When NBA executives brainstormed the “ALLSTARTATUM” marketing campaign, little did they know it would end in a whopping $15 million loss!

During All-Star weekend, the NBA teamed up with NikeID to offer fans a unique deal: vote on which pair of Jayson Tatum‘s signature shoes he would wear in the All-Star game and receive 12 months of League Pass Premium for free. This seemingly harmless promotion turned into a costly blunder. Find out how!

A Promotion or Financial Fiasco?

Tatum, a 5-time All-Star, sealed a deal with Nike in 2019 and launched his first signature shoe, the Tatum 1, with Jordan last year. He debuted his Tatum 2 during the Celtics’ Christmas Day game against the Lakers. During the All-Star Weekend’s “AltCast” for the 3-point contest, where his Celtics’ teammate Jalen Brown was a participant, Tatum showcased his shoe collection, including the “Momma’s Boy” colorway which is an homage to his Mama Tatum as neon green is her favorite color.

While his co-analysts and the viewers admired Tatum’s shoes, the NBA’s finances were draining, through no fault of Tatum though. While a promotional tweet mentioned the shoe vote, it failed to actively highlight the free League Pass offer. However, an X user (@notbigracks) discovered the promotion and tweeted the polling link on the same day, and that post garnered over 1 million views.

Things escalated when users realized they could use the promo code to replace existing subscriptions, essentially granting double benefits. Three hours and 57,870 clicks later, the NBA panicked and canceled the “ALLSTARTATUM.” Although, Tatum was seen showcasing his signature collection on TV after the NBA had pulled the plug.

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The NBA website stated, “We are aware that some fans are having issues redeeming the ALLSTARTATUM promotion, unfortunately, this promotion is no longer available. We apologize for the inconvenience.” The update came three hours too late, as the link had already been clicked thousands of times, leading to significant financial losses.

This fiasco will forever be etched in NBA promotional history. Will Nike step up to share the losses? Will an executive back at the NBA HQ face the consequences? We probably won’t find out. However, one question will be answered on Sunday’s “East vs. West” game: did Tatum wear the people’s choice shoe that cost the NBA $15 mil? Stay tuned to find out!

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