3 Point Productions Plays Major Role in Popularity of WNBA's Las Vegas Aces The company has been a partner since the franchise's first day By Kristian Hern ndez, Associate Editor
Wednesday, October 27, 2021 - 10:34 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
With a stake in the NFL, WNBA, and NHL, Las Vegas is slowly becoming a professional-sports town. One of the city's original franchises, the Las Vegas Aces, has risen from the ground floor of women's professional basketball to become a formidable force in the league's Western Conference. Now in its fourth season, the organization continues to grow its creative and in-venue strategies with 3 Point Productions, a production company that has been a steadfast partner since 2018.
We've been a part of this club from the get-go, says Matt Heuer, creative director, 3 Point Productions. It's an opportunity that we still look back on, and I'm very proud of the way it all came together.
Humble Beginnings: Aces Rebrand After Six Years in Utah, 15 in San Antonio The Las Vegas Aces have a long history in the WNBA, but playing under different names in different cities. The organization played first in Salt Lake City as the Utah Starzz from 1997 to 2002, then migrated southeast to play as the San Antonio Silver Stars from 2003 to 2013. The club were the San Antonio Stars from 2013 to 2017, then moved to Las Vegas in 2018 to play under their current name. Looking to plant roots in Sin City, the Aces looked outwards to develop a voice and identity in their new home and turned to 3 Point Productions for its expertise.
The Las Vegas Aces play home games in Michelob Ultra Arena, which used to be named Mandalay Bay Events Center.
We jumped [into the project] before the Las Vegas Aces were unveiled, notes Heuer. We knew that [head coach] Bill [Laimbeer] was going to be involved, and we knew they had some exciting aspects about the brand.
The company not only generates a majority of the team's in-venue content but is also responsible for distributing this material on game days at Michelob Ultra Arena (formerly named Mandalay Bay Events Center). Without many local professional teams at the time - the Vegas Golden Knights had been established in 2017 - the pool of production talent was somewhat shallow. This caused a massive learning curve for Heuer and 3 Point Productions President Patrick Walker to flatten.
There was a lot of training on the front end, so it was almost like a second home for quite a while leading up to the inaugural year, Heuer says. We got [the Aces crew] to a place where we were able to execute an amazing first season, and we've set up a solid foundation from Year 1 that we've been able to grow.
Vegas-Based Ops: Video Village, High-Energy Prompts Light Up Michelob Ultra Arena Fans have finally been welcomed back to the building, but, during the early months of the 2021 schedule, internal COVID-19 protocols from the 2020 Wubble in Bradenton, FL, were carried over. As the season progressed, some restrictions were lifted, allowing more interaction with spectators in the stands.
During the Aces' playoff run, which unfortunately ended in Game 5 of the semifinals against the Phoenix Mercury, the energy level was kicked up a notch for the packed crowds at the venue. The change in pace involved flashing a lot more hype videos, fan-driven prompts, and prize giveaways a lot earlier in the contest. The prompts included the A'ja Wilson Dance Cam, Chelsea Gray Dribble Cam, DJ Cam, and the Kelsey Plum Flex Cam.
The Video Village houses in-venue production technology, including a NewTek 3Play production switcher.
Seattle has always been known as a tough place to play, and I think that's [becoming true] here in Las Vegas, says Heuer. Something that we would traditionally save for the third- or fourth-quarter moment would be used a lot earlier, especially in a deciding game like a Game 5.
The tools that Heuer and his team have at their disposal are in Video Village, the name for the area located at court level and adjacent to the player tunnel. Because the team plays in a smaller venue than, say, the Liberty, who play in Brooklyn's Barclays Center, the control-room layout is driven by a simplified tech arsenal, including a NewTek 3Play production switcher, Chyron graphics, and Daktronics software to run elements to the LED ribbon boards and main centerhung videoboard.
Star-Studded Production: Heuer, League's Best Drive Elements for 2021 WNBA All-Star During the 2021 regular season and playoffs, Heuer was busy with games for the Aces, but, during the extended Olympic and All-Star break, he put in some extra hours at the center of production plans for the 2021 WNBA All-Star Game. Since it was located in Las Vegas for the second straight season (absent the pandemic-canceled 2020 edition), 3 Point Productions once again participated in the annual showcase as it did in Seattle in 2017.
The Aces hosted the Phoenix Mercury during Game 5 of the 2021 WNBA Semifinals.
To produce a marquee event like the All-Star Game, Heuer assembled an Avengers-style crew for this exhibition in Las Vegas. It included Aces in-game host CJ Simpson, Washington Mystics and U.S. Women's Basketball in-arena host Britt Waters, Washington Mystics' in-arena talent DJ Heat, and first-time in-arena host for the Atlanta Dream Bria Janelle.
It's always such an honor to be a part of those games, Heuer says. It was a little different than what we did in 2019, but, all of that considered, it was magical. We were able to take a page from the NBA playbook and bring in talent from various WNBA markets.
Split Squad: Crew Balances Aces Work With Ops for Seattle Storm, Atlanta Dream Although there are a lot of show elements to control in Las Vegas, 3 Point Productions also has co
North America Stories
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Marshall Electronics Showcases New Feature-Rich CV320 and CV520 IP and 3G-SDI PO...
27/03/2026
Sony Electronics Inc. Elevates Professional Video Workflows with Powerful Update...
27/03/2026
GatesAir Extends AirWatch365 Managed Service with Edge Gateway Site Appliance
Brie Clayton March 27, 2026
0 Comments
NAB marks global launch of servic...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
27/03/2026
At NAB Show 2026, Net Insight will showcase the next evolution of Nimbra Edge, its orchestration and control layer designed to manage live media services across...
27/03/2026
Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced powerful new innovations that further elevate the company's sports streaming solution. The advanced capabilities enh...
27/03/2026
Bitmovin, the leading provider of video streaming solutions, today announced significant new capabilities for Player Web X, its next-generation web video player...
27/03/2026
Riedel Communications today announced that Czech-based production company CS live has equipped its newest outside broadcast (OB) van with an integrated Riedel i...
27/03/2026
130 Industry Experts Confirmed as Show Celebrates its 10th Anniversary
MPTS, the UK's largest and most influential event for the media, production and tech...
27/03/2026
Grass Valley today announced the successful completion of a major live production deployment with NVP, a leading European media company specializing in live spo...
27/03/2026
Showcases resilient solutions for satellite-to-IP migration, REMI and hybrid live production
Appear ASA (Appear, OSE:APR), a global leader in live production t...
27/03/2026
San Francisco, California, March 2026 - Microsoft Ignite, a major annual conference hosted by Microsoft for developers, IT professionals, partners and business ...
27/03/2026
Clear-Com is proud to highlight its support for worship teams through professional communication solutions, with the deployment of its EQUIP wireless system a...
27/03/2026
Orban Collaborates with Sage on Virtualized EAS Technology Demo
Brie Clayton March 26, 2026
0 Comments
Sage Alerting Systems (SAS), in cooperation wit...
27/03/2026
Berklee Alums Bring GIANT to Broadway Brian and Dayna Lee BM '13 met and fell in love at Berklee, and now their production companys first Broadway debut i...
26/03/2026
Extron and Audio-Technica have announced that their Design Solutions devices, Ce...
26/03/2026
SPORTEL Asia took place March 24-25 at the Orchard Hotel Singapore, drawing 370 participants representing more than 220 companies from 35 countries. Approximate...
26/03/2026
LTN will demonstrate satellite-to-IP migration solutions for broadcasters, cable networks, MVPDs, and station groups at NAB Show 2026 (Booth W2100).
The C-Ban...
26/03/2026
The Seattle Mariners have partnered with Daktronics to install an upgraded outfi...
26/03/2026
The Esports Foundation (EF) has awarded National Team Partner status to organizations and individuals across more than 100 countries and territories for the Esp...
26/03/2026
Telestream has announced expanded integration between its Vantage workflow platf...
26/03/2026
FOR-A Corporation has announced a partnership with Nippon TV and NVIDIA to distr...
26/03/2026
CBS Sports and the WNBA have expanded their partnership through a new long-term, multiplatform rights agreement. CBS Sports will feature up to 20 regular-season...
26/03/2026
Zac Brown Band will star in the Sunday Night Baseball show open on NBC and Peacock, NBC Sports announced. The open was filmed at American Family Field, home of ...
26/03/2026
Major League Baseball opens the 2026 season with nationally televised games across multiple media partners. Fans can visit MLB.com/Watch for a complete schedule...
26/03/2026
DIRECTV has announced an agreement to carry nine new MLB-operated team channels, covering the Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers (Detroit SportsNet), Kansas City R...
26/03/2026
Nationals.TV, the Washington Nationals' local broadcast channel, is now avai...
26/03/2026
Starting Thursday, March 26, MLB.TV will be available on the ESPN App, giving fans access to more than 2,000 out-of-market regular season games. Fans can also r...
26/03/2026
By Matt Klein
Hello to everyone reading this - whether you're a current YEP, HPA member, or just YEP-curious. I'm Matt Klein, one of the co-chairs of t...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
28 participating companies, from start-ups to blue-chips, lead the UK Group as part of the GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland presence across all the Halls at N...
26/03/2026
Arkona Unveils BLADE//planner and Major Usability Enhancements at NAB 2026
Brie Clayton March 26, 2026
0 Comments
New graphical configuration tool and...
26/03/2026
Bitfocus showcases complete control at NAB Show 2026
Brie Clayton March 26, 2026
0 Comments
Continuing development drives advances in security, availa...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
26/03/2026
Nevion introduces powerful new Panel Builder to enhance VideoIPath broadcast con...
26/03/2026
2026 Oscar Nominated Films Powered by Blackmagic Design
Brie Clayton March 25, 2026
0 Comments
DaVinci Resolve Studio used on 27 of this year's no...
26/03/2026
Leader to present full suite of advanced Test & Measurement solutions at NAB Sho...
26/03/2026
Boston Conservatory to Present New England and Collegiate Premiere of Groundbrea...
26/03/2026
Back to All News
Have a Wish Worth Dying For? Netflix's First Korean YA Hor...
3 Point Productions Plays Major Role in Popularity of WNBA's Las Vegas Aces The company has been a partner since the franchise's first day By Kristian Hern ndez, Associate Editor 
