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Capitals and Wizards to offer first NFT collections in mid-July

By Ian Oland

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July 7, 2021 12:51 pm

Monumental Sports & Entertainment announced on Wednesday morning that the Washington Capitals and Washington Wizards will be getting into the NFT game. Both organizations will be offering one-of-a-kind digital assets created by DC artists in mid-July.

“We are thrilled to share these incredible digital collections with Caps and Wizards fans and provide them an accessible entry into the exciting world of NFTs, blockchain technology, and cryptocurrencies,” Ted Leonsis said in a release. “Monumental Sports & Entertainment is a digital first company, and we consistently innovate to provide fans the richest, most immersive, and state-of-the-art experiences. To have the chance to do that and partner with Naturel and Rob Zilla III, two renowned D.C. digital artists – and Caps and Wizards fans, respectively – has been phenomenal.”

The Capitals will be offering digital championship banners and a Capitals Stanley Cup championship ring that also comes with physical gifts and exclusive experiences like meet and greets and ice resurfacer rides (more information below).

NFTs (non-fungible token) are essentially memorabilia or collector’s items that are digital and exist through blockchain technology.

Monumental Sports & Entertainment’s full press release can be read below.

Monumental Sports & Entertainment Simultaneously Launches NFT Collections for Two Teams in Two Different Leagues – an Industry-First – Celebrating the NHL’s Washington Capitals and NBA’s Washington Wizards

Teams have commissioned two renowned D.C. artists to create unique collectables for the Capitals and Wizards fan base

A first-of-its-kind free NFT will be available to fans within the Wizards Collection

Washington D.C. – (July 7, 2021) – Monumental Sports & Entertainment, the ownership group of the NHL’s Washington Capitals and NBA’s Washington Wizards, today announced the first ever NFT (non-fungible token) collection simultaneously being launched for two professional sports teams in two different leagues. Monumental Sports & Entertainment partnered with OpenSea as their marketplace for this first time NFT collection.

“We are thrilled to share these incredible digital collections with Caps and Wizards fans and provide them an accessible entry into the exciting world of NFTs, blockchain technology, and cryptocurrencies,” said Ted Leonsis, Founder & CEO of Monumental Sports & Entertainment. “Monumental Sports & Entertainment is a digital first company, and we consistently innovate to provide fans the richest, most immersive, and state-of-the-art experiences. To have the chance to do that and partner with Naturel and Rob Zilla III, two renowned D.C. digital artists – and Caps and Wizards fans, respectively – has been phenomenal.”

NFTs are one-of-a-kind digital assets which have an exclusive owner and exist through blockchain technology. NFTs are akin to collector’s items, albeit in digital form. Whereas a tangible asset may be held physically, its provenance may be difficult to validate. But an NFT’s unique metadata allows ownership to be verified and the buyer and seller operate with full transparency of all transactions and costs associated with the individual piece. Additional information on the concept of NFTs is available on each team’s website. To learn more please visit www.WashingtonWizards.com/NFT (Wizards) and www.WashCaps.com/NFT (Capitals).

Monumental Sports & Entertainment has partnered with two acclaimed, Washington D.C.-based artists with deep community roots on a respective NFT collection that celebrates the teams, their collective hometown of D.C., and the teams’ extraordinary fan bases. Famed graphic designer Lawrence Atoigue, professionally known as Naturel, has been commissioned to create the Wizards NFT collection and renowned illustrator Robert Generette III, professionally known as Rob Zilla III, has been commissioned to create the Capitals NFT collection. These leading artists have channeled their unique abilities in design to create powerful art which is visually captivating, taps into the passion Wizards and Capitals fans feel for their teams, and celebrates the unique bond each team has with the community for which they play.

This announcement comes ahead of making the NFTs available to the public and to educate and generate excitement for the fans ahead of the expected mid-July drop dates. And in a first-ever move for a professional sports team, the Wizards are creating a special edition NFT within its collection which will be available free of charge for the first 500 fans through a creative marketing effort, to be announced by the Wizards later this week.

ALL CAPS All-Digital Fan Collectibles

The Washington Capitals are offering two themed collections. The first is a celebration of the 2018 Stanley Cup Championship. For the first time ever, fans will be able to own a digital piece of Capitals history marking the 2018 Stanley Cup Championship. The Capitals are honoring the championship through two unique collectibles within this theme to commemorate the memorable season. 

Capitals Stanley Cup Ring 

This is a 1 of 1 minting to be sold in an auction format, featuring artwork of the 2018 Stanley Cup Championship ring. Ted Leonsis will also present the winner with a physical replica of the Championship ring, which was designed by Jostens and presented to the Capitals players who won the 2018 Stanley Cup trophy. The package also includes VIP access to a Capitals Open Practice at MedStar Iceplex, an autographed puck, a street pole banner from the 2018 Stanley Cup parade and a personalized, white Away Jersey, the same style worn by Capitals players during Game 5 of the 2018 Stanley Cup Final.

Capitals Stanley Cup Banner

There will be sixteen minted, available at $499.99 each. Sixteen corresponds to the sixteen wins it ultimately takes to win the Stanley Cup. The Capitals raised the 2018 Stanley Cup Championship Banner at Capital One Arena on Oct. 3, 2018.

The second theme is the Capitals Screaming Eagle Collection. The Screaming Eagle logo was first introduced and featured on Capitals jerseys in 1995 in the blue, black, and bronze color scheme. The symbol of the screaming eagle preying in the downward design direction evokes energy, power, and speed of an attacking eagle. The Capitals will offer an exclusive Capitals Past to Present VIP experience as outlined below. To honor the year 1995, when the screaming eagle jersey was introduced, fans may purchase a limited number of 95 digital Screaming Eagle exclusive jerseys.   

Capitals Past to Present Experience

This is a 1 of 1 minting to be sold in an auction format. In addition to the NFT, the buyer will receive two glass seat tickets to a 2021-22 regular season Capitals game, be able to watch warm-ups from the penalty box, participate in an ice resurfacer ride during intermission, receive a personalized Screaming Eagle jersey, and participate in a meet-and-greet with a Capitals legend.

Screaming Eagle Digital Collectible Jersey

There will be ninety-five minted, available at $100.21 each.

About the Artist

Robert Generette III is an award-winning illustrator, educator and self-proclaimed “vector art monster” based in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. Under the pseudonym Rob Zilla III, he uses an iPad Pro with Apple Pencil to create compelling sports illustrations and portraitures for clients ranging from Nike, NBA (Wizards & Warriors), Major League Soccer (L.A. Galaxy & DC United), ESPN, Cycle, XBOX and Adobe.

On Sale Date

ALL CAPS All-Digital Fan Collectibles will go on sale at 9:00 a.m. EDT on July 15 through 9:00 p.m. EDT on July 17, exclusively on OpenSea.

The Washington Wizards NFT Collection

“The Washington Wizards Starting Five” is a five-part NFT series that celebrates the diverse and powerful hometown of the team, Washington D.C. The starting five of a basketball team represent the strongest players to go up against an opponent, and this Wizards NFT series does just that – it is designed for the great basketball fans in the DMV, highlighting the energy and culture that makes The District so unique.

As part of the collection, the Wizards will also feature a specialty option, “The Sixth Man.” The sixth man is an invaluable member of any basketball team and, in many ways, are key to its success. Through this offering, the Wizards are celebrating their most invaluable asset: the Wizards fan. As a thank you to these dedicated supporters, The Sixth Man NFT will be a free NFT collectable – a first-ever such concept and disbursement program amid professional sports teams. The Wizards organization chose to create these free-of-charge NFTs to ensure that more fans have an opportunity to participate as a founding member of “The Wizards Starting Five” NFT program.

The NFTs will be sold on OpenSea in five distinct package levels – and some package levels are available to a single buyer and others purchased by multiple buyers. (Details on how fans can pursue The Sixth Man package will be announced shortly.) But regardless of which NFT a fan purchases, the metadata authenticating the purchase will always remain unique to the individual NFT. Some packages also offer additional experiences tied to the individual NFTs being sold.

First Starter: Artist Focused Auction

This is a 1 of 1 minting to be sold in an auction format that includes unlockable content accessible only by the winner (including Naturel behind the scenes content), courtside tickets for a Wizards home game with the famed-artist, Naturel, a personally commissioned portrait from Naturel, a game worn jersey, and a meet and greet with team owner, Ted Leonsis.

Second Starter: Team Focused Auction

This is a 1 of 1 minting to be sold in an auction format that includes courtside tickets for a Wizards home game and exclusive game access (early entry, watching pre-game warm-ups, attending a post-game media availability with players and coaches, etc.), dinner/meet and greet with a member of basketball operations and team alumni, a game worn jersey, and a chance to meet team owner Ted Leonsis.

Third Starter: Team Focused Option

There will be 50 minted, available at $299.99 each that includes two tickets to a Wizards home game and a jersey from the Wizards City Edition collection.

Fourth Starter: Team Gear Focused Option

There will be 125 minted, available at $149.99 each that includes a jersey from the Wizards City Edition collection.

Fifth Starter: Simple Option

There will be 200 minted, available at $49.99 each.

Sixth Man: The Sixth Man NFT

This is a minting of 500, available to fans free of charge.

About the Artist

The Wizards have commissioned Lawrence Atoigue, professionally known as Naturel, an illustrative based artist who has quickly emerged in today’s postmodern scene. His futuristic illustrations have successfully blended methods of Pop and Cubism with a surrealist vison. A social influencer counting numerous NBA stars among his 90,000+ Instagram fans – his talents have attracted the eyes and ears of other celebrity clients such as Macklemore, Swizz Beatz, and countless others.

On Sale Date

“The Washington Wizards Starting Five” NFT Collection will go on sale at 9:00 a.m. EDT on July 12 through 9:00 p.m. EDT on July 14, exclusively on OpenSea. The timing of the Sixth Man offering will be announced on Wizards social media channels and on the team website in the coming days. Ahead of the sales date, the Wizards Marketing and Communications teams will sustain a campaign to educate fans new to NFTs, create excitement around the collection, drive interest in this new frontier of digital collectables, and introduce the artist to the Wizards fan base.

Headline photo images via MSE

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