On Monday afternoon, USA Basketball revealed the 12 NBA players who will represent Team USA for the Rio Games in a subtle way using social media platforms.

Instead of waiting for the official press conference to reveal the squad, USA Basketball decided to unveil the team by tweeting an image of the USA jersey, mentioning the player corresponding to the shirt’s number, and putting two hashtags: #UNITE #USABMNT. Every two minutes, USA Basketball showed the 12 players in numerical order, so that players, partners and NBA teams were able to share the news themselves seconds after the official tweet on all social media platforms.

It is a smart move to promote the team on social media, to increase interaction with fans and to drive more attention for the final official announcement. The social media reach results have been fantastic and created a large buzz as fans were able to get involved in this social build-up with their favourite players and teams.

Olympic & World Cup gold medalist – USA #5 Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) #UNITE#USABMNTpic.twitter.com/B1IEsinK7A

— USA Basketball (@usabasketball) June 27, 2016

It’s an honor to be a part of this. #UNITE#USABMNTpic.twitter.com/bCMkNpVniJ

— Kevin Durant (@KDTrey5) June 27, 2016