About Boardroom

Boardroom is a sports, media and entertainment brand co-founded by Kevin Durant and Rich Kleiman and focused on the intersection of sports and entertainment. Boardroom’s flagship media arm features premium video/audio, editorial, daily and weekly newsletters, showcasing how athletes, executives, musicians and creators are moving the business world forward. Boardroom’s ecosystem encompasses B2B events and experiences (such as its renowned NBA and WNBA All-Star events) as well as ticketed conferences such as Game Plan in partnership with CNBC. Our advisory arm serves to consult and connect athletes, brands and executives with our broader network and initiatives.

Recent film and TV projects also under the Boardroom umbrella include the Academy Award-winning Two Distant Strangers (Netflix), the critically acclaimed scripted series SWAGGER (Apple TV+) and Emmy-nominated documentary NYC Point Gods (Showtime).

Boardroom’s sister company, Boardroom Sports Holdings, features investments in emerging sports teams and leagues, including the Major League Pickleball team, the Brooklyn Aces, NWSL champions Gotham FC, and MLS’ Philadelphia Union.

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Rooms You Can’t Get Into: Boardroom & Coinbase’s 2nd Annual NBA All-Star Brunch

Last Updated: July 6, 2023
Boardroom and Coinbase joined forces again to host a curated group of thought leaders and executives for brunch during All-Star Weekend 2023.

Athletes, business executives, and media personnel gathered in Salt Lake City for more reasons than one during NBA All-Star Weekend 2023.

During what feels like an endless agenda of events, Boardroom and Coinbase were able to cut through the weeds of the busy weekend and host an afternoon brunch like no other on Saturday, Feb. 18. The exclusive event comes as part of Boardroom and Coinbase’s ongoing partnership centered on expanding crypto knowledge.

“Successful partnerships not only bring together the right people but also create new, collaborative opportunities for brands to flourish and thrive,” Jessica Williams, Coinbase’s Head of Brand Partnerships, told Boardroom. “We are grateful for our partnership with Boardroom, which both educates NBA fans about the possibilities of web3 and brings the power of the crypto economy to decision-makers within the NBA ecosystem.”

Out of all the events, why is this a room people would want to be in?

“Because it’s the mf Boardroom,” Chris Lyons, President of Web3 media at a16z crypto, said during the brunch.

Boardroom Co-CEO Kevin Durant and music mogul Travis Scott hosted the second annual Boardroom + Coinbase Brunch during All-Star Weekend. The event welcomed guests such as Mark Jackson, Matt Ishbia, Jill Smoller, Danny Green, Don Toliver, Ros Gold-Onwude, Rich Paul, Carmelo Anthony, and Gayle King.

“This is a diverse group of leaders from many industries in one place at the same time. Sometimes I have to go to a tech conference to see certain people, or I have to be on a basketball court to talk to certain athletes, or I have to be at a concert to run into a music artist,” Gold-Onwude said. “At this brunch, everybody is here at once. It feels like the place to be to catch up as friends and catch a vibe.”

After the inaugural brunch during All-Star Weekend last year, it was clear that Coinbase and Boardroom were the perfect match to bring an influential group of thought leaders together under one roof. Not only did they bring a curated list of professionals together, but they were able to foster organic connections between influential people in a relaxed and comfortable atmosphere.

“There’s a lot of noise during NBA All-Star Weekend, and it was really important to us to create an event that stood out in terms of both attendees and premium experience,” Boardroom CMO Sarah Flynn said. “We were able to curate a room of people across all areas of the Boardroom network and really foster new industry connections and conversations.”

During this year’s event, attendees could enjoy a specialty cocktail, take pictures at the photo booth, or just converse with like-minded individuals. Boardroom and Coinbase worked with Crown + Conquer to bring the brunch’s aesthetic to life. The marketing agency is known for its branding work on projects with Amazon Studios, Spotify, Adidas, Google, and more.

From the branded Cactus Jack and Boardroom water bottles to the NFTinis, Coinbase + Boardroom ski goggles, and other decorative accents, attendees were sure to leave with the event throwers’ brands top of mind.

“Good people always find good people; whether you’re at an agency, brand, or media company, you have your people across the ecosystem. This space reflects the good people who love to work with each other but also let our hair down to have a good time,” WME Agency’s Cecil White said. “There are very few events during All-Star where you can have a good time by also being productive and meeting people who can be meaningful to your network in the future. This is by far the best room in Salt Lake to do that.”

Bringing these different types of personalities together isn’t easy, and while some may think it doesn’t make sense, those who get it already have a seat at the table for that reason.

“This is 100% the energy that Rich, Kevin, and Boardroom are all about. You cannot build a successful ecosystem that thrives together with one type of network in the room,” Lyons said. “You have to have leaders in sports, music, fashion, entertainment, and technology connecting outside the office at events like the brunch because this is where the deals happen. This is where the opportunities are made.” 

Web3 enthusiasts, we hope you grabbed the exclusive POAP from the brunch.

Until next year, folks.

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Michelai Graham

Michelai Graham is Boardroom's resident tech and crypto reporter. Before joining 35V, she was a freelance reporter with bylines in AfroTech, HubSpot, The Plug, and Lifewire, to name a few. At Boardroom, Michelai covers Web3, NFTs, crypto, tech, and gaming. Off the clock, you can find her producing her crime podcast, The Point of No Return.