NBA’s ‘Non-Stop’s Great Christmas Play’ Spot Promises Christmas Day Drama & Theatrics

When it comes to the festive sporting fixtures in the USA, the 25 December has long been owned by the NBA and to promote its Christmas Day 2022 slate of games the league released a promo fronted by brand character ‘Non-Stop’ and titled ‘The Great Christmas Play’.

The hero spot sees actor/dancer Keyon Bowman narrate a special school seasonal pageant which features a character called ‘Non-Stop’: an enthusiastic geek positioned as the NBA’s biggest fan.

Bowman’s ‘Non-Stop’ character, who first appeared in the league’s 2022-23 tip-off spot in October, returned to front the NBA’s holiday promos rhyming about the Christmas Day slate of games across ABC and ESPN.

Created by agency Translation and directed by Stink Films’ Traktor, the work features an elaborately goofy yuletide pageant with appearances by hoops stars Devin Booker, Julius Erving and Ray Allen, plus rapper Action Bronson and influencer Brittney Elena.

It spoofs Clement Clarke Moore’s “T’was The Night Before Christmas” festive poem from 1823 in a hip-hop-style ode full of cheeky references to the five contests airing on 25 December.

The spot sees the NBA proudly present ‘The Five Games of Christmas’ to ‘friends, family and fans’ and states ‘do we have a show for you’. It urges viewers to ‘tune in for games all day on 12/25’ and includes the hashtag #NBAXmas.

It included festive copy lines such as ‘10 Teams Going Mistletoe To Toe’, ‘Shaking It Up Like A Snow Globe’, ‘Lighting Up Your Feed Like A Christmas Tree’, ‘These guys aren’t hanging lights, they’re hanging from the rim’ and ‘Breaking records, not wishbones – now that is Christmas Day in the NBA’.

The commercial, called ‘The Great Christmas Play NBA’, rolled out from 8 December across national TV, digital and social channels with various edits adapting the ad for specific media and markets to emphasise specific games and stars.

The hero commercial was supported by additional social media content led by a ‘making of’ online video.

The campaign was created for and briefed in by an NBA team which included Chief Marketing Officer Tammy Henault, Senior Vice President Creative Services Janine Dugre, Senior Vice President of Global Fan Marketing Jess Park, Senior Vice President of Content Production Dion Cocoros, Vice President of Media Strategy and Planning Larissa Johnson, Vice President of NBA Photos Joseph Amati, Vice President of Global Fan Marketing Kim Clark, Associate Vice President of Brand Marketing Katie Papelian, Senior Director of Global Fan Marketing Alaina Williams, Senior Advertising Manager Matthew Halliwell, Senior Manager of Media, Marketing and Entertainment Jacinda Ortiz, Social and Digital Content Creator Jim Poorten and Producer Andrew Thompson.

The Creative Consultants on the campaign were Rudy Crew where the team included Senior Vice President of Entertainment and Player Marketing Charlie Rosenzweig, Senior Vice President of Entertainment and Player Marketing Michael Levine, Manager of Entertainment and Player Marketing Molly Arnay and Senior Manager of Content Promotions and PSAs Cory Zalewski.

The group which worked on the initiative at agency Translation was led by Chief Executive Officer Steve Stoute and included President Ann Wool, Chief Creative Officer Jason Campbell, Chief Strategy Officer Sandi Preston, Group Context Director Joel Rodriguez, Group Creative Director Mina Mikhael, Creative Director Steve Horn, Art Director Emeline Earman, Copywriter MK Holladay, Head of Integrated Production Alison Hill, Senior Producer Ava Rant, Producer Rebecca Parra, Head of Client Services Susanna Swartley, Group Account Director David Mintz, Account Director Taylor West, Account Executive Laura Palacino, Group Strategy Director Kate Perkins, Junior Strategist Mokhtar Al-Yamani, Senior Context Strategist Alex Glaum and Context Strategist Mike Howard.

The production company was Stink Films with Director TRAKTOR, Director of Photography Hoyte van Hotema, VP/Executive Producer Mungo MaClagan, Line Producer Mark Walejko, Head of Production Ari Schneiderman and Production Designer Jason Schuster.

The VFX company on the campaign was Parliament, with colour grade by Rare Medium, Editorial by Joe Guest, audio post production from Sonic Union, plus original music by Walker.

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This ad is the latest in a long line of notable NBA seasonal spots dating back a decade and which have included the much praised ‘Jingle Bell Hoops’ commercial, ‘The Most Dunktastic Time Of The Year’, ‘Lights Up’, as well as John Legend’s ‘Christmasketball’ variety show and 2021’s awkward celeb-packed ‘Family Dinner’ (which was part of the league’s ‘NBA Lane’ 75th-anniversary celebration marketing initiative).