Sarah McLachlan and Brandy, John Tesh and Barack Obama, Ludacris, Shaboozey, and Two Friends, cause marketing events, Hall of Fame selection announcements, a new media partner in NBC (which provided a Super Bowl promo a week in advance as part of the deal), camera angles and content galore, and all the tech innovations that a Steve Ballmer envisioned arena could bring.
For those who thought the NBA All-Star weekend (not the game, the weekend) was a miss, I believe you missed the point of what these multiday events are supposed to be about.
What they are no longer in any sport is a battle royale with personal pride and substantial dollars on the line. Go back to the ‘70’s and ‘80’s and watch old games (which by the way were sometimes as long as four hours) if that’s your thing.
What they are now are marketing activations, a chance to bring the sport together, a chance to pause from the day to day grind of the season and celebrate the game of basketball, a chance to have fans experience the game in many ways in host cities, a chance with the break in games, even for players to pause and heal and relax a bit (as well as staff who are also in the grind) and a chance to have some…dare we say it…fun with the sport while tweaking some things that may or may not be brought back.
Is it perfect? No, but it NEVER was. There were always issues. Is it a chance to lean forward, to bring value add to all those spending against the NBA, to have discussions and meetings with partners and interested parties? YES, that’s what All Star weekend is, and no matter “the rating” the engagement, even in a weekend crowded with the Olympics, is still incredibly valuable to the league AS A BUSINESS.
On the brand side, we had the Kia Shooting Stars, the State Farm 3-Point Contest, and the AT&T Slam Dunk Contest, NBA Crossover, an immersive fan event taking place in the Los Angeles Convention Center that showcased around 40 different brands building expansive activations for fans, including Xfinity creating an immersive fan experience called the X Vault, Ruffles bringing some trick shots, and CeraVe showing up for the first time with a barbershop experience. American Express partnered with Fanatics Real Vintage to give fans access to a vault-inspired experience featuring a curated vintage NBA merchandise collection. DoorDash built on its “In Your Bag” campaign by building a hands-on experience at Crossover, where fans designed their own mini DoorDash bags with patches and charms while NBA stars like Tyrese Maxey, Rip Hamilton, and Stephon Castle made appearances.
Adidas partnered with Foot Locker for an Anthony Edwards experience featuring a drop for the Anthony Edwards 2; PUMA teamed with Universal’s Fast and Furious franchise and NBA star LaMelo Ball for an exclusive collection; and KITH showcased its first multi-team collection with the NBA.
Looking abroad, Emirates, the Official Airline Partner of the NBA, spotlighted the Team World players, while Converse showcased players like Shai Gilgeous-Alexander bringing his story to life through products, experiences, and retail moments.
Want more? Foot Locker served as an Associate Partner on AT&T’s HBCU Classic and donated $25,000 to each school in the game, Evernorth hosted a Total Health walk and conduct free skin cancer screenings, and State Farm, the Title Partner of the NBA 3-Point Contest, donated $15,000 to Habitat for Humanity for “every made deep shot,” Gatorade teamed up with Luka Dončić to offer community support through his foundation.
Google creating an AI-powered “Search Bar” at NBA Crossover and on and on.
As far as the game goes, for a league that Commissioner Adam Silver has said is “Highlights first,” especially for a younger multiple screen generation (hence the push for so many creators being brought to LA to create and share their own content), there were more than enough bites to put around. It was also over in a reasonable amount of time leading into the Olympics. Never perfect, but ineffective? Not at all.
The time of day you criticized? Are you the same person saying that games that highlighted stars needed to be early, again for a younger demo? So where is the issue with 5 eastern (10 in parts of that growing audience in Europe) 2 Pacific? Don’t awards shows on weekdays start late afternoon to meet prime time? And it was a holiday weekend for those travelling, so why the complaint?
The weekend as a whole is not for everyone, but parts of it should be for someone with an interest in the sport, its personalities and the pop culture phenomenon that these mega events are. For those looking to engage…especially the casual fans, the global fans, the brands looking for a special ROI…it’s a win. A win that will probably shift more as the social listening and responses come in for when the game moves to Phoenix next year, with NBC’s investment continuing to grow.
Can’t make everyone happy, listen to the critics and adjust. That’s what good businesses do, and the NBA is one of those we enjoy.
And joy was had in LA.
Back to the seasonal grind later this week.
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