Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie will become the first NBA player to turn his player contract into a digital investment vehicle, giving up some future income on his three-year, $34MM+ deal in order to secure a lump sum payment up front. Dinwiddie is confident that the NBA and the Players’ Association will approve the measure.
“What are they going to do, try and stop me? I mean, they could try,” Dinwiddie said (via Brian Lewis of The New York Times). “Then they’d have to have legal standing to do so. Do you really want to do that? Because wouldn’t that be bad PR for them to do that? I would think”
Dinwiddie went on to explain that he isn’t creating a new currency. “I’m not trying to reinvent the wheel and create a new bitcoin; this is different,” he said. “… I will say this, though: It solves some of the league’s fan engagement issue. It does do that.”
The 26-year-old also touched on tampering in the NBA, something that will have new consequences for as a result of last Friday’s Board of Governors’ meeting. Dinwiddie openly wondered whether it’s a coincidence that the league’s increased focus on tampering comes after teams like his own were big winners in free agency.
“You mean when non-traditional powers like the Nets and the Clippers win?” Dinwiddie added. “What you’re saying is, if it’d been the Lakers and the Knicks that won it wouldn’t be a problem, but because it’s the Clippers and the Nets that won it’s an issue?”
The Nets landed Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in free agency this summer and Dinwiddie played a role in the recruitment. Brooklyn will have many new faces next season, including Taurean Prince, who came to the team via a trade with the Hawks.
“He’s going to be a pleasant surprise, somebody a lot of people are discounting,” Dinwiddie said of Prince. “[He] can really, really, really shoot it.”
sign me up for some WiddieCoin
I think Dins is going to be able to charge any transaction fees himself rather than pay them to brokers. Whatever it is you get, it might be expensive to buy just one but it would be a cool souvenir.
Idiot…of course he makes the claim it’s because the Nets won in free agency…not because guys were already making it clear where they were signing before free agency officially opened
Critics chirped about Bowie Bonds and they turned out to be a solid investment that redeemed without default. Spencer’s playing some high level games here, fascinating. He’s not the sort of athlete who is going to blow up, his parents are college professors I believe. Put me down for a few stacks.