are pleased to share that 95% of withdrawal requests are now processed within 4 days. There is still work to be done to ensure that all collectors have a reliable, seamless experience.
In addition, we have added a highly requested feature that should make future pack drops and marketing campaigns more secure: through upgrades to Dapper we’ve made it possible for all collectors to initiate their identity checks on demand. This allows us to bring in more collectors while mitigating bots and fraudsters long-term.
We are continuously automating and supplementing our security and compliance processes to serve the community as effectively as possible and have ramped up our efforts to enforce our community rules. For that reason, until every collector within the community is completely satisfied with their NBA Top Shot experience, we’ve got work to do. That work continues and we look forward to updating you again soon.
Additionally, you probably noticed some marketing initiatives that we launched last week. The focus here is on learning, iterating, and testing different approaches to bring new collectors to Top Shot for years to come. Expect more marketing ads to come across different channels and touchpoints as we head deeper into the playoffs and grow as a community.
We’ll also be having our weekly #NBATopShot Playoff Show that will feature a rotating cast of some of the biggest NBA stars and Top Shot collectors, past and present, throughout the playoffs to talk hoops intermixed with Top Shot themed segments. And be on the lookout for some new Minting Shows that will give you the inside scoop on the storylines and decision making behind some of the aforementioned pack drops.
Don’t forget to join the Discord on Friday, June 4, for a special Office Hours with Roham.
Until then, happy collecting!
