Second NFT collection should break new records after the success of the first drop
Bids for the rarest NFT in the collection don’t even reach the buy it now price
Failure could herald the end of the NFT hype
The Golden State Warriors’ first NFT collection became a success
As early as April 2021, the Golden State Warriors decided to launch an NFT collection. As reported by website SFGATE, the team released a series of digital items celebrating famous periods in the franchise’s history. Among other things, tickets, championship rings and banners from different eras were sold to fans in the form of NFTs.
The drop came at a good time. The hype around cryptos continued to gather momentum and the cryptocurrency Ethereum was on its way to an all-time high. The most significant piece of the collection, according to SFGATE, was a “1-of-1 World Championship Ring NFT that combined all six franchise titles in a single design.” According to the website, the coveted item was sold for 285.1111 ETH, which was equivalent to $967,727.78 at the time. The NFTs in the rest of the collection are also said to have developed splendidly. According to SFGATE, even the later price loss of Ethereum and the occurrence of fraudulent incidents on crypto markets as well as regulatory restrictions on the part of China would not have stopped the hype. This is one of the reasons why the Golden State Warriors were so enthusiastic about the release of a second collection.
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Second NFT drop by the Golden State Warriors turns out to be a flop
Numerous successful examples have led many market participants to believe that an NFT collection is a sure hit. “In general, crypto and NFTs are a get-rich-quick scheme and I’m not even saying that in a derogatory way. People have seen astronomical gains in some cases,” Jacob Silverman, who is writing a book on cryptocurrencies and scams, told SFGATE . “The appeal for sellers and for businesses or for a sports team is that this seems like an easy source of income.” After the first success, it was probably a safe bet for the Golden State Warriors to boost their revenues again with a second NFT drop.
The second collection followed in April 2022, a year after the first collection. According to SFGATE, she focused her sales items on the coming season. Fans should get “additional utilities and benefits for each round the team progresses” through the purchases. These include signed jerseys and coveted seats. The 2,999 minted NFTs each had an initial seed value of $499.99 and could be purchased without Ethereum. An exception was the “Gold Bar All-Access Pass” NFT, which could only be purchased using Ethereum bids and, in addition to the unique NFT, also includes two tickets for each Warriors playoff game and a real gold bar. However, fans were apparently not very enthusiastic about the offer: the highest bid in the auction that has now closed was ten Ethereum, which were valued at $30,287.70 at the time the bid was made. This amount is a far cry from the last 1-of-1 World Championship Ring NFT sales record. Not even the buy-it-now price of 25 Ethereum that the Warriors had set was reached. According to estimates by SFGATE, with a purchase at this bid and Ethereum rate, the purchaser should even make up for almost half the price with the value of the gold bar supplied. The rest of the NFTs are also said to be going badly. Already one month after the first sale, many can only be resold for a lower value.
Is the NFT hype over?
The Golden State Warriors have touted their NFT collection as a “crown jewel” containing “priceless utilities and unique benefits,” according to SFGATE. Due to the high demand, bids were expected that would “break records for sure”. These records were now completely missing. To the surprise of many, the collection flopped entirely, raising the question of whether the NFT hype could possibly be over. The Golden State Warriors describe their drop as “the second largest revenue drop in the history of North American team sports.”
“A lot of the irrational enthusiasm has left the industry,” Silverman also told SFGATE. “I think more and more companies will see that NFT projects initially create excitement or raise funds, but then the next time they try to go back to their customers or fans to sell them something again, with a much smaller one Interest continues. I think that’s what’s happening with the Warriors.” While the Warriors have tried to make their NFT drop more attractive with big incentives like fan experiences and additional perks, the reality is that, like any other NFT, most of the benefit is in speculation. “Basically, the entire space is a self-assembled one Ponzi scheme with a real value of $0,” Silverman continued to SFGATE. As a result, he doesn’t believe the NFT market will recover again.
Nicolas Flohr / Editor finanzen.net
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