Well, this season is the NBA’s 75th, dating back to its 1946-1947 inaugural season. And the league just released a special commercial to celebrate its history, both happy and sad — including a Kobe tribute.
There’s lots of history and Easter Eggs in it.
ETA, the video is just under 3 minutes long.
The narrator and bus driver is Michael Jordan*.
Oh and BTW, Isiah is in this commercial but for some reason MJ23 is not. Does this make up for the Dream Team slight? A little, but not really.
MJ is in one of the video clips near the end.
Not in person, but definitely not missing.
A crude painting of Wilt at 1:44? His jersey number (13) is on the bus. Considering how much he did to establish the league in its early years, his screen-time seems abbreviated.
Bob Cousy at 2:30? Followed by George Gervin?
No George Mikan?
Not into Kobe idolatry.
I hope they didn’t forget Hank Finkel.
I did see that but I meant he was missing in person. That’s a big omission.
For now.
Asked why Air Jordan does not make an appearance, Jhaveri said, “We look at this spot as the beginning of the narrative, and so we are really looking forward to bringing this story to life throughout the entire season. There are lots of amazing legends and current players that can have a role in those future iterations, Michael included.”
The NBA is my favorite professional league and I am looking forward to all this.
ETA: Watched the video, it was fantastic.
The video does a good job at celebrating the NBA’s history. It’s a good one.