NBA champion Tristan Thompson is embarking on an innovative venture in collaboration with Improbable CEO Herman Narula and co-founder Hadi Teherany. The trio aims to transform the landscape of basketball fandom through a new web3 experience dubbed basketball.fun, which is set to launch in October, just ahead of the upcoming NBA season. This initiative promises to gamify the way fans engage with players and games, enabling a deeper connection between basketball enthusiasts and the sport.
Developed on the recently launched Somnia blockchain, which saw an impressive trading volume in its first two weeks, basketball.fun will introduce a novel concept wherein NBA players are tokenized. Unlike conventional fantasy sports or fan tokens, this platform will allow player valuations to dynamically fluctuate based on real-time sentiment and performance metrics. Fans will have the opportunity to assemble their rosters, speculate on upcoming talent, and receive rewards linked to their accurate predictions and level of engagement.
Thompson articulated the broader vision behind this project, highlighting that the experience transcends mere basketball interactions. “This is how we experience moments together. It’s not just about basketball,” he stated in a press release. By establishing a platform that continues to resonate with fans beyond the confines of the game, the team intends to make every fan’s presence and passion truly meaningful.
Teherany emphasized the project’s mission to empower fans, suggesting that their perceptions and valuations of players should carry more weight than those of team owners or media outlets. “We’re trying to give power back to the fan — not just to predict who they think is great, but to actually earn incentives from it,” he explained in an interview with CoinDesk. Envision a scenario where fan consensus regarding a rookie’s potential outperforms the assessments of a team’s front office.
Importantly, the app will launch without a dedicated native token, a strategic decision that sets it apart from platforms like Socios, which rely heavily on token price fluctuations. Instead, fans will accumulate in-app value reflective of both sentiment and game outcomes.
When questioned about the choice of developing on Somnia rather than more established blockchains like Solana or Avalanche, Teherany cited both relational dynamics and the philosophy behind the project. He underscored the importance of authentic relationships in the industry, noting that Narula’s commitment to long-term development in sports and entertainment over short-term gains gave them confidence in the partnership. He also highlighted lessons learned from a previous venture, TracyAI, which had become overly reliant on token performance. This time, the focus has shifted to infrastructure, gamification, and sustainability.
Somnia itself has made waves since its launch on September 2, following a successful testnet that processed over 10 billion transactions and brought in 118 million wallets. Supported by Improbable, the network touts itself as the fastest EVM-compatible chain, capable of handling over one million transactions per second with impressive finality. At launch, Somnia onboarded 60 validators, including prominent players such as Google Cloud, and has integrated with various protocols. Its token, SOMI, has already seen substantial gains since its introduction.
As the project builds momentum, it will be showcased at Korea Blockchain Week, where Thompson will present alongside Narula and Teherany. Attendees of Somnia House, the flagship event occurring in Seoul, will have the opportunity for an early glimpse at the app and what lies ahead.
Teherany is committed to making the platform accessible to all, regardless of their familiarity with blockchain technology. “The blockchain layer should feel invisible. Whether you’re a crypto native or just a basketball fan, you’ll be able to join, play, and help define the narrative of the sport,” he asserted. The innovative initiative seeks not only to reshape how fans engage with basketball but could also set new standards for the fusion of sports and blockchain technology.
