By Alan Snel of LVSportsBiz.com
Amid all the news of the Golden Knights firing coach Gerard Gallant, former UFC badboy-now-goodguy Conor McGregor returning to fight in Las Vegas and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell chatting at a Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce event was a very funny promotional spot put out by the WNBA Las Vegas Aces to tell folks that the WNBA season has been expanded from 34 to 36 games.
Popular Aces player A’ja Wilson dressed up as team coach Bill Laimbeer for an off-the-wall, goofball TV newscast and a funny punchline was when Wilson playing Laimbeer in the skit said that the Aces had traded A’ja Wilson for a 2025 seventh road draft pick. It was an offbeat way to also hype the Aces’ 2020 schedule. Here’s the video:
The WNBA team took a big step forward in 2019 when it made the playoffs before losing to the eventual champion Washington Mystics in the semifinals.
The Aces, owned by MGM Resorts International, have used off-beat promotions and videos to drive more fans to the Mandalay Bay Event Center, where the Aces play their home games. The team, formerly based in San Antonio, starts its third season in Las Vegas this spring.
UNLV Athletics also used a humorous video spot to pump up more interest in the men’s basketball team, which has caught fire after a sluggish start. The Runnin’ Rebels have won six of seven Mountain West Conference games and look more competitive after a rough 4-8 start. In an effort to draw more interest in the UNLV basketball team, the Athletics Department made this light-hearted “This is UNLV Athletics” video of center Mbacke Diong playing blocks with a little kid.
The Runnin’ Rebels are off to Reno for a game with the in-state rival UNR before returning to Thomas & Mack Center for a showdown with Top 10 San Diego State Sunday at 1 p.m.
The NHL Vegas Golden Knights have also used off-beat videos to announce ticket deals and promotions, while the new Las Vegas Raiders have a series of videos titled, From The Ground Up to show people updates on their $1.97 billion stadium project.
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