Foot Locker yesterday announced the launch of its "Week of Greatness" ad campaign to kick off the holiday retail season. The four 30-second spots star boxer Manny Pacquiao, Bulls G Derrick Rose, Spurs F Tim Duncan, Rockets G James Harden and WWE's John Cena. The accompanying third annual "Week of Greatness" in-store promotion, which kicks off Saturday, involves a series of sneaker and apparel releases at store locations nationwide (
Foot Locker). BUSINESS INSIDER's Tony Manfred wrote Duncan is "probably the most boring superstar in sports, and the commercial uses that persona brilliantly." The "conceit of the ad" is that Rose calls Duncan up to "let him know about the Foot Locker promotion, and Duncan has a very Tim Duncan reaction." Manfred: "It's refreshingly simple, funny, and unpretentious" (
BUSINESSINSIDER.com, 11/19). In Chicago, David Just wrote Rose and Duncan "are about as exciting to watch as C-SPAN, and that’s the joke." Duncan is the "real star, turning a plant sideways to celebrate" (
CHICAGOSUNTIMES.com, 11/19). In Phoenix, Andrew Joseph noted in Harden's spot, when he was "informed that Foot Locker's 'Week of Greatness' is returning, he snapped back at the pizza-eating basketball bros that of course he's going to go." They "told him that there's no need to get defensive, and that's where Harden showed his willingness to laugh at himself." Harden: "Defensive? You calling me defensive? I'm never defensive. Ask around. I'm the last person you'll ever see being defensive" (
AZCENTRAL.com, 11/19). CBSSPORTS.com's Matt Moore wrote, "I love that Harden's such a good sport about this stuff, especially since his defense has been adequate-to-fairly-good so far. Athletes that can make fun of themselves are way more accessible" (
CBSSPORTS.com, 11/19).
