Earlier this month Maserati, Steinway Lyngdorf (who sell high-end audio products), and Paris-based men’s grooming products maker Hommage set up a temporary showcase  of their luxury products at Sean (P. Diddy) Combs’ Fifth Avenue clothing store in New York to coincide with the latest NBA draft, in the hopes of appealing to young basketball players who would soon be earning large NBA salaries.

Traditionally luxury goods companies have affiliated themselves with sports like polo, tennis and golf — basketball is a new area. But these companies’ presence at the draft signifies an interesting observation, according to Thomas Van Riper of Forbes:

Tying luxury promotions to sporting events is a new wrinkle, experts say, designed to grow awareness among the masses while acknowledging that many of today’s wealthy consumers are of the self-made, new money class that grew up in modest surroundings. It’s a description that fits many basketball fans.

The products themselves on offer seemed very Lambda to me — the $145,000 Maserati Gran Turismo and $188,000 Steinway Lyngdorf audio system are quite exceptional and would appeal to someone who wants to stand out. It will be interesting to see whether these sorts of events are successful for the companies involved, and whether they become a staple of the drafts for basketball and other well-compensated professional sports.