Derrick Rose's ACL injury in the first round of the 2012 playoffs left Chicago Bulls fans devastated. Not only because it turned out to be the end of the Bulls' season, but because of the injury's potential to seriously affect the team's championship hopes for the 2012-13 season.
So fast forward to August when Team USA is fresh off a gold medal run in the London Olympics and the talking topic of the NBA is Dwight Howard being traded to the Lakers.
What perfect timing for Adidas to pull a Return of the Mack-like campaign with its latest commercial supporting its top hoops marketing man.
To make sure the 2011 MVP remains relevant, Rose and Adidas released a YouTube clip of the video Wednesday to show everyone just how hard he's been working to get back to top form. The 23-year old has undergone rehab in Chicago and Los Angeles over the summer.
The commercial provides one thing over everything else for Bulls fans: hope.
Multiple reports have surfaced saying Rose could miss the entire 2012-13 season. This video contradicts those reports, playing up the theme, The Return.
The video opens with his injury before showing Rose going through his rehab. It gives fans a brief glimpse into what his grueling regimen is like. Not a bad marketing strategy for Adidas.
The ad also pushes Rose's new Twitter campaign, entitled #TheReturn. Rose recently joined Twitter on Sunday, congratulating Team USA for winning a gold medal and then followed with this Tuesday tweet:
"Thank you all for the love and support. I feel blessed to have such great fans. Good to be back in Chicago after training all summer in LA"
While other NBA teams have made free agency splashes or big trades in the offseason, the Chicago Bulls did their best to save money on their salary cap, while bringing in point guard Nate Robinson and former Bull Kirk Hinrich.
Recently, a player who suffered a similar injury, Tim Hardaway, the uncle of Rose's longtime girlfriend Mieka Reese, went on record saying that Derrick would not only regain his old form but would become a better player, particularly with shooting.
About Reid and Mike
Reid Cherner has been with USA TODAY since 1982 and written Game On! since March 2008.
He has covered everything from high schools to horse racing to the college and the pros. The only thing he likes more than his own voice is the sound of readers telling him when he's right and wrong.
Michael Hiestand has covered sports media and marketing for USA TODAY, tackling the sports biz ranging from what's behind mega-events such as the Olympics and Super Bowl to the sometimes-hidden numbers behind the sports world's bottom line.
