In early October in Boston, the air already carried the chill of late autumn.
In a small conference room on the third floor of the Auerbach training center, several newly delivered American sports business magazines were scattered on a long table, and a stack of design papers with hand-drawn sketches was spread out next to them.
David Martin, Vice President of Marketing for Converse, sat across the long table, holding the latest issue of Sports Illustrated. The cover featured LeBron James, a high school student wearing a Cavaliers jersey, with the bold headline " The Chosen One " printed above his head.
" Nike has gone all out this time," Martin pushed the magazine to the center of the table. "Before a single regular season game has even been played, Phil Knight has already shelled out $90 million. From New York to Los Angeles, his huge ads are everywhere in prime locations in major cities. Their first signature shoe is scheduled for release in mid-November, priced at $110, clearly aiming to capture the youth market."
In the summer of 2003, Michael Jordan retired with the Los Angeles Lakers, winning the NBA championship. With Jordan's departure, various brands in the sneaker market were looking for a new leader. Nike made a big bet on LeBron James, drawing the attention of the entire sports business world to this nineteen-year-old.
" Nike is in a hurry to find a successor," Lin Qi said calmly, flipping through the briefing on his desk. "After Michael's retirement, Nike lost its biggest brand in the basketball shoe market, and they're eager to create the next one who can carry the sales. However, spending 90 million without even playing a single game carries considerable risk."
Lin Qi looked up at David Martin and chief designer Eric Avar: "We have star players right here; there's no need to follow Nike's promotional pace. What's your plan for the new season?"
David Martin cleared his throat and placed the three proposals on the table.
"Mr. Lin, our current strategy is very clear: we will use three different approaches to capitalize on Nike's momentum."
Martin opened the first document; the cover featured a silhouette of the Los Angeles Lakers ' number 24.
"The first route, Kobe Brian in Los Angeles."
"Right now, all the sports media in America are watching to see how well Kobe can lead a team on his own," Martin explained. "After Shaq was traded to Chicago, there were doubts about Kobe's leadership abilities, and he was often booed by away fans. Nike takes a mass-market approach, packaging LeBron James as a born winner. We, on the other hand, portray Kobe as an extremely competitive, persistent scorer who doesn't care about outside opinions."
Martin handed over several black-and-white advertising storyboards.
The project is called "Love Me, or Hate Me." The visuals have no background music, only Kobe training alone in an empty arena, the sound of his pull-up jump shot hitting the ground. The narration is recorded by Kobe himself. "You can love me, or you can hate me. Hate my shot selection, hate my obsession with winning. But once you step onto the court, you have to watch me make that shot."
"In the new season, Kobe will lead the team single-handedly, with the ball in his hands. Whenever the Lakers play on the road, if he scores 35 or 40 points every night, every mid-range shot he makes over the defense will boost sales of these shoes. We want to attract young fans who value individual ability and global competition, and who have a strong competitive spirit."
Lin Qi looked at the storyboard and nodded. "The tone is quite appropriate. Kobe's current situation, the harder he plays on the court, the more the market will buy it. Set the release date for the week the Lakers have a tough away game, and have him wear these shoes at Madison Square Garden or the United Center."
David Martin then turned to the second proposal.
The cover features a candid photo taken in June of this year, during the second overtime of Game 7 of the NBA Finals. It shows a close-up of Dwyane Wade sitting exhausted on the floor with his head down.
"The second route, Dwyane Wade of Boston."
Pointing to the photo, Martin said, " Nike packaged LeBron James as a prodigy who was the talk of the town in high school, but most kids playing basketball on the streets and concrete don't get that ' Chosen One ' treatment. They're more likely to be moved by a player who rose from the bottom."
Eric Avar took a green and white sneaker sample out of his bag and placed it on the table; the area code for Chicago South Side was embroidered on the inside of the tongue.
Lin Qi picked up the sneaker, examined it thoughtfully, rubbed the sole, then put it back on the table and looked up at Martin and Avar.
" David, Eric, you've underestimated Dwyane," Lin Qi tapped his fingers on the table. "You're only focused on cost-effectiveness, but you haven't grasped Dwyane's down-to-earth, hard-working qualities, nor have you noticed his natural physical disadvantages."
Martin and Avar exchanged a glance. Avar quickly opened his notebook. "Mr. Lin, what do you mean?"
" Dwyane is a typical underdog, and a short shooting guard with limited height."
Lin Qi leaned back in his chair and slowly laid out Wade's journey through various circumstances.
He grew up in Robin on Chicago South Side, one of the poorest and safest neighborhoods in the country. His family was so poor when he was a child that they often went without water and electricity. The basketball court was a bumpy, uneven concrete surface, and the metal hoops didn't even have nets. He spent every day there competing for the ball with people several years older than him.
"More importantly, there's his physique. When he graduated high school, not a single one of the top 100 universities in the US was willing to give him a full scholarship, because they thought he was too short to play shooting guard and wouldn't be good at playmaking if he played point guard."
"I finally got into Marquette University, but because I had a few less credits in my freshman year, I couldn't play in any official games for the entire year according to league rules. I couldn't even go to away games, and I could only practice defense with the starters every day."
"By last year's draft, all the cameras and spotlights in the US were focused on Yao Ming and Jay Williams. Who would care about Wade, the 13th pick? The scouting report clearly stated: relatively short, no consistent three-point shooting, and easily blocked by tall players in the paint."
Lin Qi looked at David Martin and made the comparison clear.
" Nike promoted LeBron James by portraying him as a princeling, a prodigy with unparalleled talent at 6'8" and 245" pounds, nationally televised during his high school years, and a $90 million contract upon entering the league. Everyone was calling him Sacramento Kings."
"But how many kids in the entire country have the kind of naturally gifted physique that LeBron James possesses? Thousands upon thousands of high school students playing on concrete are not tall enough and their families are not wealthy. Dwyane is a true reflection of these ordinary kids."
"For every two points he scores on the court, he pays a higher price than others. Because he's half a head shorter than the defender, he has to rely on explosiveness and physicality to break through, colliding with seven-foot centers in the air and being slammed onto the hardwood floor countless times."
"Look at the arena downstairs. Gary Payton was yelling at him all day, but he didn't utter a single complaint. A guy with physical limitations, who gritted his teeth and fought his way from a slum court to NBA Finals —that's what's truly inspiring."
David Martin's expression brightened, and he nodded repeatedly. "I understand. LeBron James stands atop the mountain, admired from above; Dwyane climbed up step by step from the foot of the mountain."
"The script for the ad needs to convey this heaviness and hard work," Lin Qi said. "Don't hire professional actors; just set the camera next to those run-down houses in Chicago South Side and film him dribbling on cracked concrete."
"The footage needs to include details: show him at six feet four inches tall battling against taller defenders, show the black rubber shoe prints he leaves on the floor when practicing pull-up jump shots in the Boston gym, show his knee and elbow pads, and show close-ups of him sitting on the floor, panting heavily, completely soaked in sweat, at the end of practice."
"The narration was recorded by Dwyane himself, delivered in a plain and simple manner, without any emotional manipulation."
"In high school, they said I was too short, so during my first year of college, I could only watch the games from the sidelines."
"When facing people who are half a head taller than me, I have to fight tooth and nail for every point."
"Some people are born with everything, but everything I have was earned through countless hours of sweat and toil in the gym."
"The final image is captured in the pale morning light of Boston, Dwyane tightening his shoelaces and silently walking towards the court alone."
Eric Avard's charcoal pencil scratched across the drawing board, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "Mr. Lin, since we're emphasizing his style of play—throwing himself into the paint for physical battles—the shoe design needs to be modified accordingly."
"The shoe features a mid-to-low-top design for easy maneuvering and pushing off the ground. The forefoot has a widened anti-rollover angle, and the midsole is filled with thick, shock-absorbing foam to absorb the impact of his falls. The upper is reinforced with high-strength heat-fused fabric, and the outsole is made entirely of durable rubber. Priced at $85, its main selling point is that it's a pair of shoes that can accompany an average kid through a year of battling on concrete."
Lin Qi nodded.
After finishing speaking about Wade, Lin Qi reached out and flipped open the third project proposal on the table.
Turning to the first page, the design depicts a spiked metal chair in the center, with a golden crown suspended above it, codenamed "Iron Throne."
David Martin explained from the sidelines, " Kevin was the core of Boston's four-peat. Nike made LeBron the ' Sacramento Kings,' so we used Kevin's four championship trophies to overshadow them. The tagline was 'A true Sacramento Kings doesn't need to be crowned'..."
"Roll this up and redo it." Lin Qi interrupted David Martin abruptly, pushing the blueprints back.