‘Bitcoin Is Michael Jordan’, Says NBA Star Tristan Thompson—So Who’s Ethereum, Solana and XRP?

What does a 14-year profession in skilled basketball have in frequent with mastering the crypto market? According to NBA star Tristan Thompson, who performed for the Cleveland Cavaliers this previous season, each require self-discipline and persistence.

At final week’s Bitcoin 2025 convention in Las Vegas, Thompson informed Decrypt that he’s been in a position to be taught loads about cryptocurrency since getting into the area two years in the past, leaning on “crypto tutors” by numerous three-hour classes and internet hosting his personal podcast.

“Too many celebrities, especially [in] this meme coin era, were just extracting from the space,” he stated. “I wanted to not only be in this space. I wanted to understand it.”

In addition to Courtside Crypto—a present that mixes sports activities and crypto—Thompson has turn into an envoy for a crypto-focused sports activities betting platform Sportsbet.io and Ethereum layer-2 community referred to as Corn that’s making an attempt to leverage Bitcoin for decentralized finance, or DeFi.



But in terms of his purpose to “make crypto cool,” the NBA veteran avoids jargon and prefers sports activities analogies.

“Bitcoin is Michael Jordan, LeBron James is Ethereum, Solana is Stephen Curry, and XRP is Kevin Durant,” Thompson stated, pairing digital belongings with legendary NBA expertise.

Thompson is among the many newest cohort of celebrities to wade into the cryptosphere since a sequence of high-profile collapses, culminating in FTX’s industry-shaking chapter, spawned class-action lawsuits in opposition to sports activities icons like Tom Brady and Shaquille O’Neil. Those athletes are examples of those who didn’t educate themselves sufficient, he stated.

“FTX made people take a step back,” he stated. “Those who are educated in this space, even when it’s tough times or there’s trauma, they understand you still hold.”

To that time, Thompson stated that Cleveland Cavaliers president Koby Altman informed him to report again to the staff on something he realized from the convention, he added. Coincidentally, the Cavaliers debuted an Avalanche-powered fan app final 12 months.

Thompson stated his crypto journey is about self-empowerment, taking management of his personal belongings and shifting past monetary advisors who encourage shoppers to stay to the established order.

“They’re like dinosaurs,” he stated. “I want to educate the Web2 space because I think what the centralized banks have done is basically manipulated, brainwashed, and made people sheep.”

Thompson stated that Ryan Fang, the founding father of Tomo Wallet and an advisor to Trump-backed DeFi undertaking World Liberty Financial, has been a private mentor. During the convention, Thompson stated he received the possibility to fulfill with Eric Trump, the U.S. president’s son.

Fang didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark from Decrypt.

Edited by Andrew Hayward