This is Princeton 3x3 DAO
3 on 3 Basketball. You know it. You’ve played it. Down at the park, or at Hoop It Up, or at 24-hour fitness. Well 3 on 3 has gone Supersaiyan. It’s called “FIBA 3x3” Basketball now, and in case you haven’t heard, it’s an Olympic sport.
And America’s #1-ranked FIBA 3x3 basketball team is building a community that is out to WIN A GOLD MEDAL TOGETHER.
And to do it, we’re going to build a first-of-it’s-kind basketball franchise that is owned and operated by our community. Eventually, we’re going to create the first basketball franchise completely operated by our community of owners.
Welcome to Princeton 3x3 DAO
First, things first. What is FIBA 3x3 basketball?
3x3 basketball became an official sport in 2012, when basketball international governing body (FIBA) launched the 3x3 player community and tournament network. In 2021, it debuted in the Tokyo Olympics.
Think of FIBA 3x3 basketball like Professional Tennis.
In Tennis, there are a few marquee events every year. They are the Grand Slam tournaments: The Australian Open, The US Open, Wimbledon, The French Open. These are worth the most points that contribute to a players ranking, and have the most prize money available to win.
FIBA 3x3 follows a similar model. Our “Grand Slams” are FIBA 3x3 World Tour events, which culminate in the World Tour final in December.
And the sport has grown. It’s even bigger after it debuted in the Tokyo 2021 Olympics.
So who is Princeton 3x3?
Princeton 3x3 is America’s #1 ranked FIBA 3x3 basketball team. To date, Princeton has:
4 USAB National Championships [via USA Basketball]
4 FIBA 3x3 World Cup Gold Medals [via Team USA]
1 Pan American Games Gold Medal [via ESPN]
2 FIBA 3x3 AmeriCup Gold Medals [via Olympics.com]
2nd Place in 2019 FIBA 3x3 World Tour Final [via FIBA]
$400,000+ earned on the FIBA 3x3 World Tour
Our origin story begins with the man we call the “Godfather” of American 3x3 Basketball, John W. Rogers Jr. Yes, the man that beat Michael Jordan in 1-on-1 in front of a crowd full of c-suite executives with Damon Wayans narrating.
After graduating from Princeton University — where he played for legendary coach Pete Carril — in 1980, John entered every 3-on-3 basketball tournament he could find with his friends, just because he loved the game. As his company, Ariel Investments, achieved success and John and his friends began to play less, he started bringing in younger players from the Princeton basketball family to field teams for tournaments around the country. Legends like Arne Duncan, Tavaras Hardy, Kit Mueller, and George Leftwich are just a few of the players that have played for Ariel Slow and Steady teams (which would become Princeton 3x3).
By the time FIBA professionalized 3x3, Princeton’s current team had more or less coalesced under John’s mentorship. Kareem Maddox (#1-ranked in America) played at Princeton under Sydney Johnson. Craig Moore played at Northwestern University under Bill Carmody. Damon Huffman played at Brown University under Craig Robinson. Zahir Carrington, Robbie Hummel, and Canyon Barry all joined the team as we branched out and sought to tackle the international FIBA 3x3 World Tour in earnest in 2018.
We’re going to dive into our backstory in another post, but here’s what’s important now: Because of Princeton 3x3’s FIBA 3x3 ranking, we can begin the 2022 season, with the top 2-ranked American teams — and build towards winning the FIBA 3x3 World Tour Final and chasing that #1-world ranking, which is always our goal.
But it also gives us the opportunity to create a Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) around our mission to win a gold medal.
Welcome to Princeton 3x3 DAO
We are gathering a community around our top American teams now, and building a Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) that owns and operates professional teams on the FIBA 3x3 World Tour.
We see a world-class sports organization. From the brand, to the facility, to events, to media ... all built and governed from within the Princeton 3x3 DAO community.
Dream-hoping
Here’s some of our big vision.
We want our community to build a facility that is a home base for not just Princeton 3x3 teams, but a revenue generating, built-for-media, first-of-it’s-kind (in the USA) facility that our community shares access to.
We want to reward fans for watching our teams, and helping us grow the sport of FIBA 3x3 basketball.
We want our fans to become owners, and help us grow the sport on 3x3 basketball in the USA.
We want to host global FIBA 3x3 events (which can be done this year, if we really put our minds to it).
And we want to WIN A GOLD MEDAL TOGETHER. In Paris 2024, then Los Angeles 2028, then Brisbane 2032, and so on and so forth.
Together, we’ll figure out how members of Princeton 3x3 DAO can participate in decisions that affect our FIBA 3x3 World Tour teams. One day, we hope members of our DAO will have learned enough to spin up their own team DAOs. When players and fans are both owners, everyone can truly share in on-court success in a meaningful way.
Together, we can create the model for the sports franchise of the future. Starting right now ...
More Bonafides ...
We are honored to be able to say that we graduates of the first Krause House DAO Accelerator. If you haven’t heard of them, they’re the ones pioneering the sports ownership movement into web3. They — we, excuse me, are going to buy an NBA team. #WAGBAT
What next?
In the weeks to come, Princeton 3x3 DAO will launch for the 2022 FIBA 3x3 season. We’re scouting contributors who want to actively participate in our mission to win a gold medal together. All skill sets and skill levels are welcome, and we want to talk to anyone with expertise in:
Brand, sponsor, and partnership work
Basketball operations
Media and content creation
Community building
Event planning
We’re building the world’s first fan-owned professional basketball franchise. Let’s win a gold medal together.
Website: www.3x3dao.xyz
Discord: https://discord.gg/YfXEaBpt
Twitter: www.twitter.com/princeton3x3dao
Instagram: www.instagram.com/princeton3x3