SHANGHAI – As Kobe Bryant’s remarkable 20-year career winds down in just a matter of days, it was all but expected that there would be a plethora of ads celebrating his greatness. The Los Angeles Lakers’ shooting guard has received all kinds of accolades since first entering the league in 1996, but he has also been the subject of harsh criticism from fans and media alike.
It is perhaps then fitting that in a country where he is revered as a basketball god, there would be an ad honoring both sides of “the Black Mamba.” Wieden + Kennedy Shanghai produced a 60-second spot that serves as a tribute to Bryant, but also warns that any worship of him might be misplaced.
Long famous for his work ethic and devotion to winning, Kobe Bryant has made several visits to China, both to conduct basketball clinics for Nike, as well as to compete and win a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The Nike ad shows several instances from Bryant’s tumultuous career, but also features footage from the basketball clinics he has conducted in China. Even as he speaks about the love that has been thrown his way, Bryant also talks about his practices that begin at 4:00am, how he pushed Chinese ballers when no one else would, and how he demanded greatness of everyone he came into contact with.
“Kobe has an intimate relationship with the Chinese ballers, so he knows exactly how to teach and motivate them,” says Terence Leong, creative director of W+K Shanghai. “Together with Nike China and Kobe, our team crafted the script and made sure the film was just as provocative as the man himself. It was an intense and uncompromising process because Kobe was just as demanding on the creative team as he was on the Lakers.”
W+K creative director Azsa West adds: “[Kobe] chose to focus on becoming a legend rather than being a hero. When it comes to winning, Kobe is willing to push himself to risk everything. Because standing back and doing nothing, that’s real failure. This philosophy is very Nike ‘Just do it,’ and Kobe is the perfect person to deliver this spirit of Nike.”
With additional information from Adweek.
