Please excuse the tardiness of the posting…I needed a reprieve and just got back from vacation.
After changing the only piece of office equipment it has by introducing a new basketball this season, the NBA has added additional rules to uniform requirements on the court. David Stern said he’s not in favor of “…being a detention monitor,” but uniformity has been sacrificed and protecting the brand has been at the top of the Leagues’ list lately.
From the ball, to mandatory business attire, to now banning the arm bands worn on, arms? Apparently the wristbands have no function on a bicep and headbands wider than 2 inches are a problem. And let’s not forget the tights, popularized last season after Kobe Bryant began wearing them, these new rules are providing the NBA with a way to make sure marketing dollars aren’t flowing past them and straight to players. With retro uniforms added as “4th color” options in the first part of 2000, we saw players accessorizing their game day look for a personalized touch. Players are now starting to feel a bit like the employees they are, though contracted and the NBA is only protecting it’s investment by leveraging the strength of its recent work to build an international brand.
New site to watch, Crackspace.com will at least garner attention with the name.
How about Nike taking over SportsCenter? The positioning that Nike already has established makes me wonder if over at the Swoosh they’re really gearing to protect their current market share since the Reebok acquisition by Adidas.
That’s it for now…gotta recover from the vacation.
