LeBron James may have a South Beach mansion full of trophies, but until yesterday, he had yet to accomplish one basketball-related goal: gracing the cover of a video game. NBA 2K14 won’t hit stores until the fall, but last night, viewers of the NBA Finals on ABC got to watch the introductory ad – created by Zambezi – where James announces his plan to join past coverboys like Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant. For 2K Sports, having the best basketball player in the world endorsing your basketball product is not too shabby, either.
Lost in all of this is the noble presence of Steve Kerr, once the foil to MJ in the NBA, and now, the foil to Marv Albert in NBA broadcasting. Kerr plays the role of “2K Investigator” in the commercial’s somewhat-lame hook. But when a six-foot white guy who couldn’t dunk gets into a basketball video game commercial, everyone wins.
Credits after the jump.
Founder/Executive Creative Director: Brian Ford
Founder/Managing Director: Chris Raih
Creative Director: Kevin Buth
Associate Creative Director: Jon Runkle
Creative Strategist: Desmond Marzette
Art Director: Manu Gregori
Executive Producer: Alex Cohn
Senior Producer: Nathan Nowak
Producer: Carolyn Lu
Director of Digital: Peter Mertz
Digital Producer: Sean Carnage
Director of Sports Marketing: Matt Dzamba
Account Director: Kevin O’Brien
Account Supervisor: Jeramie Hopson
2K Sports
SVP of Sports Operations: Jason Argent
Senior Director of Marketing: Chris Snyder
Director, Brand Marketing: Mike Rhinehart