State Farm, Sans CP3, James Harden, Puts Warriors Draymond Green, Swaggy P In Play
By Barry Janoff
May 30, 2018: With the Houston Rockets out of the playoffs, State Farm, which has been featuring Chris Paul, James Harden and other current and legendary Rockets (Clyde “The Glide” Drexler) in marketing, has switched gears, unveiling a spot that stars Draymond Green and Nick Young of the Golden State Warriors.
“The Sixth Sense” continues a theme from recent State Farm ads, that when there is chemistry between two people they “get each other.”
That happened between Chris Paul and his State Farm agent Cole Perez (played by actor Oscar Nuñez), in spots this past season where they finish each other’s sentences, are unbeatable at Charades (“Game Night”) and share a love of bowling, chili fries and the Backstreet Boys.
Here. Green and Young — preparing to face the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Finals — get each other, and play a humorous quiz game (similar to the old The Newlywed Game) where they try to correctly answer questions about the other person.
Acting like a couple of newlyweds, they begin the Q&A game.
“How do I describe my style?” Young, whose nickname is “Swaggy P,” asks Green.
“Swag,” answers Green.
“Nope,” says Young. “Michael Jackson.”
“You realize Michael Jackson is a person,” says Green. “To you, not to me,” says Young. “He’s a spirit now.”
Then the questions get more difficult, relatively speaking.
“During the season, what is my favorite city to visit?” Young asks Green, who correctly answers, “New York, because they have great shopping.”
“What technical foul did I definitely not deserve this year?” Green, who had 15 technical fouls during the regular season (second to Dwight Howard’s 17), asks Young.
“The one where you got hit in your mouth and were bleeding and (was saying to the referee), ‘Look at my mouth. I’m bleeding. Ahhhhh. Ahhhhh.” To which Green laughs and agrees.
“Which player is my biggest nemesis?” asks Green. Young incorrectly says DeMarcus Cousins and LeBron James before correctly saying Taj Gibson.
Lots more is revealed in the extended five-minute spot: How Young got his nickname (“It came to me in a dream”), Young’s favorite restaurant in the Bay Area (Bob’s Donuts), Green’s mom’s Twitter handle (@BabersGreen),what more Green wants to accomplish as an athlete (“Be in the Hall of Fame”), who Young looked up to when he was a kid in Los Angeles (Kobe Bryant) and how Green is misunderstood (“People think you are angry all the time,” says Young. “But you’re like a gentle butterfly. Soft like a baby.”)
The full five-minute-plus spot is playing on Uninterrupted’s YouTube Channel.
State Farm did not indicate yet whether Chris Paul and James Harden would return in new creative or if the insurance firm would move ahead with other NBA athletes.
The NBA had a record $1.12 billion in sponsor spend in 2017-18, according to research and consulting firm ESP Properties, Chicago. State Farm is the NBA’s most active partner, with 68% of properties with a sponsor in the insurance category report a partnership with the insurance firm.
State Farm has also signed on to become an official partner for the inaugural season of the NBA 2K League.
The insurance firm joins brands already aligned with the NBA 2K League including Twitch, Intel, Dell (and its elite gaming brand, Alienware), Nike’s Jordan Brand, New Era, HyperX, and Scuf Gaming.
The NBA 2K League launched in early May with teams representing 17 NBA clubs.
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State Farm Joins NBA 2K League eSports Roster
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