Crypto on the court: How NBA Finals became a showcase for Ledger

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Crypto on the court

Spurs should not be written off yet

Game 3 between the Spurs and the Knicks took place on the night of June 9 at Madison Square Garden. The game ended 115-111 in favor of the team from San Antonio.

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Before that, the Knicks had won the first two games. New York took Game 1 with a 105-95 victory and then won Game 2 by a score of 105-104. After two straight losses, the Spurs risked finding themselves in an almost hopeless position, but their Game 3 win brought intrigue back to the Finals.

For San Antonio, this is the franchise’s first NBA Finals appearance since 2014. Back then, the Spurs defeated the Miami Heat 4-1 and won the fifth title in the club’s history. For the Knicks, this Finals run is also historic: the team reached the championship series for the first time since 1999. That year, New York also faced San Antonio and lost 4-1.

The French connection

Before the Finals, most bookmakers did not view the Spurs as the main contender for the title. For example, according to one company, the odds on the New York Knicks winning the championship stood at 1.19, while San Antonio’s title odds were 4.15. In other words, the team from New York looked like the clear favorite.

After Game 3, that picture became less straightforward, and attention on the Spurs grew significantly. But how did a team that was recently seen as an outsider manage to reach the Finals and now fully compete for the championship?

San Antonio has two French stars in this story. The first is Victor Wembanyama, the club’s main basketball project and one of the most recognizable players of the new generation. The second is Ledger, the French cryptocurrency company and Spurs sponsor that, thanks to the NBA Finals, has received a rare chance to reach beyond the crypto audience.

Basketball crypto support

Ledger became a Spurs partner in 2025. The club announced a multi-year agreement with the company, which specializes in secure storage of digital assets for individual users and businesses.

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For the Spurs, this is not just another sponsorship deal. The club directly described the agreement as part of its international brand development. San Antonio has a reputation as one of the NBA’s most global teams: since 1976, players from 30 countries have suited up for the club, including seven players from France.

Ledger is also building its story around international scale. According to the company, it has sold more than 7.5 million devices in over 165 countries and secures more than 20% of the world’s crypto assets. For a brand working with cryptocurrencies, access to the NBA audience is a way to speak not only to investors and crypto wallet users, but also to a mainstream sports audience.

There is also a practical side to the agreement. Ledger is involved in the Spurs’ community projects in Paris and has also become a partner of children’s programs that connect basketball with technology and STEM education.

Basketball as a showcase for cryptocurrencies

Ledger is not the first cryptocurrency company to enter basketball. The NBA began working with the industry back in 2021, when Coinbase became the league’s exclusive cryptocurrency partner.

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The most visible example is Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. In 2021, Crypto.com acquired the naming rights to the former Staples Center. According to ESPN, the deal was valued at about $700 million over 20 years. The arena was home to the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers, and the rebranding became one of the loudest sports deals in the crypto industry.

There was also an opposite example. In 2021, FTX acquired the naming rights to the Miami Heat’s arena under a 19-year, $135 million agreement. After the exchange collapsed, the deal was terminated in January 2023, and the FTX name was removed from the arena.

An NBA crypto champion?

The Spurs have not won the Finals yet. After three games, the team is still trailing the Knicks in the series, so it is too early to talk about a championship. But the very possibility of such a scenario already makes Ledger’s story notable for the crypto market.

If San Antonio turns the series around and wins the title, it will be more than just the club’s sixth championship. The Spurs could become the first NBA champion with a crypto sponsor directly at the center of the season’s story: alongside Wembanyama and the team’s first Finals appearance since 2014.

That does not mean Ledger will lead the Spurs to victory on the court. Games are won by players, coaching staffs and specific decisions in crunch time. But for the crypto company, this Finals has already become a major stage: Ledger found itself next to a team that challenged the favorite, brought intrigue back to the series and can now turn sporting success into one of the loudest marketing moments for the crypto industry.

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