Brotherhood of Ballers
With adidas returning for a second season of the Brotherhood theme they wanted to gather some feedback from readers of Hoops Addict in regards to what it means to you.
I have to admit I’m excited adidas is switching things up and instead of looking at what focus groups have to say they want to know what the readers of Hoops Addict have to say about the Brotherhood. Because Hoops Addict provides a platform which has our posts syndicated on USA Today, NBA.com, The Chicago Sun-Times and countless other prominent websites, they viewed us a great place to spark some discussion about the Brotherhood campaign. Let’s rise to the challenge and provide them with some great feedback on what the Brotherhood means to you as a fan or player.
What’s the story behind the new line? Well, with all the talk about selfish players ruining the game of basketball, adidas wants to do their part to turn the focus away from superstar athletes and in turn focus on the team. To do this, they decided to shift away from marketing one player and instead looking at how basketball is a brotherhood and the need for everyone to pull together.
To accomplish this they broke their roster of athletes into two labels: Creator and Commander. As Chauncy Billups explains it, “Being a Creator means being able to make your teammates better; creating opportunities for them as well as yourself.” For Tim Duncan, being a Commander means, “To dominate and control the boards, the defensive end and the paint. To impose my will and change a game through energy, effort and skill.”
Last season you saw the roster of adidas athletes participating in videos together and this year they’ve taken this teamwork and brotherhood idea by reaching out to younger players.
While viewing the video below you’ll see Gilbert Arenas giving back to the game of basketball and teaching the next generation something about the game of basketball. You can also see Tracy McGrady, Tim Duncan and Dwight Howard doing similar things by clicking on their names.
As the first post on Hoops Addict about the brotherhood, adidas is looking for you to explain what the Brotherhood means to you and if you have have any personal brotherhood/team experience they want to share. In particular, do you have a Brotherhood/team experience you want to share? Do you like this shift in focus from adidas to playing as a team instead of focusing on star athletes? What does the idea of basketball being a Brotherhood mean to you?
At the end of the month I’ll pick a lucky reader and send them a prize package courtesy of adidas to thank them for contributing in this discussion about the brotherhood.
15 Comments on “Brotherhood of Ballers”.
Have Your Say:
[...] defense. – Half-Blog Half-Amazing – The dawn of a new day at MSG (and Donnie Walsh is a zombie). – Hoops Addict – If you don’t feel totally silly talking about Adidas’ [...]
November 11, 2008 » 6:06 AM »
I spit on Kevin Garnett.
November 14, 2008 » 7:36 AM »
“Brotherhood” makes me think of Kevin Garnett, too. While I’m not the biggest fan of his theatrics — and I’m pretty sure KG is acting, not “being his crazy self” — I do admire his ability to personify Ubuntu within his team, thus leading the Celtics to their seventeenth championship.
So I guess, to me, Basketball Brotherhood = Ubuntu.
Still don’t like the taunting, though.
November 14, 2008 » 8:24 AM »
[...] Addict, is having a contest where they’re giving more than $500 of Adidas stuff away just by leaving a comment in this post. I don’t buy Adidas, I spit on anything to do with Kevin [...]
November 14, 2008 » 8:25 AM »
[...] Brotherhood of Ballers – [...]
November 14, 2008 » 9:04 AM »
I think we’ve all been through situations where you don’t feel a kinship, or “brotherhood” with the players you’re playing with. They may be your teammates in your Wednesday night rec league team, or they may be the guys you’re stuck with in a playground pickup game. The end result is, the team does not perform well whilst selfishness is a factor in “team” play.
I’ve also played on teams where talent was not abundant, but teamwork and chemistry was. We always played so much better than the sum of our parts — to paraphrase a cliché.
We may well be seeing a perfect example of this in the NBA this season. The Denver Nuggets decided that they needed to create a greater chemistry between players and to do that, they needed to bring in a Creator in Chauncey Billups. No one debates the fact that his predecessor at the point is an amazing player, but the reality of the situation is that the Nuggs needed someone to set the table for his teammates; to create a greater feeling of brotherhood, as it were. Time will tell if this approach works!
– Mookie
November 14, 2008 » 9:04 AM »
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November 14, 2008 » 10:32 AM »
To me, “basketball is a brotherhood” goes without saying. Not only is it a team game, but it’s a way of life. I can’t tell you how much the game of basketball has done for me over the yeas. Two easy examples include friendships I’ve formed and life lessons I’ve learned and that’s simply from being involved in the game.
I’ve formed numerous friendships on the court which have evolved to life-long friendships and basketball has allowed me to make friends who share an interest in the game. The common “brotherhood” bond we shared going into the game as strangers was basketball, but when the game finished I learned I had much more in common (along with differences obviously) than simply a love for the game.
I could go on and on about the life lessons basketball has taught me, but to just think of a few: respecting authority (aka the refs), respecting your elders (for they are much more knowledgeable and fundamental), working together (because if you don’t work together you have no chance at success), and playing to your strengths.
I think “basketball is a brotherhood” and “it takes 5″ are genius slogans for the Adidas brand, because the slogans apply directly to all championship TEAMS whereas all other brands look to market a specific player even though they are part of a greater whole.
Lastly, I think Kevin Garnett is the ideal spokesman for the Adidas brand because he is the ideal team player in that he’s willing to make sacrifices, share, work together, and do whatever it takes – especially the “little things” all in attempt to capture the team goal – the championship.
November 14, 2008 » 2:03 PM »
To me, the marketing seems a little contrived. I like the message, but it’s so in your face that it’s hard to believe. Also, they’re using star athletes to push the message, instead of teams. If I saw the entire team in a huddle or shots of nba players making extra passes, or diving for loose balls I think it would make the message more powerful. Right now, the NBA is running it’s “Where ____ happens” ads that highlight the individual, probably trying to go back to what worked so well in the 90′s. So it’s interesting that Adidas is going away from this, even though their commercials still focus on individual players talking about the team game.
November 14, 2008 » 3:17 PM »
First time on this blog, got linked by Raptors Republic.
I think the brotherhood idea is really clever. Its something differrent, against what there has been. I agree with otheres that it is a team game. I dont really mind KG.
.. ya thats all i have to say :S
November 15, 2008 » 10:22 PM »
Sport.
Sport’s something that really plumbs the depths of the soul. If you don’t know what I mean by that, then either you don’t play sport, you haven’t left a sport, or you aren’t playing it properly.
Living in Japan, easily the thing I miss about my former life in Australia is sport. In Japan, no real sports leagues available to people who have finished their “school life” (from elementary to tertiary).
Sure, I get to play sport – and on a relatively regular basis – but it’s not the same as being part of a team striving for a common goal. And the camaraderie that exists. Pre-game, game, post game.
There’s no wrong reason for anyone to play sport.
People can have different goals within a sport – be it basketball, football, volleyball or soccer. Any sport. The lessons we learn in sport are lessons that are valuable and applicable for life in general.
Respect.
Application.
Striving.
Team.
The very concept of team – learning that something can be greater than the sum of it’s parts – that’s invaluable.
As a father, I now look forward to playing sport with my son – and hopefully he’ll gain from participating in sport, the way I gained.
It’s something we all share – now that’s a brotherhood.
November 17, 2008 » 1:40 AM »
[...] and a lucky reader can win a great prize swag. Head over to Hoops Addict and check out the Brotherhood of Ballers piece, and put down your story to have a chance of winning. I have. Possibly related posts: [...]
November 17, 2008 » 1:40 AM »
Ah! Brotherhood, whats closer than a brother. It’s quite simple, if you can reach a brotherhood with you teammates, you WILL go all the way! A brotherhood doesn’t always require chemistry or talent or things that can be found on the court, a brotherhood “is”-meaning that chemistry, etc. is required but to be around your teammates even off the court…that’s what creates that chemistry and that love to be on the court. Without that, your team will get no where. Why did the celtics win it last year? They practically love each other, they all have that desire for a ring, that is their brotherhood-the desire to win; but each team may be different.
November 27, 2008 » 8:58 PM »
Thanks for the great feedback. I appreciated having all the comments dropped because it shows Hoops Addict can be a place to spark conversation for adidas.
Brandon’s the winner this month but there will be another giveaway at the end of December. Make sure you check back over the next few days for information on what the next discussion for a prize pack will be about.
December 7, 2008 » 7:53 PM »
Brotherhood, to me, shows hypocrisy. Adidas is the company that even more than Nike gained fame for exposing teenage prodigies. Tracy McGrady became a lottery pick at the Adidas camp. Adidas is the company that sponsors phenom camps that evaluate and rank 3rd graders.
Adidas is not about “brotherhood” and “team.” It is about money. And, when NBA fans started to complain about the “culture” of the NBA after the Palace Brawl and Americans started to worry about Team USA losing to Europeans and Argentines, adidas’ advertising company decided to try a new ploy to sell shoes.
However, when you say that you’re about team, but then promote the individual with 3rd graders, the marketing campaign, to me, is worthless.
February 16, 2009 » 10:57 PM »