After hosting All-Star Weekend in 1997 for the NBA’s 50th season, Cleveland is the site for yet another anniversary All-Star event to celebrate the NBA’s 75. And they’ll do it in style.
For the first time in league history, the collective of performance brands under the Nike Inc. corporate umbrella –Nike, Jordan, and Converse – will each see their logos grace the trio of annual NBA All-Star Weekend games slated to be held in mid-February, with the main event taking place Feb. 16.
Continuing on with the branding embellishments found on the four different “edition” jerseys worn throughout the current 75th annual regular season, the All-Star uniforms also feature a diamond texture treatment along the brand logos in a nod to the league’s diamond anniversary. The shorts each incorporate a special edition “NBA75” logo as well.
To kick off the weekend, Converse’s Chevron logo can be found atop the All-Star Celebrity Game uniforms. For the first time, the brand tapped young designers to craft the graphic look of each team’s jerseys.
Nestor “Lil Nes” Hernandez, a 13-year-old member of the LA-based Boyle Heights Conservatory, influenced the West Celebrity Game unis. Drawing back on the early ’90s scene of Los Angeles, the artwork drafts off of colorful cues found in movies, TV shows, pop culture, and music from the time.
Abel Teclemariam, an 18-year-old member of the Boston-based The Possible Zone, was tasked with creating the East Celebrity team’s look. Inspired by graffiti and murals found throughout the east coast, the jerseys feature splashes of words like “Tenacious,” “Hustle,” and “Grit” that represent the region.
With a new format coming to the league’s Rising Stars Game, now splitting up seven players each onto four different teams in a mini-tournament, four different jerseys will also be spotted during the Friday evening game.
With base colors inspired by the hues found in the refraction of a diamond, the veering front main logo gives a subtle nod to the rock and roll-inspired ’97 All-Star Weekend jerseys that never came to be, as the 50th anniversary season’s showcase game eventually featured players in team uniforms instead.
The Jordan Brand’s Jumpman logo will reside on the main game’s unis on Sunday, marking the subsidiary company’s 5th consecutive All-Star branding visibility since debuting at LA All-Star in 2018. Typefaces tie back to the architecture of Cleveland’s bridges, while the oversized star graphics throughout serve as an homage to the late ’80s and early ’90s All-Star uniform design styles.
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