Live From the NBA Draft: NBA Digital Puts Social on the Floor With Multiple Sets The social-media circuit moves from behind the scenes to front and center By Kristian Hernandez, Assistant Editor
Friday, June 21, 2019 - 10:32 am
Print This Story
Story Highlights
Last night at the NBA Draft, the social-media world once again exploded with hot takes, player profiles, and collegiate-highlight reels. With the event's popularity on the rise, the team at NBA Digital has made some changes in its onsite presence, shifting its behind-the-scenes activities to the limelight in the form of two physical sets visited by players moving along their path of media obligations.
Fresh Tape built a miniature replica of the Draft stage, complete with Draft board and commissioner podium.
Last year, Bob Carney [VP, emerging media, NBA] thought that some of the most interesting parts of the Draft happen backstage, where fans can't see it. says Melissa Brenner, EVP, digital media, NBA. One of them are these social-media booths, which we had set up where the players would come through the Brooklyn Nets weight room. [This year,] it's such a great moment because you get to see the player walk across the stage.
A Primetime Stop on the Media Trail
In the beginning, digital coverage of the NBA Draft was not nearly as complex and thorough as it is now. And, Brenner notes, the procedure of getting the job done was rigid and rudimentary.
[The players] would talk in a confessional style to the camera about their family, how they were feeling, and what [this night] meant in their journey, she says. There would be a lot of clerical and administrative things that would go on where you would make sure that you check-marked [all of your boxes] for Twitter and Instagram.
View this post on Instagram
My Family!! #NBADraft
A post shared by NBA (@nba) on Jun 20, 2019 at 8:41pm PDT
--
Today, the NBA has broadened its creative palette and established a primetime location on the media trail. An onsite NBA TV show interviews the selected player moments after Commissioner Adam Silver makes the announcement. When the short segment concludes, the player encounters two sets that capture the unforgettable moment of becoming a professional athlete. The league tapped Fresh Tape, a Denver-based creative agency specializing in studio sets, to construct them, which took 20 hours over two days to complete.
The first is a reduced-scale replica of the stage, including the familiar NBA Draft board and commissioner podium. The player expressed feelings of gratitude to and appreciation of the person or people who most impacted his trajectory. After concluding the message, the player wrote down a phrase with his signature and placed the plank on the replica Draft board.
Next was the Twitter-centric social stop, which incorporated elements of a basketball court and the hashtag symbol that has become synonymous with the platform. Here, the player chose a hashtag phrase that best described his thoughts and feelings immediately after being drafted into the NBA.
Welcome to the NBA, @Zionwilliamson! #NBATwitter pic.twitter.com/bMsGdSBRBQ
- NBA (@NBA) June 21, 2019
Live vs. Edited: Finding the Proper Application
To cover the entire event as efficiently as possible, Brenner and company blended scheduled posting and real-time recordings.
Some of [the posts] are live, [and] others are edited [by a backstage edit team]. It's a little bit up to the producer to decide what [is shot live] due to the noise of the arena and how we think the audio is, she said. Usually, we prefer to cut and trim [the footage] because, with some platforms, we have to be really [time-]sensitive.
In addition, an all-hands-on-deck approach was required. Besides the scripted stations on the main floor, other platforms -Instagram, Facebook, YouTube - covered different aspects of the Draft, such as the fashion sense of No. 4 overall pick and future New York Knick RJ Barrett.
View this post on Instagram
@rjbarrett shows off the #NBADraft suit details!
A post shared by NBA (@nba) on Jun 20, 2019 at 12:19pm PDT
--
Everybody is a content person, [even] people who are not normally staffed to the digital department. [For example,] I'll walk by someone and send [a picture] to one of our lead users and say, Hey, I found this, Brenner says. It usually doesn't make [our social-media channels], but, for the one or two times that it does, I feel pretty great because I got something [that] they thought was high-quality.
First-Person Accounts: Leveraging Players' Followings
Although the NBA pushed out a majority of the content generated on Draft Night, the players who experienced the pomp and circumstance provided first-hand commentary on the festivities with the help of basic re-tweeting and Greenfly, a league partner that offers an avenue for reliable content-sharing between two parties.
The hashtag was the focus of the NBA's Twitter-centric media stop.
This technology allows us to send content to players and players to send content to us really seamlessly. Our players have huge followings - in many cases, larger than the NBA or our teams, says Brenner. The [Philadelphia] 76ers have actually mobilized their whole staff with over 100 content producers to help tell a story that's bigger than what's happening here. [Also,] we'll be talking to the [newly drafted players] at the Rookie Transition Program on what Greenfly is so we can get them onboard. It's been a great symbiotic relationship.
Moving on Up: From Behind Curtains to the Draft Floor
The inner workings of NBA Digital's Draft coverage have grown exponentially. And, in a league that is fully embracing and diving deep into the depths of social media, NBA Digital's Draft Day schedule is expected to become even busier.
When Sam Farbe
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
02/03/2026
NBC Sports selected Imaginary Forces to create the main title sequence for the M...
02/03/2026
The NFL announces the launch of the NFL Draft Innovation Challenge, a new crowds...
02/03/2026
The World Teleport Association (WTA) has named Skyline Communications' DataMiner SatOps solution as a finalist for the 2026 Teleport Technology of the Year ...
02/03/2026
Ventum Tech announces a strategic partnership with Pixotope, a real-time graphic...
02/03/2026
Victory , a free, ad-supported sports streaming service, announces the launch of...
02/03/2026
Global powerhouse Delta Goodrem to represent Australia at this year's Eurovi...
02/03/2026
SBS brings together prominent voices to discuss rising social division and seek ...
02/03/2026
NITV Unveils Wednesday Night Sport Night
Media releases
A Midweek Hub for Blak Sport
Flagship NRL program Over The Black Dot moves to Wednesdays at 9:30pm
...
02/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz demonstrates FR1-FR3 carrier aggregation, advancing 6G readiness Rohde & Schwarz and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. have reached another pivotal ...
02/03/2026
MELBOURNE, Fla., March 2, 2026 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) today announc...
02/03/2026
Harvey Norman tops New Zealand's biggest ad spenders as retail leads and telcos and beverages sure Auckland March 3, 2026 - Nielsen's New Zealand'...
02/03/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, and Arqit Quantum Inc. (Nasdaq: ARQQ, A...
02/03/2026
Advanced Systems Group, LLC (ASG), a technology and services provider for media creatives and content owners, has appointed Jody Boatwright as Chief Strategy Of...
02/03/2026
Lightware, an industry leader in signal management, is reinforcing its commitment to simplifying complex AV environments with the continued evolution of its TPN...
02/03/2026
ZEISS Cinema opens its doors to an exclusive screening, filmmakers Q&A and hands-on showcase of the new ZEISS Aatma lens family on Tuesday, March 10, 6:00-9:00 ...
02/03/2026
To expand the creative potential of the compact Astera QuikBeam, DoPchoice introduces the SNAPBAG Round. The new light-shaping accessory transforms the powerfu...
02/03/2026
Douglas Dubler
On a rooftop in New York City, veteran photographer Douglas Dubler watched the sun's angle shift across the urban landscape, his internal cl...
02/03/2026
ZEISS is expanding its Otus ML lens family with the introduction of the new ZEISS Otus ML 1.4/35. This manual-focus lens is designed for photographers who live ...
02/03/2026
Matthews Studio Equipment now offers the new Dinkum Systems White FlexiMount and Phone Mount Kit, a compact, highly adaptable setup for mobile content creation...
02/03/2026
Luxembourg, February 26, 2026 - SES and Africa Mobile Network (AMN) have expande...
02/03/2026
02 03 2026 - Media release Ausfilm and Screen Australia launch joint UK market initiative
Ausfilm and Screen Australia have announced Partner with Australia (...
02/03/2026
Monday 2 March 2026
Saturday Night Live UK announces writing team
L-R: Jonno Johnson; Charlie Skelton; Celya AB; Omar Badawy; Gr inne Maguire; Laura Claxton; ...
02/03/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Unveils the Trailer for 53 Sundays, the New Film by Cesc Gay
Entertainment
02 March 2026
GlobalSpain
Link copied to clipboard
Dis...
28/02/2026
With two features seen in Formula 1 coverage, the broadcaster aims to bring view...
28/02/2026
Secretary of War Pete Hegseth addresses a crowd of approximately 1,500 L3Harris employees in Camden, Arkansas, as part of his Arsenal of Freedom tour....
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
28/02/2026
Berklee Presents Mambo Mania: Eguie Castrillo and the Berklee All-Stars Big Band...
28/02/2026
Berklee Announces Two New Summer Programs in Los Angeles The Berklee Music Business Program and Electronic Music Production and Sound Design Workshop bring imme...
28/02/2026
AI-RAN is moving from lab to field, showing that a software-defined approach is ...
28/02/2026
Autonomous networks - intelligent, self-managing telecommunications operations -...
28/02/2026
Back to All News
Final Trailer for BEASTARS Final Season Part 2' Roars Tow...
28/02/2026
New way to intentionally discover molecular glues could expand drug discovery Scripps Research scientists and colleagues show how drugs that eliminate certain d...
27/02/2026
The E.W. Scripps Company names Oliver Gray as Vice President, Network Sports and...
27/02/2026
The Gotham Sports App, the exclusive direct-to-consumer streaming home of MSG Networks and the YES Network, is now available for purchase through Prime Video fo...
27/02/2026
ESPN and the Horizon League announce a new multi-year, multi-platform media rights agreement, continuing a 38-year collaboration that began with the 1988 Midwes...
27/02/2026
At the 2026 NAB Show in Las Vegas, NETGEAR will highlight its new switch models and major updates to its Engage Controller software. The company's network d...
27/02/2026
Riedel Communications announces that Fondazione Teatro alla Scala has deployed a...
27/02/2026
Lyuno specializes in media localization, including translation, dubbing, subtitling, and voice-over services for a wide array of entertainment content. The comp...
27/02/2026
Chyron Weather 2.3, the latest edition of Chyron's weather visualization suite for broadcasters and meteorologists, recently launched.
The release includes...
27/02/2026
Telestream, which concentrates in media workflow technologies, announces expanded practical AI enhancements across its Vantage, Vantage Cloud, EDC, Stanza, and ...
Live From the NBA Draft: NBA Digital Puts Social on the Floor With Multiple Sets The social-media circuit moves from behind the scenes to front and center By Kristian Hernandez, Assistant Editor 
