The NBA and Translation banked on generations of memories to get fans ready for the league’s run to the title, with Mindy Kaling, Kevin Costner, and Nat King Cole aiming right for the feelings.
Set to Cole’s “Unforgettable,” the league and its agency partner’s nearly one-and-a-half-minute sports marketing prelude to the NBA Finals sees a young fan’s trip to a viewing party launching a multitude of postseason reminiscences.
In the ad, a middle-aged Chicago Bulls fan drains a large ice cube into a cocktail glass from a distance, emulating a Michael Jordan three-pointer against the Utah Jazz amid his second three-peat at the end of the ‘90s. A young fan stands arms-outstretched in a Tim Duncan San Antonio Spurs jersey, striking his celebratory pose from the Spurs’ 2014 championship win over the Miami Heat.
We get Denver Nuggets fans pretending they’re Nikola Jokic throwing Jamal Murray into a training pool after the Nuggets’ title win in 2023, commuters swatting a crossing signal like LeBron James swatting Andre Iguodala’s shot away while finally chasing down a Cleveland Cavaliers championship in 2016, and Los Angeles fans jumping into each other’s arms like Kobe Bryant did to Shaquille O’Neal when they won it all in 2000.
“This campaign weaves together iconic plays recreated in everyday moments, showing how the Finals play out on court and outside in the real world between family and friends,” said Tammy Henault, NBA CMO. “It’s a multigenerational celebration of how these unforgettable moments resonate across time, place, and background.”
Directed by Paul Geusebroek, the “Unforgettable Awaits” spot also threw some star power at the proceedings. Costner throws away trash on set, pretending he’s Magic Johnson tossing a baby sky hook over Kevin McHale and Larry Bird to win Game 4 during the Lakers’ 1987 Finals run over the Boston Celtics. Mindy Kaling, meanwhile, blasts a ping-pong volley past her father, Avu, before hitting him with the Steph Curry “night, night” taunt straight out of the 2022 Finals win against the Celtics.
