Kevin Hart’s entertainment company partners with Indiana Pacers and Fever in WNBA–driven collaboration

The GIST: Hartbeat — the new multichannel entertainment company founded by comedian Kevin Hart — is diving deep into the basketball world with a WNBA–driven partnership. Yesterday, Hartbeat announced its partnership with Pacers Sports & Entertainment (PS&E) to serve as its official “cultural curator” to merge sport, entertainment, and culture in Indiana and beyond.

• This unique partnership — which will use July’s WNBA All-Star Weekend (ASW) as its starting point — will allow the W and its popular Indiana Fever squad to benefit from an innovative media partnership. Hart react.

The company: Hartbeat primarily focuses on scripted series, comedy, and music, but Hart does have a history of producing sports content. He teamed up with comedian Kenan Thompson for an Olympic highlight series during the Paris 2024 Olympics and has worked extensively with athletes in his long-running Cold As Balls web series.

The details: The production company and PS&E plan to collab on experiences like live performances, media content, and exclusive merch collections, beginning with Hartbeat’s presence at the WNBA’s ASW. During the event, Hartbeat will host a first-of-its-kind music and comedy festival.

The opportunity: Gen Z fans often access sports through social media and pop culture, so a collaboration like this is a logical step to reach them. And it makes sense to partner with the Fever specifically: Not only does the team enjoy home-court advantage as this year’s ASW host, but it boasts the league’s most marketable athlete in Caitlin Clark.

• While the Indiana Pacers enjoy their own popularity, it’s interesting Hartbeat chose to activate around a tentpole WNBA event instead of an NBA one. It’s smart to have a presence in Indianapolis when so many brands and agents will gather for ASW, giving Hartbeat a strong chance to get deeply involved with women’s basketball. Heating up.