The glitz and glamor of Hollywood is one of the many attributes that makes the Los Angeles Lakers the NBA’s preeminent free agency destination. It only makes sense that the Lakers would tap into that wholly unique aspect in their pitch to Carmelo Anthony.
Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times reports that the Lakers’ presentation to Anthony centered around an original, four-minute movie based on his life that also extolled the virtues of the LA market. Joel Silver of “Lethal Weapon” and “Die Hard” fame produced the short, and original “Spiderman” Tobey Maguire narrated.
Executives from Anschutz Entertainment Group and Time Warner Cable pitched him on the size and scope of the Los Angeles market. Movie producer Joel Silver put together a four-minute “trailer” of Anthony’s life, narrated by Tobey Maguire.
Lakers marketing guru Tim Harris quarterbacked the business side of the meeting, James Worthy also spoke, as did team governor Jeanie Buss, who expressed her desire to have Anthony join the 16-time NBA champions.
Team executives Jim Buss and Mitch Kupchak then talked basketball with Anthony, who is also considering New York, Dallas, Houston and Chicago.
One person familiar with the meeting called it “an enjoyable time spent with a very nice guy who was truly engaged in the conversation.”
Kobe Bryant missed the meeting but “plans to recruit Anthony privately,” Bresnahan says. Though Kobe originally planned to be there for Carmelo’s recruitment, Bryant wasn’t back to Los Angeles in time to attend because Anthony moved up his session with the Lakers so he’d have time to meet with the New York Knicks later today.
Would it surprise, though, if Bryant got wind that his team’s pitch hinged on an original movie and became disgusted enough to simply bail on the proceedings entirely? This type of “fun” doesn’t exactly seem Bryant’s thing. It’s easy to imagine this reaction all over again.
Unfortunately, there’s been no word on how Los Angeles’ film compared to that of the Indiana Pacers’ about Lance Stephenson. Hopefully the league will reward the superior movie properly at some point in 2014-2015. Perhaps All-Star weekend for the awards ceremony?
(GIF via @corkgaines)
What do you think of the Lakers’ pitch to Anthony?
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