NBA Top Shot - the first iOS app that lets you purchase NFTs, bringing the excitement of collecting NBA moments to your pocket.
The Project
NBA Top Shot revolutionized the way fans collect and engage with basketball moments. As part of the Dapper Labs team, I led the design of the Fastbreak game mode - a fantasy-style experience that allows collectors to compete using their NFT moments in daily challenges based on real NBA games.
The Web3 space had yet to find a company that could clear the hurdle of Apple's app approval process to purchase NFTs. With a strong partnerships team, diligent problem-solving from the product team, and persistence, we built the first iOS app that you could purchase NFTs from.
Mobile app design
Game mechanics design
System mapping
Web design
Prototyping
Engagement strategy
User testing & research
Design systems
Team management
Mobile App
The Web3 space had yet to find a company that could clear the hurdle of Apple's app approval process to purchase NFTs. With a strong partnerships team, diligent problem-solving from the product team, and a strong persistence to solve this puzzle we were able to build the first iOS app that you could purchase NFTs from.
Beyond just being a trail-blazer in the space, we also wanted to to build a mobile app to make a universally complex process to purchase NFTs, smooth, quick, and painless. We were able to leverage single-sign-on and Apple Pay into the service to streamline our core user flows for NBA Top Shot.
Onboarding
We created an onboarding experience that reduced the friction for users to instantly experience the product in a way that hadn't been achievable on the web browser experience. By leveraging native mobile capabilities, we were able to create a 3D interaction allowing users to move, rotate, and transform their digital Moments—getting them instantly into ownership of their NBA collectibles.
Onboarding Flow
The Moment
The centerpiece of the NBA Top Shot experience is the Moment—a digital collectible capturing iconic NBA highlights. We designed an immersive 3D interactive cube that users can rotate, spin, and explore with intuitive touch gestures. This tactile experience brings digital ownership to life, letting collectors examine every angle of their Moments while watching the highlight play in real-time.
Discovery
We designed intuitive ways for collectors to discover new Moments within the app. Users can search for their favorite players and teams, browse their collection in list or reels view, and explore unopened packs. The collection experience makes it easy to find specific Moments, view detailed metadata like rarity and serial numbers, and quickly access the marketplace.
Pack Purchasing
The Web3 space had yet to find a company that could clear the hurdle of Apple's app approval process to purchase NFTs. With a strong partnerships team, diligent problem-solving from the product team, and a strong persistence to solve this puzzle we were able to build the first iOS app that you could purchase NFTs from.
Purchase Flow
Limited Drops
Mobile Component Library
To move quickly without sacrificing quality, we built a comprehensive mobile design system from the ground up. Standardized color tokens, type scales, and reusable components gave the team a shared language and kept every screen consistent as the app rapidly evolved.
The library spans everything from buttons, labels, and alerts to form fields and the moment cards at the heart of the collecting experience. Rarity tiers were baked directly into the system, so a Common, Rare, or Legendary moment always felt distinct and instantly recognizable across the product.
New Ways to Play
Collecting was only half the story. I led the design of FastBreak, a fantasy-style game mode that lets collectors put their moments to work by building daily lineups tied to real NBA games. It turned a static collection into a reason to come back every single day.
Players assemble a lineup against nightly challenges, track live scoring as games unfold, and climb the leaderboard against the community. Designed for both desktop and mobile, FastBreak connected the thrill of the real game to the moments fans already owned, deepening engagement across the platform.
Reflections
NBA Top Shot represented a unique challenge: bringing the complexity of blockchain technology to mainstream sports fans who just wanted to collect and play. Our team successfully navigated Apple's strict guidelines to become the first app enabling in-app NFT purchases, setting a precedent for the entire Web3 industry.
The Fastbreak game mode transformed passive collectors into active participants, creating daily engagement loops that connected real NBA action to the digital collecting experience. This proved that NFTs could offer genuine utility beyond simple ownership.
Key Outcomes
- First iOS app to enable in-app NFT purchases through Apple's ecosystem
- Built comprehensive mobile design system adopted across Dapper Labs products
- Designed Fastbreak game mode driving daily active engagement
- Streamlined onboarding reduced time-to-first-purchase significantly