Welcome to another edition of The Friday Five! Every Friday I cover a topic related to basketball gaming, either as a list of five items, or a Top 5 countdown. The topics for these lists and countdowns include everything from fun facts and recollections to commentary and critique. This week’s Five is a list of five pet peeves I have when it comes to NBA branding.

If there’s one thing that I’ve learned from changing up the design and layout of the NLSC from time to time in the twenty three years that I’ve been running the site, it’s that you can’t please everyone. No matter what improvements there might be, there’ll always be a couple of comments demanding that we change it back. As frustrating as that is to read, I get it. After all, aversion to change is common, and I’m as guilty of it as anyone else! New aesthetics can be jarring and may take time to get used to, no matter how nice they are, or how much a fresh look was needed.

This is something to keep in mind whenever NBA teams introduce new branding. Of course, sometimes those new designs leave us wondering what the people responsible were thinking! We also tend to get attached to certain logos and jerseys – especially the ones that were in use when we first got into the NBA – so personal preference will lead us to balk at certain branding. It doesn’t necessarily mean we’re right or wrong, but we are all entitled to our opinions on the looks that teams sport. To that point, I definitely have some pet peeves when it comes to NBA branding past and present. These are the five that spring to mind as the ones that I find the most irritating.

1. Obvious Downgrades in Branding

So, look. I’m not an artist. Some of my favourite and least favourite branding for NBA teams – past and present – may well have a lot of people questioning my taste! With that being said, there have been times when a team has introduced new branding, and we’ve all wondered why they decided on such a massive downgrade in their aesthetic. From eschewing their traditional colour scheme, to logo and jersey designs that are either too bland or too gaudy, to bringing back a look that should’ve stayed in the past, NBA teams have unveiled some extremely disappointing branding changes over the years. Even if a change was necessary, it feels like they chose the worst possible idea.

On the bright side, I haven’t had to deal with too much disappointment when it comes to my favourite team, the Chicago Bulls. They’re the only team in the league that has never changed their iconic logo – at least as of writing – and their jersey designs have been fairly consistent through a couple of league-wide re-brands as the uniform deal has changed hands. Apart from a couple of weird City Edition and other short-lived alternate jerseys, I haven’t been too disappointed in their branding. It’s a shame when other teams have lost an aesthetic I really liked, though. It’s ultimately a pet peeve compared to other issues I have with the league, but it’s bothersome nevertheless.

2. Rules Against Reverting to Former Branding

While NBA teams can bring back old branding for special occasions, with classic jersey nights being an obvious example, they’re not allowed to permanently revert to an old design. New branding can certainly take inspiration from an old look and be similar – the Detroit Pistons’ current logo is a good example of an updated take on a previous design – but it can’t be identical. It’s understandable. Specific designs are associated with a specific era in team history, so reverting to old branding might end up being confusing. Nostalgic and iconic as they may be, classic branding may clash with modern design sensibilities. There are likely also some licensing concerns here.

Still, it’s unfortunate that exceptions can’t or won’t be made. A new twist on a classic design is a good way to bring back a beloved aesthetic while avoiding looking too dated, but some logos do stand the test of time. Considering how closely some of the updated branding resembles designs of yesteryear, forcing some minimal changes just to distinguish them from the previous logos and jerseys seems pointless. Also – and this ties into both my previous point and my next pet peeve – if an NBA team changes their branding and the new look is extremely poorly-received, then it’d be nice if they had a grace period to scrap it and at least be able to roll back to their previous design.

3. Mandated Wait To Change Branding Again

When a team wants to introduce new branding, they need to make their application to the league two years in advance. This is only sensible, as it would be quite chaotic if teams could adopt new primary logos and jerseys as often and whenever they pleased. As explained in a 2010 SLAM article, team branding is a collaborative effort with the NBA, and the league’s global licensees need ample time to manufacture merchandise bearing a new design. To that end, two years is hardly an unreasonably long time to wait. Referring back to my previous point however, it’s an unfortunate restriction with apparently no exceptions if a team’s new branding turns out to be a complete flop.

With all due respect to any fans who liked the Utah Jazz’s 2023 re-brand, to me that was a perfect example of why occasional bending of the rules would be a good idea. If a team that has normally stuck with previous designs for lengthy periods is now immediately rushing to ditch unpopular new branding as soon as they can, I’d say there’s enough goodwill there to grant an earlier do-over. Once again, that could mean granting the lenience to revert to a previous design, presumably the last one. In the interest of fairness, there’d have to be an understanding that they’ll be more careful in future re-branding efforts, and that the same exception won’t be granted for a while.

4. All The Circular Logos

It’s impossible not to sound old and grumpy when you criticise changing trends and design principles. “Aesthetics were so much better in my day! None of this modern crap, I tell you!” Of course, there are good and bad ideas in every era, and there’s no way to know which styles will turn out to be timeless. Still, and while acknowledging once again that I’m not an artist, to me the trend of minimalism and uniformity has resulted in bland designs, and not just in NBA branding. Since we are talking about NBA branding though, one of my biggest pet peeves with the league at the moment is the seemingly ever-increasing number of primary team logos that are circular designs.

Take a look at the lineup of team logos for the 2025 season, and you’ll notice that ten of them – a third of the league – are circular with a smaller logo or design inside, along with the team name. They’re not bad designs as such – well, your mileage may vary as far as the Clippers leaning more heavily into their nautical motif – but it gives off the impression that every team hired the same designer, who just recycled the same idea with a few tweaks as necessary. Compare that to the array of team logos twenty years ago. I’m not saying all of them were those clubs’ best branding, and there are a few that have similarities in their design, but there was way more variety in the NBA then.

5. Modern Jersey Designation & Nomenclature

I mean, I’ve already started down the path of grumpy old man grumbling, so I might as well end on my biggest pet peeve with NBA branding since the 2018 season! I’ve tried to be open-minded about this; I really have. Times change, and there should be more compelling reasons to do something than it simply being the tradition. At the same time, traditions can be good, and sensible. The removal of designated home and away jerseys – while still nominating uniforms to primarily wear at home and on the road – still feels incredibly gimmicky to me. It’s ironic that the league has thrown out uniformity with jersey designation, while more and more team logos look the same!

Granted, the original reason for white at home and colours on the road – that being white jerseys were more difficult to keep clean while travelling – hasn’t been an issue for decades. However, it established a standard that resulted in consistent branding, allowed the home and away teams to be quickly identifiable from each other, and made exceptions to the rule novel. Now, we see uniforms clash more often, and less consistency as teams have to switch it up based on the home team’s preference. If nothing else, I’d like to see teams stick to their Icon and Association jerseys, and the traditional “white at home, colours on the road” be standard in the Playoffs and Finals.

Do you share any of these pet peeves when it comes to NBA branding? What are some of your dislikes about the current approach, or conversely, do you actually prefer it? Have your say in the comments, and as always, feel free to take the discussion to the NLSC Forum! That’s all for this week, so thanks for checking in, have a great weekend, and please join me again next Friday for another Five.

The post The Friday Five: 5 NBA Branding Pet Peeves appeared first on NLSC.