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Showing posts with label Nike. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nike. Show all posts
Monday, December 12, 2016
Tuesday, June 28, 2016
USA Basketball Social Announcement "Gets It Done"
This story appeared on SportTechie by Joe Favorito:
USA Basketball Goes The Social Route To Unveil Their Team for Rio...
It may have not been the best kept secret, the announcement Monday, June 27 of the 201 U.S. Men’s National Basketball Team for the Rio Games, but the folks at USA Basketball, along with their partners like Nike and the NBA, found a way to officially break the news and give every member of the team literally a moment in time through the use of social media.
Before the official team announcement, and with many of the names unofficially revealed over the weekend through various and sundry unnamed sources, USAB decided to not wait for the official announcement at 9:30 AM EDT in New York. They didn’t issue an advance press release or post the story to their website. What they did do, starting at 8:30 AM, was to unveil, in ascending numerical order, the team roster on Twitter, with the appropriate picture and social media tags, #UNITE and #USABMNT -- It wasn’t an over the top image, just the jersey and who the jersey was connected to, one about every two minutes, building towards the start of the official announcement at the press conference and then the unveiling across all media platforms of the full team by the coaches.
The move was subtle but helped to amplify the announcement and actually drive social buzz to the press conference step by step. The beauty was that it was timed to give each player, his NBA team, and his partners, enough time in between jersey unveils to post and retweet the image, which gave the fans a chance to get involved in the back and forth as the final official announcement came. The social spin then effectively set the day for the myriad of player media stops, interviews and other activities that were planned as a team throughout the day, while giving each player, especially those like Jimmy Butler and DeAndre Jordan, a chance to shine as the overall story broke.
Now could USA Basketball have stemmed the tide and just let the news flow as it normally would, with all the images rolling as the morning announcement and afternoon clinic unfolded? Sure. But since so much news was already in the mainstream, doing the gradual unveil leading to the team announcement got a larger buzz at a time of the morning that is usually show, and gave a wider audience a chance to individually celebrate the announcement of the news in an order and a style that USAB was able to control and spread wide. Their timing was great, the idea subtle and original, and it set the stage for what should be an interesting road to Rio for Coach K and the team.
Well thought-out, well received and well amplified message for USA Basketball, helping make what could have been a little hum-drum into a nice social bonus for players, coaches, media fans, and even for their partner, the always creative folks at Nike.
Friday, August 20, 2010
A Naismith Memorial HofF & Nike Tribute ...
Here's to a great event in the books: (Video by Nike Brand Marketing)
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Scottie's Journey to the Hall ... to be met at Gate 3 1/2 by MJ
The editors of Bulls dot com - Adam Flack - built a tribute section to Scottie Pippen starting with his introductory press conference for the Hall back at the Final Four in Indianapolis. They tapped the archives and have this section ready for this week's Hall of Fame Enshrinement ceremony in Springfield:
From Socks and Jocks to Springfield, Mass. Read this story - Click .http://www.nba.com/bulls/history/pippenhof_dyer_100808.html
From Socks and Jocks to Springfield, Mass. Read this story - Click .http://www.nba.com/bulls/history/pippenhof_dyer_100808.html
Friday, August 6, 2010
Mason Square in Springfield will be Center of Hoops on Sunday
The Springfield Republican and their online site -- MassLive.com -- have done a tremendous job of advancing the 2010 Basketball Hall of Fame Enshrinement, scheduled for next Friday night, August 13th.
One of the noteworthy activities leading up to the Enshrinement is the dedication of a monument at Mason Square (State and Sherman Streets) where the very first game of basketball was played.
Here is an interesting story on the concept and the monument:
There are many ways the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame has collaborated with the Springfield community for an eight-day celebration of Enshrinement 2010 – including the unveiling of a monument on Sunday at 2 p.m. in Mason Square that marks the exact spot where basketball was first played.
Invented by Dr. James Naismith, basketball was first played on Dec. 21, 1891, in a YMCA gymnasium on State and Sherman Streets in Springfield’s Mason Square.
Leading the charge to bring a monument to Mason Square celebrating his neighborhood’s role in the history of basketball was Aaron Williams.
“We were instrumental in assisting Aaron Williams in turning his vision into a reality with a monument that surpassed his and his neighborhood’s wildest dreams,” said John L. Doleva, president and CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
But before telling the rest of the story, it is first important to travel back in time three years ago when Doleva was approached after Enshrinement ceremonies by the vice president of the Chicago Bulls.
“He told me it was a great Enshrinement, but expressed his dismay that no one could show him where the first actual game was played, and that always stuck in my mind, “ said Doleva.
“Then Aaron called me with his idea and I thought it was time to put some heads together,” he added.
The result was a major project to recognize Mason Square’s unique place in basketball history that had broad and enthusiastic support throughout Springfield from the neighborhoods, the city, and the Basketball Hall of Fame.
“I am just feeling so honored to be participating in this project and happy that it will be ready for this month’s Enshrinement,” said Williams, who got the project rolling with the support and encouragement of neighborhood businesses and civic leaders.
Enter Brian Hanlon into the picture.
“Brian is our official sculptor and a wonderful friend of the Hall,” said Doleva.
The master sculptor has created iconic physical awards for the Hall of Fame including the “Spires” given to each Hall of Famer upon their induction.
“John approached me with the challenge of creating something for a founding event, and I really didn’t understand what it was all about until I met Aaron and saw his passion for the project….he is Mr. Springfield,” said Hanlon.
“To be able to identify the actual spot in Mason Square where basketball was founded was of great interest to me as a history nerd,” he added.
Then there was the question of what to do.
“A statue of Naismith seemed too easy to mark the spot, and it’s been done already, so I tried to come up with something symbolic,” said Hanlon.
The final concept was to create two brass statues, one seven-feet in height, of a player from 1891 passing a basketball to a youth of today from Mason Square that symbolically mark the game’s beginning, its impact today, and the future impact of basketball on the world stage.
“We actually modeled one of the statues after a boy now living in Mason Square,” said Hanlon. A call was also made to Patrick J. Sullivan, executive director, Springfield Parks, Recreation and Building Management for his assistance.
“Jack Maloney, chairman of the Park Commission and I are very pleased to have worked on this community collaboration with the Hall of Fame in seeing that the actual birthplace of basketball gets its proper recognition in the city. It has truly been a tremendous effort on the part of everyone who got involved to make this a reality,” said Sullivan, who offered the services of Michael Tully, senior park project manager, to help on the project.
“Mike took my concept to a whole other level. His creativity in layout is to be commended and the city is lucky to have him as an employee,” said Hanlon.
It was Tully who helped to identify a location with streetscape improvements just across the street from the former location of the original YMCA gymnasium where the sculptures could stand upon a 30-foot circumference area of granite and brick to create the look of a contemporary basketball. He also suggested the four glass panels surrounding the sculptures that will be up-lit at night and etched with historical information, including the story of the first game and the significance of the Mason Square location.
“This was all thought about with lighting in mind to make sure that the monument is a 24/7 beacon of the actual location where basketball was invented, as well as to deter vandalism,” said Tully.
The glass panels will have green technology of LED tape lighting that will accent the glass etchings at night. The lights will change on 15-second intervals to provide an engaging factor in the evening. There will also be a beaming light that shoots out of the bronze basketball. The glass panels will be tempered glass and encased making it very hard to break.
“From the start we have engaged the community to make sure that they embraced this idea because without their consent it wouldn’t have happened, and we had the support of Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno as well. It was a great collaborative effort of local private business, local government and big citizenship that made this project happen,” said Tully.
While a McDonald’s restaurant stands on the exact spot where the first game was played, a second piece will eventually mark the actual site where basketball was first played, he added.
Of course, nothing comes for free, and money had to be raised for the project amounting to $100,000, noted Doleva. Hanlon provided at no cost the design and hand sculpting of the pieces, a $50,000 cost savings. Donors to date include Springfield College, MassMutual Financial Group, Chicago Bulls, Bay State Gas, Baystate Health, Palmer Paving, Hampden Bank, and Southworth Paper Company.
Springfield City Councilor E. Henry Twiggs, who represents the Mason Square district and who was one of the influential persons Williams contacted when he was growing support for the project, said he is proud of Williams and “his tenacity in bringing recognition to Mason Square where basketball was first played.”
“The residents of Mason Square have expressed to me their enormous pride in the fact they are finally being recognized for what they gave the world,” said Twiggs.
Twiggs also expressed his hopes about not only the monument’s learning potential - five public schools are within walking distance of the monument - but its economic potential. He sees the new monument bringing tourists to Mason Square, one of the poorest areas in the city of Springfield, encouraging new business and eventually creating additional jobs.
Following the official unveiling, there will be a Mason Square Enshrinement Basketball Festival at 2:30 p.m. presented by Nike and the Basketball Hall of Fame that will feature music, three basketball games and various cultural events celebrating the invention of the game.
Invented by Dr. James Naismith, basketball was first played on Dec. 21, 1891, in a YMCA gymnasium on State and Sherman Streets in Springfield’s Mason Square.
Leading the charge to bring a monument to Mason Square celebrating his neighborhood’s role in the history of basketball was Aaron Williams.
“We were instrumental in assisting Aaron Williams in turning his vision into a reality with a monument that surpassed his and his neighborhood’s wildest dreams,” said John L. Doleva, president and CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
But before telling the rest of the story, it is first important to travel back in time three years ago when Doleva was approached after Enshrinement ceremonies by the vice president of the Chicago Bulls.
“He told me it was a great Enshrinement, but expressed his dismay that no one could show him where the first actual game was played, and that always stuck in my mind, “ said Doleva.
“Then Aaron called me with his idea and I thought it was time to put some heads together,” he added.
The result was a major project to recognize Mason Square’s unique place in basketball history that had broad and enthusiastic support throughout Springfield from the neighborhoods, the city, and the Basketball Hall of Fame.
“I am just feeling so honored to be participating in this project and happy that it will be ready for this month’s Enshrinement,” said Williams, who got the project rolling with the support and encouragement of neighborhood businesses and civic leaders.
Enter Brian Hanlon into the picture.
“Brian is our official sculptor and a wonderful friend of the Hall,” said Doleva.
The master sculptor has created iconic physical awards for the Hall of Fame including the “Spires” given to each Hall of Famer upon their induction.
“John approached me with the challenge of creating something for a founding event, and I really didn’t understand what it was all about until I met Aaron and saw his passion for the project….he is Mr. Springfield,” said Hanlon.
“To be able to identify the actual spot in Mason Square where basketball was founded was of great interest to me as a history nerd,” he added.
Then there was the question of what to do.
“A statue of Naismith seemed too easy to mark the spot, and it’s been done already, so I tried to come up with something symbolic,” said Hanlon.
The final concept was to create two brass statues, one seven-feet in height, of a player from 1891 passing a basketball to a youth of today from Mason Square that symbolically mark the game’s beginning, its impact today, and the future impact of basketball on the world stage.
“We actually modeled one of the statues after a boy now living in Mason Square,” said Hanlon. A call was also made to Patrick J. Sullivan, executive director, Springfield Parks, Recreation and Building Management for his assistance.
“Jack Maloney, chairman of the Park Commission and I are very pleased to have worked on this community collaboration with the Hall of Fame in seeing that the actual birthplace of basketball gets its proper recognition in the city. It has truly been a tremendous effort on the part of everyone who got involved to make this a reality,” said Sullivan, who offered the services of Michael Tully, senior park project manager, to help on the project.
“Mike took my concept to a whole other level. His creativity in layout is to be commended and the city is lucky to have him as an employee,” said Hanlon.
It was Tully who helped to identify a location with streetscape improvements just across the street from the former location of the original YMCA gymnasium where the sculptures could stand upon a 30-foot circumference area of granite and brick to create the look of a contemporary basketball. He also suggested the four glass panels surrounding the sculptures that will be up-lit at night and etched with historical information, including the story of the first game and the significance of the Mason Square location.
“This was all thought about with lighting in mind to make sure that the monument is a 24/7 beacon of the actual location where basketball was invented, as well as to deter vandalism,” said Tully.
The glass panels will have green technology of LED tape lighting that will accent the glass etchings at night. The lights will change on 15-second intervals to provide an engaging factor in the evening. There will also be a beaming light that shoots out of the bronze basketball. The glass panels will be tempered glass and encased making it very hard to break.
“From the start we have engaged the community to make sure that they embraced this idea because without their consent it wouldn’t have happened, and we had the support of Springfield Mayor Domenic J. Sarno as well. It was a great collaborative effort of local private business, local government and big citizenship that made this project happen,” said Tully.
While a McDonald’s restaurant stands on the exact spot where the first game was played, a second piece will eventually mark the actual site where basketball was first played, he added.
Of course, nothing comes for free, and money had to be raised for the project amounting to $100,000, noted Doleva. Hanlon provided at no cost the design and hand sculpting of the pieces, a $50,000 cost savings. Donors to date include Springfield College, MassMutual Financial Group, Chicago Bulls, Bay State Gas, Baystate Health, Palmer Paving, Hampden Bank, and Southworth Paper Company.
Springfield City Councilor E. Henry Twiggs, who represents the Mason Square district and who was one of the influential persons Williams contacted when he was growing support for the project, said he is proud of Williams and “his tenacity in bringing recognition to Mason Square where basketball was first played.”
“The residents of Mason Square have expressed to me their enormous pride in the fact they are finally being recognized for what they gave the world,” said Twiggs.
Twiggs also expressed his hopes about not only the monument’s learning potential - five public schools are within walking distance of the monument - but its economic potential. He sees the new monument bringing tourists to Mason Square, one of the poorest areas in the city of Springfield, encouraging new business and eventually creating additional jobs.
Following the official unveiling, there will be a Mason Square Enshrinement Basketball Festival at 2:30 p.m. presented by Nike and the Basketball Hall of Fame that will feature music, three basketball games and various cultural events celebrating the invention of the game.
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Give me Liberty and give me Gold ...
AP's Brian Mahoney wrote the following account after USA Basketball and Nike sprung for a full day of promotion, photos, media activities, morning show appearances and a noon time public event at Rockefeller Center in New York City:
US Olympic team in New York state of mind
NEW YORK — Gazing out from the top deck of a yacht Monday, Dwyane Wade wondered why the Statue of Liberty's torch seemed so shiny.
Turns out, Wade learned, the new torch was covered with 24 karat gold during the statue's restoration in 1986.
New gold? Sounds good to someone who so far has been decorated in nothing but bronze.
"Everybody looks better in gold," Wade said. "Especially around this time."
A morning sail to see the statue started a busy day for Wade and his U.S. Olympic basketball teammates, who were selected last week, practiced once in Las Vegas, then came to New York for a formal introduction.
And a bit of inspiration, after what for some players was their first trip to see the American landmark.
"I look at it like that's history," said Wade, who has bronze medals from the 2004 Olympics and '06 world championships. "You got Team USA that's about to make history and can go down in history as well, so it's a good combination."
The Americans posed on the yacht for a photo shoot in front of the statue, then headed to Rockefeller Center for a pep rally on a makeshift court where the plaza's famed ice rink sits in the winter. After that, it was off to the Plaza Hotel to meet with the media.
It was a chance for USA Basketball and Nike, the organizers of the event, to show off a team they believe will be both successful and likable - unlike the American team in 2004, which was neither.
USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo said his goal when taking control of the program three years ago following the Athens debacle was to, "try to elevate the perception people have of USA basketball and change the culture, because in '04 we had basically hit rock bottom in terms of culture of perception. And so I think we've done that."
"I think it's been great for the players, they've responded extremely well," Colangelo said of Monday's events. "They've been very cooperative, and then again to bring attention to what we're trying to do. This is a team that we believe is together, they're focused, we're on a mission and we want people to jump on and be supportive and enjoy this."
The fans certainly did at the Rockefeller Center event, where hundreds watched the players and coaches get introduced, chanting "MVP!" when it was Kobe Bryant's turn and nearly rushing the court when LeBron James charged toward them moments earlier.
Nobody even seemed to fret when the teams of Chris Paul and Deron Williams, competing against Michael Redd and Tayshaun Prince, combined to make nothing from the outside besides Paul's free throw in a game of U-S-A (a shortened version of H-O-R-S-E) that was trimmed to sudden death after all the missed shots threatened to put them behind schedule.
Are those dreaded U.S. perimeter woes popping up already?
"Not at all. I was out there having fun with the fans," Redd said with a laugh. "It was fun. I wanted to make them, but they just didn't go in."
For Redd, who plays outside the spotlight in Milwaukee, it was a chance to perform before the type of crowds Bryant, James and Wade always draw. And the attention will follow right to China, where basketball has become one of the most popular sports. The Americans open against the host Chinese on Aug. 10.
"I think for us in particular, there's a lot of focus being placed on this ballclub," Bryant said. "And a lot of hype surrounding it, pressure that comes along with that. So in terms of scrutiny or the microscope, that's going to be placed on us more so than other events."
The crowd also got a medical update from center Dwight Howard, who had to miss practice Saturday in Las Vegas because of what coach Mike Krzyzewski called a stress fracture in his sternum. Howard, who donned a Superman cape to win the slam dunk competition at All-Star weekend, said he'd be ready before the Olympics.
"Nothing can stop Superman," Howard said.
The Americans will take a couple of weeks off before reconvening in Las Vegas for training camp beginning July 21. They will play an exhibition game against Canada later that week before heading to China to finish their preparations before trying for their first gold medal in eight years.
"I thought the many things that happened this week gave them a deeper sense of who they're representing, what they're a part of," Krzyzewski said. "They already had a pretty deep understanding, but you can't go through all the things we've gone through this weekend and not feel a little bit deeper with commitment, pride and a sense of purpose for what we're supposed to do."
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Ramble On ... Sunday Notes...Nike Re-use a Shoe and Welcome to new Blogger
The "Ramble On" columns seem to be gaining some 'critical acclaim' as a number of people have mentioned or emailed that they enjoy the wide-ranging scope of the notes. I will try to continue the Ramble On note column with a weekly posting, hopefully on Sundays.
I started the Ramble back in October. It is a fun way of tossing out random thoughts, a joke or two, and some serious, thought-provoking items. I hope you enjoy it. Please feel free to post comments, call or email with your thoughts or suggestions.
And, now, back to our regularly scheduled programming:
Click on the Ramble on headline above for an interesting program which is being run by Nike.
When it comes to some spring cleaning, it will be time to take some of the old athletic shoes (tennis shoes, basketball shoes, cross trainers - any brand) and donate them by dropping them off or mailing to the Nike collection centers listed on the web site. (Niketown at 57th Street for you NYers).
The shoes, after they go through a special grinding process, will eventually become part of a composite playing surface for playgrounds or soccer fields.
Good stuff.
***
PGA Tour.com launched a new feature last week. It is a monthly blog by tour commish, Tim Finchem. Interesting to the way they framed it right up front to be "monthly."
Here is the first entry:
Commissioner's Blog: Welcome to '08
Jan. 21, 2008
Editor's note: PGA TOUR Commissioner Tim Finchem begins a monthly blog for
PGATOUR.com with this edition. The commissioner wants you to send him your
questions and comments about the TOUR and in future installments, he will open a
dialogue with fans about the things near and dear to TOUR fans.
Hello and welcome to the second year of the FedExCup on the PGA TOUR. We are
very excited about this year and are really anxious to talk with you, our fans, on a
consistent basis throughout the year.
We have redesigned PGATOUR.com to make it cleaner and easier for you to
navigate. We hope you enjoy it, but let us know if you do or you don't and
what changes you think we should make to make it even better. In a month
or so we will have additional features up and running to allow us to interact
with you on a better and more consistent basis. We will be making message
boards available to you so that you can talk to us and to each other and you
will also be seeing more blogs not only from me but from our players, our
management staff and others in the world of golf. We'll also set up a section
where you can ask me any questions that are on your mind and we will answer as
many as we can. We hope that you will tell us what you think, both good and bad,
about the PGA TOUR so that we can continue to make it as interesting and enjoyable
for you as possible.
I'll be heading out to the Buick Invitational in San Diego next week to meet with our Player Advisory Council. If you don't know, the Player Advisory Council has 16 members that are elected by our players. We meet and talk with the Player Advisory Council many times throughout the year and get their recommendations on issues that will be presented to our Policy Board. Our Policy Board is the board of directors of the PGA TOUR and consists of four players -- Joe Ogilvie, Brad Faxon, David Toms and Stewart Cink, and four independent businessmen, who are currently Vic Ganzi, CEO of Hearst Corporation, Ed Whitacre, recently retired Chairman and CEO of AT&T, John McCoy, former CEO of Bank One, and Ken Thompson, Chairman of Wachovia. Also, the President of the PGA of America (currently Brian Whitcomb) makes up the ninth member of our Policy Board.
The main topic that we will be discussing at our meetings at the Buick Invitational concerns our new anti-doping policy. While we continue to believe this really is not an issue on the PGA TOUR, unfortunately, the current state of the world necessitates any major professional sport to have such a policy. We will be educating our players on this policy and the prohibited substances weekly throughout the first half of this year and will begin drug testing some time in the second half of the year.
Other matters that we will talking about at our player meeting this week and in the future weeks leading up to our Policy Board meeting at the end of February will be ways to make the Playoffs more exciting. We are looking at ways to have more players get into contention for the FedExCup through exceptional play during the Playoffs and we are also looking for ways in which more players in the field of THE TOUR Championship will have an opportunity to win. We would be very interested in your thoughts on this subject.
Well, that's all for now, and I look forward to talking to you again in the coming weeks.
Tim
***
Nice to see the NY Knicks on 'over-the-air' with the MLK Jr. Day game against the Boston Celtics on WNBC-4. I have to applaud the MSG Network crew for giving the game that special "Big Game" feel upon the opening. Of course, when you have Mike Breen on the job it is a Big Game. He is ... simply... the best in the business.
***
I saw this item on John Edwards' daughter, Cate, and thought I would share it. I like her approach to the campaign. She is 25 years old, bright, and capable of helping her father's campaign efforts.
John Edwards' Daughter Says Dad Is 'Cool As A Cucumber' In South Carolina
If Cate Edwards is sweating the results of Saturday's Democratic primary in South Carolina, she's not showing it. Then again, that could have more to do with her upbringing than anything else ... after all, her dad -- former North Carolina senator John Edwards -- has been at this for a while now.
"He's totally relaxed with all this, he's as cool as a cucumber," the 25-year-old Edwards laughed when MTV News caught up with her Friday (January 25) in South Carolina. "When I watch him go into the debates, I'm always a bit nervous, but he's totally in his element. The policies he's proposed -- college education, creating jobs, universal health care -- it all comes from personal experience, so it's easy for him not to be nervous."
http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1580370 /20080125/index.jhtml?rsspartner=rssYaho oNewscrawler
***
Vito's blue dog worries me a bit.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Nash...
Check out the story by Ian Whittell of The Times (the real, The Times)... No PR on this, just worldwide word of mouth. And, as I mentioned in prior post, this blog can quickly hit five, maybe six continents...
###
November 19, 2007
Steve Nash thinks on his feet to earn spurs with internet generation
From Ian Whittell in Phoenix, Arizona
TL note: Watch Steve Nash's Training Day video. (by clicking on headline Nash above)..
When one of the world’s leading basketball players decided to become involved in an underground “viral” advertising campaign last month, his choice of subject matter was as predictable as it is now fascinating to view.
Steve Nash, the Phoenix Suns point guard and the NBA’s Most Valuable Player in two of the past three seasons, has well-documented British family ties and a fanatical support for Tottenham Hotspur, to the extent that he has even been erroneously linked with a potential bid for the Barclays Premier League club recently.
But what was not widely known was the Canadian’s impressive football talent, a glimpse of which he gives on “Training Day”, a commercial that follows Nash on a typical day during his summer close season in New York.
In a departure far from the norm, and one that is being observed with interest by the sports business industry, the Nike ad is viewable only on the YouTube internet platform and has become a cult success in the United States, purely via word of mouth.
In it, Nash is seen skateboarding around Manhattan – “Honestly, that’s how I get around, it’s the quickest way to travel there,” he said – as well as showcasing his skills at football, the sport that remains his first love. Predictably, after scoring an impressive goal, Nash is also shown kissing the badge on his retro Tottenham replica shirt. “I saw the ad as an opportunity for me to show my love of sport and, in particular, football and Spurs,” Nash said. “My dad was a good nonLeague player in England so I grew up playing the game.
“I don’t know how good I could have been, a lot of people said footie was my best sport growing up. When I was 16, the Canadian national team asked me to go on a tour with their under17s even though I hadn’t played football for two or three years because I had been concentrating on basketball. They needed a left-sided player and I can use both feet.
“The only thing I’ll say is if I worked as hard and spent the years on football that I did on basketball then it would have been interesting to see what I could have done.
“Put it this way, all the way through my teens, if you had asked me which sport I had the best chance to turn pro in, I, and everyone else, would have said football. Looking at it logically, small white guys don’t make it in one of those sports, but they do the other.”
The higher the 6ft 3in Nash rose through the basketball ranks, the more he found himself relying on attributes honed on a football field. “Playing football, I was always trying to find ways to chip balls, bend them, slip balls into gaps, so when I started playing basketball and was allowed to use my hands to do the same sort of things, it felt like cheating,” he said.
“Instead of using my feet to find different angles and trajectories to get teammates the ball, I could use my hands. It seemed easy. Now, I play football at least twice a week during the summer, more sometimes, and find it the perfect way to stay physically and mentally sharp.” The Suns have made a strong start to an NBA season in which they are among the favourites to win their first title. For their 33-year-old playmaker, his rise to prominence has not only enabled him to become heavily involved in numerous charitable causes, which all his endorsement money is put towards, but also to indulge his first sporting love.
Among regular texting friends are Steve McManaman, Owen Hargreaves, Thierry Henry, Alessandro Del Piero and Massimo Ambrosini, football players who are NBA fans.
Nash has also become friends with Damien Comolli, the Tottenham sporting director, whom he met while supporting his beloved England team at the 2006 World Cup finals, and spent time with Daniel Levy, the chairman of the North London club, a relationship that sparked wild rumours that Nash was about to buy the club.
“I said something about it being every fan’s dream to own their club and those comments got taken completely out of context,” Nash said. “In any case, I don’t have a spare 300 million quid for such luxuries.
“But I am proud to be a supporter and I do have a relationship now with the club, and I’m enthusiastic about the direction we’re heading. Like every lifelong fan, I want to see the club do well and if I can ever do anything for them commercially, I’d be delighted.”
After viewing Nash’s YouTube offering, Juande Ramos, the Tottenham head coach, could do worse than to start by giving him a trial.
In this article, Mr Whittell wrote: Is there anything you would you like to ask Steve Nash? Send your questions to sport@timesonline.co.uk and he will answer the 20 best online. (That is an offer long over-booked, as of today).
###
November 19, 2007
Steve Nash thinks on his feet to earn spurs with internet generation
From Ian Whittell in Phoenix, Arizona
TL note: Watch Steve Nash's Training Day video. (by clicking on headline Nash above)..
When one of the world’s leading basketball players decided to become involved in an underground “viral” advertising campaign last month, his choice of subject matter was as predictable as it is now fascinating to view.
Steve Nash, the Phoenix Suns point guard and the NBA’s Most Valuable Player in two of the past three seasons, has well-documented British family ties and a fanatical support for Tottenham Hotspur, to the extent that he has even been erroneously linked with a potential bid for the Barclays Premier League club recently.
But what was not widely known was the Canadian’s impressive football talent, a glimpse of which he gives on “Training Day”, a commercial that follows Nash on a typical day during his summer close season in New York.
In a departure far from the norm, and one that is being observed with interest by the sports business industry, the Nike ad is viewable only on the YouTube internet platform and has become a cult success in the United States, purely via word of mouth.
In it, Nash is seen skateboarding around Manhattan – “Honestly, that’s how I get around, it’s the quickest way to travel there,” he said – as well as showcasing his skills at football, the sport that remains his first love. Predictably, after scoring an impressive goal, Nash is also shown kissing the badge on his retro Tottenham replica shirt. “I saw the ad as an opportunity for me to show my love of sport and, in particular, football and Spurs,” Nash said. “My dad was a good nonLeague player in England so I grew up playing the game.
“I don’t know how good I could have been, a lot of people said footie was my best sport growing up. When I was 16, the Canadian national team asked me to go on a tour with their under17s even though I hadn’t played football for two or three years because I had been concentrating on basketball. They needed a left-sided player and I can use both feet.
“The only thing I’ll say is if I worked as hard and spent the years on football that I did on basketball then it would have been interesting to see what I could have done.
“Put it this way, all the way through my teens, if you had asked me which sport I had the best chance to turn pro in, I, and everyone else, would have said football. Looking at it logically, small white guys don’t make it in one of those sports, but they do the other.”
The higher the 6ft 3in Nash rose through the basketball ranks, the more he found himself relying on attributes honed on a football field. “Playing football, I was always trying to find ways to chip balls, bend them, slip balls into gaps, so when I started playing basketball and was allowed to use my hands to do the same sort of things, it felt like cheating,” he said.
“Instead of using my feet to find different angles and trajectories to get teammates the ball, I could use my hands. It seemed easy. Now, I play football at least twice a week during the summer, more sometimes, and find it the perfect way to stay physically and mentally sharp.” The Suns have made a strong start to an NBA season in which they are among the favourites to win their first title. For their 33-year-old playmaker, his rise to prominence has not only enabled him to become heavily involved in numerous charitable causes, which all his endorsement money is put towards, but also to indulge his first sporting love.
Among regular texting friends are Steve McManaman, Owen Hargreaves, Thierry Henry, Alessandro Del Piero and Massimo Ambrosini, football players who are NBA fans.
Nash has also become friends with Damien Comolli, the Tottenham sporting director, whom he met while supporting his beloved England team at the 2006 World Cup finals, and spent time with Daniel Levy, the chairman of the North London club, a relationship that sparked wild rumours that Nash was about to buy the club.
“I said something about it being every fan’s dream to own their club and those comments got taken completely out of context,” Nash said. “In any case, I don’t have a spare 300 million quid for such luxuries.
“But I am proud to be a supporter and I do have a relationship now with the club, and I’m enthusiastic about the direction we’re heading. Like every lifelong fan, I want to see the club do well and if I can ever do anything for them commercially, I’d be delighted.”
After viewing Nash’s YouTube offering, Juande Ramos, the Tottenham head coach, could do worse than to start by giving him a trial.
In this article, Mr Whittell wrote: Is there anything you would you like to ask Steve Nash? Send your questions to sport@timesonline.co.uk and he will answer the 20 best online. (That is an offer long over-booked, as of today).
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Satch...
This letter to Sports Business Journal ran today:
Opinion
Players not to blame for today’s business climate
Published October 22, 2007
I was sitting in my office recently and I thought about the self-serving kind of articles that really come alive when there are NBA player targets seemingly available. The latest article that falls in that category was written in the “Opinion” section of the Sept. 24-30, 2007, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Journal. Could it have something to do with “those unacceptable players” earning so much money?
Rick Burton, the former commissioner of an Australian National Basketball League, had an opinion regarding Kevin Durant and other past and present high-profile players (Michael Jordan, Allen Iverson, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal) signing contracts for very large shoe contracts. He implied that it would be wonderful if Nike had invested the Durant dollars in the Australian NBL in three countries instead of spending it on Durant. He also commented on the “distance” between NBA players and the community and kids in particular.
There are a number of people who think like Burton, objecting to players receiving the amount of money they get. They will take shots at athletes simply because there is reluctance, on their part, to maybe jeopardize personal progress in the world of athletics by going at the real creators of this big dollar sports world. If there is a group to be scolded by the Burtons of the world, then the focus should be the company presidents, sport commissioners and presidents, team owners, media, parents, union directors, coaches and agents. All of whom are the very mature adults who have helped to create this business climate within the capitalistic society and are employing this system and the young athletes to pay out and make a lot of money.
The adults are making the offers and decisions for, and with, these young athletes who can certainly play the sport but definitely do not know the art of making these kinds of deals. We know that Rick Burton, had the opportunity existed when he was in the same age category and had the talent as many of these players, would have directed the sports product and marketing companies to take the money offered to him and grow pro leagues around the world.
Imagine 20-year-old Kevin Durant with his experience saying no to all of the adult presidents of major companies, commissioners of sport leagues, parents, union executive directors, team owners, media, coaches, agents and all the other fully grown and mature people around him. Can you envision any of us in the “Durant Position” saying no, don’t give me the money. Do something altruistic with it while I spend the majority of my time with the kids. Right!
Tom “Satch” Sanders
Sturbridge, Mass.
Sanders, a former Boston Celtics player and former coach of Harvard University and the Celtics, recently retinred from his post as the vice president and director of the NBA player development.
TL Note: Satch, a colleague of mine for nearly 20-years at the NBA, is a very bright man and very realistic, too. One thing he failed to note in his letter was that Burton is now the CMO for the United States Olympic Committee, having recently accepted the post and resigning from the NBL of Australia (which also serves New Zealand and Singapore - yes, to good to be true - the Singapore Slings).
My take on the situation is that it is not 'all or none.' The adidas, Nike and Reeboks of the world have hard choices and decisions to make with their marketing dollars. Obviously, they studied those choices and made decisions - to sign Kevin Durant and align themselves with his potential rather than sponsor the NBL. Surely the decision by Nike was driven by their Portland based headquarter office, as opposed to a regional influence from Australia where the sports marketing climate dried up after the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Surely Sanders and Burton would both agree that the perfect world would find enough corporate support to fund all types of sports marketing functions. I don't think Burton's concept is realistic, though. The NBL in Australia can't expect the likes of a Nike to drop its USA/NBA based marketing dollars and steer them to become a title sponsor for a league that generates far too little exposure in Australia.
The NBL needs to build a full series of smaller sponsorships and assign sports marketing account executives to each to be sure that the sponsor grows and benefits from the very sponsorship they have invested in. The key areas are no secret. The NBL will need to build out from the base of TV and Radio, gradually building interest and fan support. Each team will need to complement and work together with the NBL's efforts to build those sponsorships as they build their own fan experience in their home arenas. The teams have to 'buy into' a leaguewide sponsorship plan, rather than each operating as its own entity. Then, activate, activate and grow the deal so it is easily renewed. Easy said that done, I admit.
In the shoe category, it is not realistic to work with 'just one' company. It has to be a non-exclusive and wide-ranging programs to include all of the major shoe manufacturers. The NBL needs to run the same playbook that the NBA ran in the '80s.
Also, Burton will now find himself in a completely different position, dealing from the strength that is the USOC. It is a whole new ballgame in terms of seeking sponsorship and marketing dollars.
###
By the way - here is Burton's opinion column from back in September: (And trust me, he is 100% wrong about his notion that the likes of a Kevin Durant won't interact with kids. Durant has already done more in a few months than Burton even suggested he would do in HIS CAREER?)
Larger-than-life athletes must come down to earth occasionally
Published September 24, 2007
I was sitting in my office recently wondering about the differences between pro basketball in America and Australia.
The cause? A blogger had reported that Kevin Durant, the ESPN NCAA Player of the Year and the No. 2 pick in the 2007 NBA draft, was debating whether to take $30 million from Nike or $40 million from Adidas to endorse shoes.
As it turned out, Durant reportedly declined a $70 million deal with Adidas and signed a seven-year, $60 million deal with Nike, which would make it one of the largest footwear deals of all time.
In Australia, Nike’s original $30 million would have bought every single National Basketball League team and thereby provided the new owner of the NBL with a league on two continents featuring 13 teams in three countries (Australia, New Zealand and Singapore).
Imagine, 30 years of basketball heritage in markets like Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, plus recent entry in markets such as Auckland, Singapore and Gold Coast, all for half the price of one American’s shoes.
That’s amazing, but, hey, Durant is obviously an educated student of what the market will bear. Like M.J., A.I., LeBron, Carmelo, Kobe and Shaq before him, Durant and his agent understood the art of the deal and the art of leverage.
I used to teach at the University of Oregon’s Warsaw Sports Marketing Center and frequently lectured grad students about economies of scale and return on investment. I’m sure they will be wondering if Nike’s basketball honchos got a good deal and the right leverage. Nike will have to move a lot of shoes and inspire a lot of kids.
Funny thing that concept of inspiration. The player has to perform and the kids have to watch him, and in this day and age, seeing a player in person is pretty rare. That’s another point of difference between the U.S. and Australia.
Down here in the Down Under, all of our NBL players are required to make personal appearances on behalf of the game and work with kids in person.
I wonder how many kids will get within 50 feet of Durant during his NBA career. Our industry mustn’t let the dollars and deals get in the way of bringing the game directly to the kids.
While league commissioners and team CMOs are forced to deal with discussions on content production and data distribution, it will trouble me if, in the digital revolution, we ever lose the chance to create human inspiration in person. Kids still need periodic, even random, contact with their heroes.
Our Web site (www.nbl.com.au) made this issue clear to me when we ran a story noting that the Wollongong Hawks (2001 NBL champs) had kicked off their community programs for this season by holding a successful school holiday clinic at Illawarra Sports High School.
The clinic was for children between the ages of 6 and 13 and was built around games and activities. More than 70 children attended the one-day clinic and received pointers from the Hawks’ Australian players along with American head coach Eric Cooks and his assistant Kevin Brooks.
These professionals, working like modern-day Johnny Appleseeds, were planting the seeds for the game. They participated in skill activities and then signed autographs afterward.
It seemed so refreshing. It seemed to be about the game and getting kids to play ball.
I’m reading Tom Callahan’s wonderful book “Johnny U,” wherein he describes what it was like for people from Baltimore to attend the Colts’ summer training camp in the ’60s and sit on the hillside at Westminster watching Unitas and Raymond Berry stay after practice to work on sideline drills.
From my time working in Wisconsin, I know that Green Bay kids used to carry the helmets of the Packers’ players after Vince Lombardi put Bart Starr, Paul Hornung, Fuzzy Thurston, Jerry Kramer and their teammates through their paces.
Callahan captures the very vibe of the era when he writes, “The time was different. The players lived next door to the fans, literally. There wasn’t a financial gulf, a cultural gulf or any other kind of gulf between them. Except for a dozen Sundays a year, the Colts were occupied in the usual and normal pursuits of happiness.”
He follows that by noting, “In an annual visit to every locker room in the league, the Philadelphia-based commissioner of the NFL, DeBenneville ‘Bert’ Bell, emphasized the virtue of community. He told [players] that if you’re going to play professional football in a town, you have to live in that town, really live there. Otherwise, he said, don’t play.”
Yes, I know times have changed, but I hope Durant’s new employers will allow him (or encourage him) to create periodic access with kids, and not just sponsors.
It’s such a whirlwind these days for the NBA players after they are drafted. There are press conferences, photo shoots, grueling practices, dinners with shoe reps and corporate meet-and-greets. It can’t possibly be easy to find time for the kids.
In Australia, the dollars are a lot different. Thankfully, we still have player contracts requiring NBL players to make a significant number of personal appearances and to work with the kids in schools and at local basketball associations.
The NBA has a number of community and social responsibility programs, like “NBA Cares.” And while there are requirements for players to make a number of appearances each season, specific events are not mandatory.
That’s why my hope from a distance is that Durant and his associates find the time to visit with the kids, who are the ultimate keepers of the flame.
Rick Burton is the commissioner of the National Basketball League. On Oct. 1, he will become the chief marketing officer of the U.S. Olympic Committee.
Opinion
Players not to blame for today’s business climate
Published October 22, 2007
I was sitting in my office recently and I thought about the self-serving kind of articles that really come alive when there are NBA player targets seemingly available. The latest article that falls in that category was written in the “Opinion” section of the Sept. 24-30, 2007, Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Journal. Could it have something to do with “those unacceptable players” earning so much money?
Rick Burton, the former commissioner of an Australian National Basketball League, had an opinion regarding Kevin Durant and other past and present high-profile players (Michael Jordan, Allen Iverson, LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal) signing contracts for very large shoe contracts. He implied that it would be wonderful if Nike had invested the Durant dollars in the Australian NBL in three countries instead of spending it on Durant. He also commented on the “distance” between NBA players and the community and kids in particular.
There are a number of people who think like Burton, objecting to players receiving the amount of money they get. They will take shots at athletes simply because there is reluctance, on their part, to maybe jeopardize personal progress in the world of athletics by going at the real creators of this big dollar sports world. If there is a group to be scolded by the Burtons of the world, then the focus should be the company presidents, sport commissioners and presidents, team owners, media, parents, union directors, coaches and agents. All of whom are the very mature adults who have helped to create this business climate within the capitalistic society and are employing this system and the young athletes to pay out and make a lot of money.
The adults are making the offers and decisions for, and with, these young athletes who can certainly play the sport but definitely do not know the art of making these kinds of deals. We know that Rick Burton, had the opportunity existed when he was in the same age category and had the talent as many of these players, would have directed the sports product and marketing companies to take the money offered to him and grow pro leagues around the world.
Imagine 20-year-old Kevin Durant with his experience saying no to all of the adult presidents of major companies, commissioners of sport leagues, parents, union executive directors, team owners, media, coaches, agents and all the other fully grown and mature people around him. Can you envision any of us in the “Durant Position” saying no, don’t give me the money. Do something altruistic with it while I spend the majority of my time with the kids. Right!
Tom “Satch” Sanders
Sturbridge, Mass.
Sanders, a former Boston Celtics player and former coach of Harvard University and the Celtics, recently retinred from his post as the vice president and director of the NBA player development.
TL Note: Satch, a colleague of mine for nearly 20-years at the NBA, is a very bright man and very realistic, too. One thing he failed to note in his letter was that Burton is now the CMO for the United States Olympic Committee, having recently accepted the post and resigning from the NBL of Australia (which also serves New Zealand and Singapore - yes, to good to be true - the Singapore Slings).
My take on the situation is that it is not 'all or none.' The adidas, Nike and Reeboks of the world have hard choices and decisions to make with their marketing dollars. Obviously, they studied those choices and made decisions - to sign Kevin Durant and align themselves with his potential rather than sponsor the NBL. Surely the decision by Nike was driven by their Portland based headquarter office, as opposed to a regional influence from Australia where the sports marketing climate dried up after the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Surely Sanders and Burton would both agree that the perfect world would find enough corporate support to fund all types of sports marketing functions. I don't think Burton's concept is realistic, though. The NBL in Australia can't expect the likes of a Nike to drop its USA/NBA based marketing dollars and steer them to become a title sponsor for a league that generates far too little exposure in Australia.
The NBL needs to build a full series of smaller sponsorships and assign sports marketing account executives to each to be sure that the sponsor grows and benefits from the very sponsorship they have invested in. The key areas are no secret. The NBL will need to build out from the base of TV and Radio, gradually building interest and fan support. Each team will need to complement and work together with the NBL's efforts to build those sponsorships as they build their own fan experience in their home arenas. The teams have to 'buy into' a leaguewide sponsorship plan, rather than each operating as its own entity. Then, activate, activate and grow the deal so it is easily renewed. Easy said that done, I admit.
In the shoe category, it is not realistic to work with 'just one' company. It has to be a non-exclusive and wide-ranging programs to include all of the major shoe manufacturers. The NBL needs to run the same playbook that the NBA ran in the '80s.
Also, Burton will now find himself in a completely different position, dealing from the strength that is the USOC. It is a whole new ballgame in terms of seeking sponsorship and marketing dollars.
###
By the way - here is Burton's opinion column from back in September: (And trust me, he is 100% wrong about his notion that the likes of a Kevin Durant won't interact with kids. Durant has already done more in a few months than Burton even suggested he would do in HIS CAREER?)
Larger-than-life athletes must come down to earth occasionally
Published September 24, 2007
I was sitting in my office recently wondering about the differences between pro basketball in America and Australia.
The cause? A blogger had reported that Kevin Durant, the ESPN NCAA Player of the Year and the No. 2 pick in the 2007 NBA draft, was debating whether to take $30 million from Nike or $40 million from Adidas to endorse shoes.
As it turned out, Durant reportedly declined a $70 million deal with Adidas and signed a seven-year, $60 million deal with Nike, which would make it one of the largest footwear deals of all time.
In Australia, Nike’s original $30 million would have bought every single National Basketball League team and thereby provided the new owner of the NBL with a league on two continents featuring 13 teams in three countries (Australia, New Zealand and Singapore).
Imagine, 30 years of basketball heritage in markets like Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, plus recent entry in markets such as Auckland, Singapore and Gold Coast, all for half the price of one American’s shoes.
That’s amazing, but, hey, Durant is obviously an educated student of what the market will bear. Like M.J., A.I., LeBron, Carmelo, Kobe and Shaq before him, Durant and his agent understood the art of the deal and the art of leverage.
I used to teach at the University of Oregon’s Warsaw Sports Marketing Center and frequently lectured grad students about economies of scale and return on investment. I’m sure they will be wondering if Nike’s basketball honchos got a good deal and the right leverage. Nike will have to move a lot of shoes and inspire a lot of kids.
Funny thing that concept of inspiration. The player has to perform and the kids have to watch him, and in this day and age, seeing a player in person is pretty rare. That’s another point of difference between the U.S. and Australia.
Down here in the Down Under, all of our NBL players are required to make personal appearances on behalf of the game and work with kids in person.
I wonder how many kids will get within 50 feet of Durant during his NBA career. Our industry mustn’t let the dollars and deals get in the way of bringing the game directly to the kids.
While league commissioners and team CMOs are forced to deal with discussions on content production and data distribution, it will trouble me if, in the digital revolution, we ever lose the chance to create human inspiration in person. Kids still need periodic, even random, contact with their heroes.
Our Web site (www.nbl.com.au) made this issue clear to me when we ran a story noting that the Wollongong Hawks (2001 NBL champs) had kicked off their community programs for this season by holding a successful school holiday clinic at Illawarra Sports High School.
The clinic was for children between the ages of 6 and 13 and was built around games and activities. More than 70 children attended the one-day clinic and received pointers from the Hawks’ Australian players along with American head coach Eric Cooks and his assistant Kevin Brooks.
These professionals, working like modern-day Johnny Appleseeds, were planting the seeds for the game. They participated in skill activities and then signed autographs afterward.
It seemed so refreshing. It seemed to be about the game and getting kids to play ball.
I’m reading Tom Callahan’s wonderful book “Johnny U,” wherein he describes what it was like for people from Baltimore to attend the Colts’ summer training camp in the ’60s and sit on the hillside at Westminster watching Unitas and Raymond Berry stay after practice to work on sideline drills.
From my time working in Wisconsin, I know that Green Bay kids used to carry the helmets of the Packers’ players after Vince Lombardi put Bart Starr, Paul Hornung, Fuzzy Thurston, Jerry Kramer and their teammates through their paces.
Callahan captures the very vibe of the era when he writes, “The time was different. The players lived next door to the fans, literally. There wasn’t a financial gulf, a cultural gulf or any other kind of gulf between them. Except for a dozen Sundays a year, the Colts were occupied in the usual and normal pursuits of happiness.”
He follows that by noting, “In an annual visit to every locker room in the league, the Philadelphia-based commissioner of the NFL, DeBenneville ‘Bert’ Bell, emphasized the virtue of community. He told [players] that if you’re going to play professional football in a town, you have to live in that town, really live there. Otherwise, he said, don’t play.”
Yes, I know times have changed, but I hope Durant’s new employers will allow him (or encourage him) to create periodic access with kids, and not just sponsors.
It’s such a whirlwind these days for the NBA players after they are drafted. There are press conferences, photo shoots, grueling practices, dinners with shoe reps and corporate meet-and-greets. It can’t possibly be easy to find time for the kids.
In Australia, the dollars are a lot different. Thankfully, we still have player contracts requiring NBL players to make a significant number of personal appearances and to work with the kids in schools and at local basketball associations.
The NBA has a number of community and social responsibility programs, like “NBA Cares.” And while there are requirements for players to make a number of appearances each season, specific events are not mandatory.
That’s why my hope from a distance is that Durant and his associates find the time to visit with the kids, who are the ultimate keepers of the flame.
Rick Burton is the commissioner of the National Basketball League. On Oct. 1, he will become the chief marketing officer of the U.S. Olympic Committee.
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