Right Guard Gets New Product Placement On NBC's 'Celebrity Apprentice'
Thursday, April 8, 2010 at 12:14PM 
April 8, 2010: Right Guard will again join forces with Donald Trump and NBC's The Celebrity Apprentice when the personal grooming company touts Total Defense 5, the newest addition to the Right Guard line of antiperspirants and deodorants.
A challenge featuring former NBA players Scottie Pippen and Clyde Drexler sees teams creating a 30-second TV spot and a 10-second Internet spot to highlight Total Defense 5 and its benefits: Targets bacteria, neutralizes odor, blocks sweat, time-released and protects for 48 hours. The episode is scheduled to air April 11.
Right Guard, which is the official deodorant of the NBA, used a similar product placement approach in 2009 when teams including Dennis Rodman and Herschel Walker used David Lee of the New York Knicks to create a four-page ad for Right Guard Fast Break that ran in Sports Illustrated. Right Guard also had product placement during two earlier seasons of The Apprentice.
In a preview released by NBC, Trump challenges the celebrities to shoot hoops. He even takes, and makes, his shot from about the foul line (at least as seen on film). "I hope you got that on camera," Trump responds to the shot.
“Right Guard is thrilled to be a part of the ninth season of The Celebrity Apprentice, as each year we’ve seen much success from our involvement,” Erick Dickens, Brand Manager, Right Guard products, said in a statement. “Total Defense 5 is such a unique product. We truly look forward to seeing what these contestants come up with for its launch.”
The latest Right Guard product line, replacing Right Guard Xtreme, includes Right Guard Total Defense 5 PowerStripe, Right Guard Total Defense 5 Power Gel, Right Guard Total Defense 5 PowerDeo and Right Guard Total Defense 5 Clear Stick. Support also includes print, Internet, experiential activation and a sweepstakes offering a trip to the 2010 NBA Finals. Tag: "Upgrade your defense."
Celebrity contestants for this latest installment include former baseball all-star Darryl Strawberry, wrestlers Bill Goldberg and Maria Kanellis and Olympians Summer Sanders and Michael Johnson. Pippen this year will join Drexler this year in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Both players also were members of the gold medal winning Dream Team during the 1992 Summer Olympics, which also is being inducted into the Hall of Fame in August.