In 2007, the Sacramento Kings broke ground in the NBA by becoming the first team to join Twitter – and it was the same social channel that just a few years later would be the galvanizing force fans used to help keep the team in the state’s capital.
Fast forward to 2017, and the team remains in Northern California where the Kings are industry-leaders with a mission to transform how fans experience the game of basketball. In fact, Fast Company just named the team "The Most Innovative Company in Sports" in its latest issue.
The decision to pioneer Twitter 10 years ago – and embolden a global community of Kings fans – reflects the organization’s commitment to progress on and off the court. Over the past decade, the Kings have led experiments with a range of platforms to continually advance how they connect with their loyal supporters.
In honor of the milestone, check out an interactive timeline of the many ways in which the team and its fans have forged new frontiers.
Highlights include:
- An unprecedented dual mode team and venue app.
- Launch of a new on-court look in virtual reality.
- The NBA’s first Facebook Live game broadcast to India and an arena Pokemon Go meetup at the peak of the gaming craze.
On Friday, Kings Owner and Chairman Vivek Ranadivé will join Snapchat maven DJ Khaled at the NBA All-Star Technology Summit to speak about the role social media plays in revolutionizing the sport.
One “Major Key Alert” – innovation is at the heart of the team, and its heartbeat is Kings fans.