The Sacramento Kings NBA basketball team is adding a unique fan experience for their upcoming season that will be built on the Ethereum blockchain. The NBA side has partnered with CryptoKaiju to launch crypto-collectibles that have a similar feel to the once highly popular Crypto Kitties.

In this partnership, the two companies will work together to give away 100 limited-edition Kaiju collectible toys throughout the 2019–2020 basketball season. These collectible will be more than digital representations of Ethereum-based toys; there will also be 15 that has an additional bonus.

Each collectible is backed by a non-fungible token, meaning that no two are the same, and for the 15 special collectibles, they will have a unique experience or prize, such as courtside seats, VIP tours, and signed merchandise, among others, attached.

Sacramento Kings CTO Ryan Montoya said:

“We are thrilled to bring these unique, limited-edition collectibles and immersive experience to our fans. We are always looking for ways to be on the leading-edge of enhancing fan interaction, and this partnership with CryptoKaiju is an exciting opportunity to continue to employ technology that delivers innovative products and content to our fans.”

The NBA, as a massively popular sports league, has been in the cryptocurrency headlines quite often this year – The Sacramento Kings especially. Last week the same NBA side announced it would also be launching a blockchain-powered rewards program within its gaming app.

More so, there was also quite a buzz stirred when NBA guard Spencer Dinwiddie launched DREAM Fan Shares, a platform where investors can purchase a new type of debt security called the professional athlete investment token (PAInT).

These types of moves, be they player contract tokenization, or even collectibles on the blockchain, may seem like oddities or niche offerings, but they are doing a lot to normalize and legitimize cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology.

No longer does this technology and its token economy exist in the darkest reaches of the internet, it is being used as a new form of fan engagement and even investment tool within a sporting ecosystem. It is a long road, but these types of advancements are helping move the narrative along.