As we have heavily documented throughout this entire season, sleeves have clearly become the new wave when it comes to uniform trends in the NBA. However, with all of the various conversations surrounding this new wave (such as “Will people prefer to buy this over a traditional sleeveless jersey?” or “Is this the gateway to advertisements appearing on NBA jerseys?” or even “Can Dwight Howard get away with wearing an even smaller jersey?”), one issue has been overlooked for the sake of the league and adidas making another dollar & that is: Do the players actually like the sleeved jerseys?
In the past, opinions among players ranged from ambivalence to disappointment to flat-out embarrassment. Now that more teams have worn sleeved uniforms, it appears that the past sentiment has not changed. As a matter of fact, Bleacher Report’s Ric Bucher cited a “quick” poll saying that only 2 out of 21 players would prefer going to sleeved jerseys on a full-time basis. I’d imagine that these anonymous players’ thoughts on the matter basically sum up how the majority of players (& maybe fans as well) feel about this whole thing. From Bucher’s article:
“$$$$$$$. I don’t think they look good. Or feel good. But I’ve come to accept that the NBA doesn’t care what we think.”
“I don’t really view it as anything other than another way for the league to make money selling more jerseys,” a veteran swingman said. “The jerseys themselves aren’t better than the traditional ones.”
So it’s obvious that most players are well-aware of the fact that this appears to be a cash grab, and judging by the fact that the NBA’s premier in-season event will see the All-Stars play each other wearing sleeved jerseys? That should tell you that this particular cash grab isn’t just some passing fad. The league is 100% behind this movement, and with rumours of even more coming on the way, it’s pretty clear that these jerseys will be here for the foreseeable future, whether the (majority of) players like them or not.
Now that the players have let their voices heard on the matter, it’s time for you to do the same. Have you already proved the NBA right and bought yourself a sleeved jersey? Are you planning on buying any of the All-Star jerseys? Or are you just waiting for them to go back to the regular old stuff? Let us know!
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