Nike

An athlete who didn’t need you to like him

Kobe Bryant was one of the greatest players to ever touch a basketball. Five championships. Eighteen All-Star selections. A work ethic that bordered on obsessive. But he was also one of the most polarizing. People either worshipped him or couldn’t stand him. Sometimes both at the same time. There was no middle ground with Kobe. And we realized that was the story.

The insight was about honesty. Most athlete campaigns sand down the edges. Make everyone likable. Approachable. Safe. But Kobe wasn’t safe. He was intense. Relentless. He didn’t care if you liked him. He cared about winning. And that made some people love him and other people hate him for the exact same reasons. What if we just said that out loud?

I helped shape the creative for this Nike spot. Kobe narrated the whole thing himself. No actors. No gimmicks. Just him, shooting free throws and running drills, while his voice cut through: “Love me or hate me, it’s one or the other.” And then the line that landed hardest: “Hate that I’m loved, for the exact same reasons.” It was raw. Vulnerable in a way Kobe rarely showed. And completely true.

Over 7 million views in the first week. Fans debated their own feelings about Kobe in ways they hadn’t before. The campaign didn’t try to make everyone like him. It invited people to understand him. And in doing that, it became one of the most honest athlete commercials ever made.