Over the past few years, Bitcoin and the broader cryptocurrency space has gained its fair share of celebrity endorsements.

Some notable endorsements being Elon Musk’s description of Bitcoin’s technology as “quite brilliant,” Tony Hawk’s reveal that he’s been holding BTC for some six years, and Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey saying that he “loves Bitcoin” in an official earnings call of the other company he leads, fintech giant Square.

It appears, now, that sportsmen and sportswomen are entering the fray. A prominent NBA player recently revealed that he will be launching a token (or intends to launch a token, rather) somewhat representing himself, or at least his contract, on the Ethereum blockchain.

The launch is slated to take place as of today, January 13th.

NBA Player To Get Own Crypto Bond… Hopefully

On January 10th, Spencer Dinwiddie, a player for the Brooklyn Nets, tweeted that the “Spencer Dinwiddie bond” will be launching on the 13th. The post quickly gained traction in the cryptocurrency community, with many championing the athlete as someone that can bring this space mainstream.

The Spencer Dinwiddie bond launches January 13th. I’ll also be taking 8 fans to ASW with me. #NBAVote pic.twitter.com/dhXKt0qPqh — Spencer Dinwiddie (@SDinwiddie_25) January 10, 2020

The details issued via Dinwiddie’s tweet were scant, though others quickly swooped in to clarify the specifics on this bond. Carlos Domingo, CEO of security token platform Securitize, revealed that his company will be the “digital transfer agent and technology partner for… the world’s first Professional Athlete Investment Security Token.”

While this is a bullish move in and of itself, it is important to note that this token won’t be widely available for the NBA’s millions of fans to purchase from the get-go.

Per a Forbes article outlining this interesting move to push the adoption of cryptocurrency, the tokens, which will have the ticker “SD8,” will be sold for $150,000 apiece to accredited investors, which is only a small portion of the U.S. population. The coin will be a bond paying out a purportedly 4.95% interest on a monthly basis.

Dinwiddie recently wrote that he hopes that he can get his tokens through a Reg A offering as well, which would open up the Ethereum token to more fans because NDAs, KYC, accreditation, and other logistical barriers could be cast aside.

I can’t wait to have a Reg A offering as well. The hoops we have to jump through now Make the process cumbersome. NDAs, KYC/AML, Accredited investors, cross reference with other approved lists etc etc. but soon we will have it for ALL! I promise https://t.co/l4E1U36LdD — Spencer Dinwiddie (@SDinwiddie_25) January 12, 2020

According to some reports, there is no guarantee that Dinwiddie’s token will go live on the 13th, today. Last year the NBA tried to block his attempts to launch his own token and a platform for other players to do the same, citing league regulation.

It is unclear whether or not Dinwiddie’s new plan for his tokens has been given a go-ahead by the sports organization.

Ethereum’s Strong Fundamental Trend

Dinwiddie’s decision to go ahead with launching an Ethereum-based asset only adds to the bullish Ethereum narrative that has been building over the past few months.

According to Ethereum statistics website DeFi Pulse, there is $667.3 million worth of digital asset value — including just under three million Ether — locked in DeFi applications on the blockchain, which is up from approximately $240 million in January of this year.

Not to mention, the below Twitter user recently observed that Ethereum’s network growth, as defined by the number of new addresses created each day for the blockchain, has been on an “upward trend” over the past few weeks.

Indeed, per their chart, the number of new addresses day has recently surged to levels not seen since the top of 2019’s bull run.

Ethereum's network growth is on an upward trend. pic.twitter.com/rsjGAA0Ura — Adam Ship (@AdamSophrosyne) January 8, 2020

Although the number of new Ethereum addresses may not seem to related to ETH’s price on the surface, the user’s chart shows that there is a clear correlation between the two metrics, with address count growth seemingly preceding price action.

Due to this historical correlation, the rapid growth seen in this metric could imply that the second-largest cryptocurrency has extreme upside potential ahead of itself, upside that may take it back towards $200 and $300.