It's getting ever-so-close to Basketball season (crazy I know) and Turner Sports had just unveiled a new ad campaign to raise awareness of their Basketball offerings. They recently added "Fan Nights", in which fans get to vote on which games they want to see on Tuesdays, but they're also planning a relaunching of the channel and a general NBA campaign. Via Sports Business Journal....

The centerpiece of Turner’s “The Game Happens Here” message is that the NBA’s digital assets cover every aspect of the NBA, from training camp through the playoffs. This message is embodied in a 60-second TV commercial that shows the highs and lows of last season for Kevin Garnett. The spot weaves Garnett’s on-camera quotes, beginning with training camp and continuing to after his Celtics team won a championship.

The commercial fades to black, then brings up the tag line: “The Game Happens Here.” Then, one-by-one, logos from NBA TV, League Pass and NBA.com appear on the screen.

“It’s important for us to give distinct and unique positioning and branding for our NBA Digital services,” Storms said. “We provide access inside these places. We can take fans on a journey like no one else.” Turner Sports used the Minneapolis-based agency Mono to help develop this campaign.

A "central part of the effort will be the relaunch of NBA TV" on the first night of the regular season, October 28, at 5:00pm ET. The net will unveil a "new on-screen look, featuring new sets and graphics, and its new schedule will devote much more time to live studio programming, which will use" TNT talent including Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith.

Interesting. I always love when commercials go deep into the game like that, or delve into the past like the ad above. Turner's delivery of the game of Basketball has always been stellar, but they still need viewers other than hardcore Basketball fans. Something like this might do the trick, and more importantly....won't alienate their core audience of NBA heads.

I'll try to get a hold of the commercial and put it up when I do.

Turner promotes NBA digital menu (Sports Business Journal - $)