The NBA has become a trend setter in fashion, especially sneakers, but ironically, most league rules strictly regulate what players can and cannot wear in the arena. Faced with a strict dress code instituted by former commissioner David Stern in 2005, NBA players are starting to dress up in all sorts of fashionable ways – trim the suit to mid-calf, playing with glasses that can be considered strange as well as a shirt suit, and a lot of charm in various ways. Because most of them are role models in the fashion world.
Not the first time the NBA has cracked down, good: in the year 1984, color red-black from Jordan 1 allegedly banned by the league. Michael Jordan keep wearing those shoes for a while Nike pay the fine, turning the road into a fan favorite. Now, The NBA is again fiddling with the rules for what players can wear on the court, according to the ESPN report—this time in a different direction than before.
After the new NBA season starts in October, players will be allowed to wear the coolest sneakers in whatever color they like, whenever they want. The rules have slowly shifted in this direction over the past few decades. In the 80s, when Jordan shoes allegedly banned, The NBA requires players to wear shoes that are predominantly white or black, with the option to include small accents in team colors. The league loosened up a bit in the late 2000s, when players are allowed to wear sneakers in full team colors — meaning Jordan will be allowed to wear sneakers in the Bulls 'black and red'. There are also several themed nights throughout the year which open the door to even more colorful shoes.
Current NBA Commissioner, Adam Silver, wisely removed all restrictions and allowed players to wear sneakers of any color they chose. The NBA is already considered the most stylish sports league in the world, so far. Players leverage their status as fashion icons to brand themselves outside of basketball, but most of those expressions are confined to the tunnel leading to the locker, where camera crews are excited to capture players like James Harden and Russell Westbrook walk into the locker room in stylish clothes.
The league doesn't stand still as players try to bring that personal style to court. Kyrie Irving was fined by the NBA for wearing sneakers that were not his team colors in 2015. Washington Wizard Kelly Oubre Jr. asked by his team to remove the Supreme brand decker for fear that it violated some NBA rules.
Stylists who work with NBA players are excited about the rule change, which they see as an opportunity for players to flash their chopper in-game. “It's another channel for players to express their personal style on the pitch and make headlines for something other than a game-winning game,” kata Calyann Barnett, who worked with Dwyane Wade. Some of the stylists I spoke to — Barnett; Marcus Paul, who worked with LeBron James and Tristan Thompson; and Megan Ann Wilson, stylish players like Detroit Piston's Andre Drummond — agree that this will also open up opportunities for them to work with players to plan what to wear during the game.
“This will allow me to help clients choose which shoes to wear to the game,” said Paul. “In addition to working with brands to collaborate creatively on custom pieces.” Wilson anticipates a flood of statement-making. “I think we will see a lot of good colors, bad, and very bad this season on the pitch,” kata Wilson. “I can only imagine how many Off-White make-up and Supreme customizations we'll see.”
Tweak this, and more in the NBA dress code, coincided with Nike’s acquisition in the year 2017 as the official manufacturer of league uniforms. last season, for the first time, teams can choose what color uniform they want to wear for home and away matches (In the past, the team must wear white at home). “Nike has been aggressive in strengthening team and player displays across the league,” ESPN reports. (Nike declined to comment on this story.) With the addition of a looser sneaker policy, You can see the NBA leaning on its stylish reputation. This change also speaks more broadly to the NBA's more hands-off approach to its players, who are encouraged to express their opinions outside the court. Sometimes, even, it goes hand in hand with sneakers, like when LeBron James wore a pair shoe with words “Equivalence” written on the heel during the game.
The style of the player off the court is revered, but now they will have a chance to bring a side of themselves into the match. As Nike juxtaposes athletes with collaborators more often—as it did with John Elliott and LeBron or Virgil Abloh and Serena Williams—we may see more players getting their signature designer garms to court.. If so, there is a greater opportunity for shoe companies to create big moments to race to make the coolest sneakers for NBA players. Wow, there will be more and more of the coolest sneakers milling about in the NBA, right?.
