• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, April 14, 2023

The NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers has signed on to ARound, the Stagwell Marketing Cloud augmented reality platform that allows fans in a sports venue to share an entertainment experience via their mobile phones. 

With the deal, ARound adds a third major pro sport to its client roster following the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams and Major League Baseball’s Minnesota Twins and  Kansas City Royals. 

The Cavaliers will debut their version of the AR experience during game 1 of their playoff series with the New York Knicks this weekend. The team is dubbing it the “Cavs Arcade.” 

At Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, fans will be able to digitally interact with the basketball court, other fans, and witness real-time effects on the Cavs’ giant video screen through mass multi-user gaming, player personalities, and more. Mascots Sir CC and Moondog come to life in 3D, while users can enjoy games like the AR Chain-Shot Contest to win jerseys, autographed merch and other prizes. 

Cavs ARcade will be live for both home games and away game watch parties at the venue. 

With any luck the Knicks won’t spoil the fun by beating the odds and the Cavs, who are favored by 5 in this weekend’s contest.