Now the NBA’s Golden State Warriors were the first to carry out this “groundbreaking” experiment. Well truly its not so groundbreaking, its more like unusual within the sport. Aside from the nod the snugness gives to the 40's Boston Celtics uniforms, nothing else really moves top soil.
Adidas, the makers of Nba regalia are calling it the “adizero NBA short sleeve uniform system” which is simply a fitted T-shirt as opposed to the traditional of tank top.
The form-fitting ensemble is said to be 26% light than the current uniforms and is made using moisture-wicking technology as well 60 percent recycled materials. Way to green-up the uniforms.
As expected, the uniforms were met with mixed reactions from the players. The dude in the picture directly above, rookie forward Harrison Barnes was quoted as saying " I think it will be a trendsetter, I think it's something that will take people a little bit of time to get used to, but once they do it'll be good. As long as I'm able to shoot and move, that's all that matters." I like were his head is, because thats one primary consideration that i hope was well,...considered, 'Will it affect the player's game?'.
Another strong question would have been 'Will it affect the $900million annual revenue from jersey sales made by the league'...I think the answers to both were NO, because if otherwise, the warriors would not have worn it 2 or 3 times this season and neither would Mr.Stern have okayed the experiment.
I believe the intention behind the move maybe multifaceted, but, at the core of it lies good ol' REVENUE. The president of the warriors, stated something about “the image of the franchise and being forward.” , but that sounds like your standard press release.
Sports team are always on the look out for new money makers, from Jerseys to accessories so a better reason would be what William Sutton, (a sports-marketing consultant to the NBA’s Orlando Magic and Phoenix Suns) had to say...“Having a short-sleeved fan jersey makes more sense than the current design, there is room for a new jersey style, although the fans would probably want a less form-fitting version.” . In essence, lets appeal to a wider audience of NBA fans that might be a lot less buff and hercules-like in their anatomy and create something that would appeal to them, get our Jocks to wear them a few games a season and voila!! 900million turns to 1 billion by 2014 ending.
A sporting goods industry analyst echoed the fact that "The tank top look just isn't very appealing," unless "... you're 6 foot 5 and chiseled, but if you're 5 foot 5 and not so chiseled, you're not going to look so good."
Hence it would make good sense for the brand to introduce some variety into the mix and in turn, ...turn a larger profit.
To further make it 'catch', the Christmas Day uniforms for this year have been confirmed to follow this format. Ten teams will be taking to the courts in sleeved jerseys on the 25th, so add that to the earlier year introduction as well as the players not feeling uncomfortable putting them on, then we just might have a recipe for yet another successful piece of apparel for the NBA....do i hear 2 billion.
In the spirit of the season, i leave you with JINGLE HOOPS, .......and NO, they didn't really 'shoot-out' the melody, but, we'd love to believe they did.
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