While nostalgia certainly plays a role, a large reason why vintage sports apparel does so well is because the gear made today often feel so stale.
This isn’t a problem exclusive to Nike or to the NBA, but it’s one Lindsey Yamasaki, lead product line manager for what the Swoosh is internally calling its NBA Revolution product, is willing to own up to on behalf of her employer.
“What [Nike] did in the early years was take a risk on expression and lead on expression, not just innovation,” the former WNBA player told Footwear News. “I think that’s where the disconnection was, and [we asked:] “How can we get back to that? Everyone can do the basics, but what can we do differently?’”
The NBA Standard Issue collection proposes an alternative to displaying allegiance to one of the league’s 30 teams while pairing an aesthetic driven by insights from young consumers with some of Nike’s newest product innovations. Oversize logos are printed with a spray-paint effect on items including Aero-Fit T-shirts and double-knit DriFit hoodies that feel exactly the same inside and out.
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A Swoosh on one side of a T-shirt’s chest and the team logo or a wordmark at the center, this is not.
By offering more street-driven looks on performance materials, Nike wants to blur the historical lines between what may be worn at practice, shoot-around or on the way to the team bus. The youth players who played such a crucial role in informing the collection were especially adamant on drawing the lines between on- and off-court, just as they largely reject wearing contemporary basketball shoes throughout the rest of their days.
“We’re not saying we’re going to create denim,” Yamasaki said. “But how do we transcend that and make them want to wear this after the game as they hang out with their friends? And how do we have it not just be your identity of a basketball player, but this cool kid that fits into a lot of different spaces?”
Despite this youth focus, Yamasaki also wants to emphasize that you don’t need to be 15 to wear these products. And for those not into the louder looks of the massive logos, more minimalist pieces will offer marks on the other side of the size spectrum, although they haven’t been shown in this batch of imagery.
Rollout for the products will be spread across two drops on Tuesday and Oct. 12 on Nike’s website, but this isn’t limited-edition product either. Fans will also have access to the goods through other channels including stores at the teams’ arenas.
The design language will inform a run of alternate Specter Edition uniforms exclusive to eight franchises chosen for being among the NBA’s most historic — Sacramento Kings, Detroit Pistons, Atlanta Hawks, Golden State Warriors, New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers, Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics — which will go on sale to the public during the holiday season.
Basketball jerseys, too, don’t share the same lifestyle appeal to the youth of today as they once did, but Yamasaki said she saw some changes in attitude when the Specter uniforms were shown.
