Spencer Dinwiddie shocked the NBA by becoming a pioneer of an investment plan that would allow other NBA players, should they follow his lead, to muster some financial safety while getting the fans involved. The Brooklyn Nets guard plans to use an advance of the first year of his contract to make himself into a token, a digital currency bond that fans can buy stock in with hopes that Dinwiddie's value rises as he approaches his contract year in 2021:

“What better way to be invested in a player as a fan than to have some level of skin in the game,” Dinwiddie told Shams Charania of  The Athletic. “With the way mine works, if I play well in that player option year and we split the profits up the first year of my new deal, it greatly appreciates the return on this investment vehicle. It allows you to get up in that 15-percent range in a return, like a growth stock, and that’ll be something most guys won’t beat.

“And you’re going to be invested in watching your favorite player. It’s something with a floor, guaranteeing you a floor, and obviously the cap on the return would beat most stocks in the economic climate that we’re going into. To make it as simplistic as possible, the real growth is for the third year, just like my contract is. You have the guaranteed premiums. You have the big-time fluctuation in the third year, with a floor. Everyone can appreciate it and make money.”

Dinwiddie is taking the bulk of the first year of his contract and immediately putting into his token, forcing him to live a less luxurious lifestyle and learn to maintain that through the course of his career. That stock will also offer fans a chance to play real-life fantasy basketball while supporting a player they believe in — an asset the Nets guard believe will take off in time:

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“Establishing an asset class that is not correlated to the legacy markets and stocks that are going to get hammered when everything comes to fruition, it can help people save money and create a real fantasy sport. It enhances the real fan engagement. It enhances the NBA.”

While some could soon follow Dinwiddie's lead with this financial strategy, it is still at a groundbreaking level. Players will want to see if he can monetize and profit safely before darting their own shot at this investment vehicle.