There are certain experiences or opportunities that were deemed priceless over the years…the cover of Sports Illustrated, an ESPN SportsCenter commercial, the cover of a Wheaties box…were all those unforgettable moments that showed athletes they were in rare air…they had made it into a group that was earned, not purchased. In that same vein, walking the carpet and hearing your name called out at the podium in a professional sports league draft in North America was also on that unforgettable moment list. Few are called and chosen, it is an experience you can’t get back. Priceless. Or is it still?
We saw again Thursday (and on Friday as well) how the NFL has turned the idea of The Draft into a three day event like nothing else in sports. On Thursday for the first round over 125,000 fans showed up to enjoy and support the event that was part music and pop culture festival, part brand activation and a big part celebration of the future and millions more watched on every screen imaginable. Those players who chose…and accepted…the invite to walk the carpet were lined up in their custom looks with families and supporters there to walk that walk to the podium when Commissioner Roger Goodell called their name. The emotions flowed because the journey was almost unimaginable for many. It was a never to forget moment.
Yet for all those on stage, we saw what seemed like a growing number of athletes who either were missed as invitees or chose to stay away from Kansas City to celebrate on their own in their hometowns. Those who were not there led to some different moments on stage, where fans look to see that moment with the player from an elite school making the transition to the pros, only to see or hear pundits talking for minutes on end. There was a limited, or in some cases no, celebratory moment for the broadcast and the fans. While the Draft is certainly unpredictable and quirky (Kentucky QB Will Levis’ extended time in the Draft room went to a second day before he was selected) it seemed more so this year that those empty spots, where athletes and advisors said to do your own thing (after all the players are invited but not paid to attend The Draft) were more plentiful.
It led to a bit of a discussion among colleagues…is this a trend that will grow? Could the walk the stage moment be less valuable to athletes today and without compensation, could it become something less valuable (literally) going forward? Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio said on several occasions that players would stay away because they were not properly compensated for going to the Draft city…they were not yet employees of the teams and the NFL controlled the massive show with tis broadcast partner ESPN…and maybe that’s part of what we saw. In a world of NIL expansion of the best of the best, especially in college, could brands come along and say to a group of say, Georgia football players or Alabama football players, instead of going to the Draft, we will set up a well paid amazing experience for you guys that we will stream live to the world and we will compensate you accordingly as part of our plan. Could brands a team with say the first pick come along and say instead of going to city XX for The Draft, we know we are taking you, come and spend that first moment with OUR fans in our city (team are already hosting massive, sponsored Draft night events where fans are congregating and watching) vs. making that first moment in a far away place.
It is not without precedent by the way. In January, Angel City FC selected young phenom Alyssa Thompson with the first pick in the NWSL Draft, and the club had her in Los Angeles when her name was called, not in Philadelphia where the rest of the league was gathered for the Draft. Almost every other athlete walked up to the podium, did the red carpet and had that once in a lifetime experience. Thompson was celebrating in LA. Now was it like missing the prom for another event? We won’t really know, but the team chose to make it their event with their fans despite what was “traditional.” Disrupt, rethink and move on.
Now doing that for the NBA or the NFL would be much more complex and disruptive, and the beauty of streaming brings athletes to their markets for a double bang within hours, if not a day. Heck there is even hologram technology being tested to various levels of success that could bring a realistic image of the player directly into the home city within seconds down the road. It’s a new, evolving world.
Personally we still believe those once in a lifetime in person moments are beyond compare and still hold great value to the majority, at least today. The image of Tyree Wilson bear hugging Commissioner Goodell, or Eagles pick Jalen Carter crying with his family on stage, is well…priceless isn’t it? But NIL especially, backed up by more and ore brand conscious athletes and advisors, seems to be putting a price on everything, rightly or wrongly. The argument that a league makes a tremendous amount of money off of events like The Draft (NBA or NFL being the two largest events) and that money, or part of it, should flow back to the athletes walking up and creating the moments since they are not yet compensated by teams might be a valid one, but can you really put a price on that special moment?
Maybe you can, and maybe in the world of image control we will see more and more athletes who choose to do their own thing and not go to the party. After all they won’t know what they missed if they aren’t there right? Maybe.
While there wasn’t much large scale attention given to those not in the room for whatever reason, it does bear watching for the future, especially with even more brand conscious basketball players looking to craft their custom message for the coming NBA Draft. They certainly can proactively use the bright lights of the carpet to expand their brand and many have done so for years. The question becomes is there growing value to having your own smaller party that you show to the world, or do you want to be part of the collective experience?
Walking out on that stage is literally a once in a lifetime experience. It’s not even like The Oscars, which for the best of the best can happen more than once. It is one and done. Is it worth missing or crafting just for the money?
Aren’t there some things we do that we can’t put a price on? Seems like maybe that list is still shrinking at least for now.
The NFL Draft is certainly a show unlike anything else. Maybe there is a better way to compensate athletes and make everyone happy to take the walk. It certainly bears watching, literally going forward. The show will go on, the question is will all of the parties choose to come?
