Here's my take:
It is about time NBA takes steps to clean up its image. Part of the reason the NBA has gone way down in popularity over the years is because many basketball fans feel out of touch with today's player. Perception of today's players, factual or otherwise, is that they are greedy, arrogant, spoiled, and down right "ghetto" - their dress apparel, in general, certainly reinforce the latter.

It has been argued that today's NBA fans, mainly lower-class teens and twenties, dress alike the NBA players, and that the new dress codes will only alienate those fans from NBA. Well, my counter argument is that the fact that narrow demographic became the mainstream of basketball fans is a problem in itself.

For the NBA to be successful, it needs to have a broader appeal to other demographics, even at the expense of losing some of those fans that favor the baggie-bling apparel. Let's face it, with ticket prices being what they are today - and the players are certainly to be partially blamed for that - most of those attending the games are of middle-class up and older in age. Those are the supportive fans that they have lost over the years and those are the supportive fans they are desperately trying to get back.

For those NBA players that argue they should be allowed to dress however they want, I like to see them try to pull that shit in the real world. The players are very visible and they represent the NBA. It is not too much to ask of them to portrait the association, that pay them millions, in a more positive light. It is also not a bad thing to influence their teen fans to dress better either.

Discuss.

 

instead of making it a controversial issue concerning image and dress, the NBA should had just made it manditory that any players who are injured and sitting on the teams bench be issued and required to wear a polo shirt with the teams logo and colors and darked colored khakis, with no jewelry. the rationale can be stated that this type of dress represents support and association with the league/franchise. the same demands can and should be made for press conferences.

 

its about time the nba cleaned up its act. those guys are running around like its a rap video or something. little kids look up to their wannabe ghetto gangster ass*s and do what they do. at least they will dress better, like they should.

they are role models now.....so start acting like it. not like ghetto f*cks!

 

I am neutral on it. I can see how wearing a suit on a long road trip would not be comfortable, but I do think they need to look more professional. This hip-hop/sports/throwback jerseys look has gotten out of hand. Doesn't anyone in the NBA where clothes that fit when they are not on the court?

 

Im all for it, I hate when i see these n*ggers on the TV and they look the same way as the homeless ones around here do...

WTF, dont you want some class to yourself, i mean you made it, you made millions, dont you want people to know it?? or do you want to look the same as the homeless guy your walking past? or is the only way these a$$holes know how to show it by wearing half million dollar korean jewelry stand looking necklaces....??

Their ghetto bullsh*t look makes a bad name for everything, especially the NBA.

PS - Im not racist, theres a huge difference between a n*gger and a black person..

To be honest, i think a good black person is more fun to be around than a white person, but N*ggs ruin everything... anyone who feels the same will agree

 

holy anger management!

 

half of these comments are by idiots... calling them N$ggers, thats a real great way to get your point across you fool....

it's actually only a few that dress with baggy clothes...

most of them wear suits more than the rims you can't afford to buy...

i think it's good to have a dress code..."the dress code as stated is for business casual, so it's not like they have to wear suits everywhere they go"....all they need is a collared shirt and slacks...

i don't agree with the jewelry issue though...i think they should be able to wear as much jewelry as they want to....

the nba does need to clean up it's image, but they market their players as individuals by their attitudes, clothes they wear, etc...

reebok doesn't give iverson a contract to try to market him as being a "nice guy from the suburbs"....

also about the tickets issue....yeah the guys buying the tickets are middle class, but who are they taking, their wanna be Iverson, Kobe, Shaq kids....so ticket sales aren't down because of that....i don't even think ticket sales are down at all...they just don't want that image....

also No one really complains when brett farve rolls into a game wearing jeans and a t-shirt...so why don't they put a dress code in for the nfl???

 

I say it's about time. Many colleges and for that matter even high schools have a dress code for players. Maybe if the playes can't afford a suit they could get a suit maker to sponsor them!

 

 

Ben, I think you're pretty much dead on. I used to enjoy the NBA, and still have a few shirts from my days of supporting the Charlotte Hornets. I really have a hard time enjoying the NBA game for two issues - one is that the game is played so poorly and the other is the players are not people I care for. I love hockey because the game is more exciting and the players are people I can admire - almost all NHL players are upstanding team-first people.


The best description I saw about the policy - Many NBA stars are acting like rappers that are forced to play basketball.


I would not be surprised to see the NFL adopt a similar policy some day. They already have extremely strict rules about what team personnel can and can't wear on the sidelines or in post game conferences.