Michael Jordan is widely considered as the greatest basketball player of all time. Our task was to come up with a campaign to remind a new generation of young consumers, who never saw Jordan play, of his storied career.The story goes that in 10th grade Jordan was cut from his varsity team and that final spot went to his classmate, a player named Leroy Smith. This failure motivated Jordan to become the greatest player of all time as Leroy became a constant reminder of his first taste of failure.

Leroy Smith, the character, a wildly successful motivational guru (played by Charlie Murphy), was born. This persona entertains audiences, celebrates MJ as the greatest player of all time, and presents a reverential message from Jordan Brand in a fresh, irreverent way.The Leroy Smith story unfolded over a three-month period utilizing a fully integrated approach – broadcast content for TV and Web, a music track and video, interactive games and downloads, out-of-home, print, exclusive content interviews with noted sports journalists, Twitter and Facebook pages – and climaxed on the day of MJ’s induction into the Basketball HOF with a simple statement issued by Leroy Smith in USA Today: “Dear Michael Jordan, You’re Welcome.” The campaign came full circle during Michael’s induction speech, when he thanked the real Leroy (whom he had flown in for the ceremony) for taking his spot all those years ago and motivating him to become better.

The Leroy Smith campaign kept Michael Jordan top of mind in the months building up to his HOF induction, and continues to entertain and engage an ardent following of fans who actively adopt and spread the word of Leroy, and by association the Jordan Brand.