No splash page, no adidas News post, a quiet video drop hearkening back to the Your Future campaigns. The Anton Ellis reggae track backing the video speaks directly to the heart of what the game of basketball means to many. The video is striking because it shows the pressure tank of being a high-profile athlete. Through flickering lights, mimicking the closing of eyes of a person possibly hyperventilating, the viewer is as equally overwhelmed as the athlete. In the escape the volume of music elevates, as a taxi wheels the athlete away from prying eyes and unwanted interactions. In the distance is a court cemented in a barren landscape. No fans, no one around, just the ball, the athlete and the hoop.
It’s a solid entry, but after two years it’s not really a vague video drop adidas needs is it? Getting an opportunity to see the kicks in brief moments, where fans will undoubtedly pause to see the sneakers in greater detail, delivers an on-foot that immediately reminds me of Pyer Moss Reeboks, but without a real look am I excited enough to wait for Chapter 02? Definitely. In a post Kanye world, as more people recognize this video is here, I expect excitement to ramp up and if something can arrive (after Foot Locker’s recent conference call announcing an impending adidas Basketball collection is on its way), the Kanye hangover could be short lived. Well played adidas, but I obviously need more before I really think this will work.
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