US Ad of the Day: ESPN promotes the NBA Finals in a floating fantasy world

To illustrate the mystique of the championship series, the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network (ESPN) unveiled on Tuesday a dreamlike spot titled ‘NBA Finals anthem.’

In the ad, stars of the game clash in a gilded, celestial fantasy environment described by ESPN as a “utopian basketball court floating in the clouds.” Meanwhile, the coveted Larry O’Brien Trophy perches on a mountain summit.

In this utopia, a montage of real scenes from the NBA season’s most epic moments this year plays, while an omniscient narrator explains the stakes of the game to viewers: “It’s Finals time, where what happens next, lives on forever, where history awaits and seconds last for eternity.”

The campaign, led by creative agency Arts & Letters, will run across ESPN, The Walt Disney Company Networks (ABC, FX, Hulu, NatGeo) and on digital. It also marks part of ESPN’s existing brand platform, ‘It’s a beautiful time for basketball,’ which is meant to rally excitement around the high-stakes push to the pinnacle of basketball season: The NBA Finals, which begin on June 1.

“Becoming an NBA Finals champion is the true top of the mountain of the NBA season,” says Molly Jamison, creative director at Arts & Letters. “By showing past iconic moments and players reflected in the most prized hardware in the game, the Larry O’Brien trophy, we show how this time in the season defines legacies and creates legends. Throughout, we also show the current contenders, setting the stage for who could join their ranks as the Conference Finals and Finals unfold.”

Credits

Agency: Arts & Letters Creative Co.

Production Company: Psyop

Music Studio: Consortium

Audio Facility: Rainmaker

VO Talent: Nana Dadzie

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