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2003 aRCS Wrap Up

The inaugural adidas Rose City Showcase (ARCS) proved to be a success last weekend. The three-day average attendance was 700 fans, which included "Hoop Junkies" of all ages and from all parts of the Portland metro area. The feedback from many of the attendees was that the ARCS was, "great for the city of Portland."

Organization
Canaan Chatman, the event director, is a special man with a passion to use the game of basketball to better the lives of young people in Portland. He is truly respected and connected in the urban community, and he was able to use all of his personal and professional resources to make the Showcase one of the most successful non high-school grassroots event in a decade. He mobilized more than 50 volunteers who worked non stop to insure that all areas of event management and hospitality were executed efficiently and professionally.

Venue
Grant High School provided the perfect location for the event. It allowed a variety of socioeconomic groups from the entire "503" to gather and enjoy exciting summer basketball in a safe family environment. Head basketball coach Tony Broadus and his staff welcomed the ARCS and were a pleasure to work with. His program will be the premier adidas boys team in the state next season.

Participants
Eight teams from Seattle, Houston, Oakland, Atlanta and Portland played one game a day during the weekend. adidas has a relationship with six of the teams and Nike sponsors the other two.

On Thursday the Houston Superstars arrived early and received a short tour of the adidas Village. They enjoyed lunch at Colours, talked shoes with the international basketball team and practiced in the gym. It may have been the first time since the fitness center opened that a dunk has occurred.

On Friday the Atlanta Celtics made a stop at the Village as well. After spending time with Daren Kalish and company looking at 2004 basketball product they headed downstairs for a roundtable discussion with Ted Williams and Jon Sinko on fashion, trends and brands. They were shown the ADAN footwear and apparel line and provided useful feedback that may be beneficial for future launches.

Saturday morning the four out of town teams rode the charted bus to the adidas outlets in Woodburn for a morning shopping spree. Headbands and wristbands were the most popular items purchased followed by TMAC tees.

Competition
The Atlanta Celtics flew 3,000 miles on Friday to hold off Nike's Portland Legends in triple overtime in front of 1,000 Portlanders. Mike Mercer's steal at half court with 3.5 seconds remaining in the game led to a slam dunk at the buzzer for a 79-77 victory. In the semifinal game, the Oakland Soldiers, led by Tim Pierce's 25 first half points, were like the Iraqi army against the Celtics who won easily by twenty. Pierce earned tournament MVP honors not only for his play, but also for his courage. Four days earlier Pierce buried his dad who had died suddenly of a heart attack. The championship game on Sunday afternoon saw the Celtics’ depth hold off Marvin Williams and the Seattle Rotary 73-63.

Product
The majority of the adidas teams wore the Players Ball shoe. However, the Soldiers refused to let go of their old ways and played in the Pro Model 2G's from last year. A few kids wore various color ways of TMACS, but the shoe that got the most "chatter" was the new SL- 4. All color ways were envied by the players who did not have a pair. The referees and several high-flying players demonstrated the shoes’ performance and comfort credibility. They looked great off the court as well.

Collateral
Kathy Martinelli was able to create a collection of signage and other event-related pieces on short notice and a limited budget. This gave the first-year event a consistent and professional look. The adidas backboard stickers she created were hung by Zach Fawcett and Tonie Hanson at midnight Thursday night and added the perfect touch of brand confidence and sport relevance.

Corporate Partners
989 Sports, SLAM Magazine and Jammin' 95.5 radio station played an important supporting role throughout the weekend. They added needed flavor and proof that adidas is connected to the interest of the core basketball consumer group.

Media
Travis Gonzolez and Canaan Chatman collaborated to generate pre-game coverage in the Oregonian, Portland Tribune and Portland Observer. Internet journalists from Kentucky, Seattle, San Francisco and Houston also covered the event.

Lifestyle Marketing
The marriage between basketball and music for the 13-22 year old age group continues to be an essential element towards the success of a "Real Urban" basketball event or campaign. The ARCS was hosted by local DJ OG One. He kept the day moving and heads nodding during every time-out and break. His presence along with an on-site live radio remote and the distribution of SLAM magazines and 989 Sports video games reinforced the consumers’ impression that adidas "Gets it."

Future Stars
Of the 80 participants, 55 will earn division one scholarships when their high school careers have ended, but only four players demonstrated to me that they have a legitimate chance of playing in the NBA.

Dwight Howard; 6'11 235 lb. Power Forward (Atlanta, GA)
He will be an NBA lottery pick in next year’s draft once he realizes that he must dominate consistently. He has the wing span of someone 7'2, handles the ball well and rebounds like Ben Wallace when he chooses to. Finishes everything with monster rim-rattling dunks.

Brandon Rush 6'7 195 lb. Wing Forward (Kansas City, MO)
He was easily the tournament’s most athletic player from baseline to baseline. He consistently attacked the rim like he was mad at it. Has the ability to shift gears from George Gervin finger rolls to T-Mac highlight dunks on consecutive plays.

Josh Smith 6'7 210 lb. Wing Forward (Atlanta, GA).
He has the ability to make four spectacular plays, then four good plays, then four bone head plays. Once he realizes how to naturally take over a game and combine it with his charisma it will allow him to become a crowd-pleaser at the next level. He is s super athlete as well.

Marvin Williams 6'8 215 lb. Wing Forward (Bremerton, WA)
Competes with the heart and soul of a Roman gladiator on every play at both ends of the court. He displays the off court qualities of Tim Duncan. Of these four players, he is the only one who mentions that his future may not include NBA.

Areas of Improvement for 2004
• Add an on site retail component and distribute coupons to all attendees for redemption at one of our six
northwest retail/outlet stores.
• Invite the support of the Event Marketing and Public Relations groups much earlier to provide them with
more lead time to communicate and execute brand initiatives. (See K. Martinelli for more details.)
• Incorporate the girls preview games into the entire event.
• Draw additional media coverage, especially local television stations.
• Create a mini-PR event around 1-2 of our NBA athletes.
• Increase the hospitality component throughout the event.

Rivers

Contact: STRETCH (sixeight68@aol.com)