Nike’s new campaign celebrates Kyrie Irving “coming home” to NJ to play for the Brooklyn Nets. Until Media Day Irving hadn’t spoken publicly about his move to Brooklyn. In his 20-minute session in front of the microphone, Irving’s overall message was this: family and happiness are the priority moving forward and the reason he recruited his friends to play together in Brooklyn, a franchise close to home and built to support players mental and physical health. Irving revealed that the death of his grandfather spurred the decision to relocate from Boston, and acknowledged he failed as a leader with the Celtics.
Irving is a Nike sponsored athlete and the brand wanted to support his move and his new mentality of leadership on and off the court for his team. The campaign ran on Brooklyn Digital shelters for 2 weeks taking all available spots and then also ran a 4-hour “road block” for a 100% share of voice during the hours of the Nets vs Pelicans game on 11/4. This allowed Nike to obtain maximum impressions during a high trafficked time with Nets and Irving supporters.
This campaign is the perfect example of a brand’s campaign that raises emotions, support, and awareness during a peak time for the Nets game.