In the past, nearly every NBA basketball game has followed a very specific model. The home team wore a white (or light colored) jersey, while the visitors wore darker jerseys. On Tuesday, Nike previewed what its NBA uniforms will look like and also revealed that the old home/road color scheme won’t necessarily be in place anymore.
“Beginning with the 2017-18 season, home teams will pick which of their uniforms will be worn at all home games and visiting teams will choose a contrasting uniform within their own assortment,” the release from Nike said. “Because of this change, Nike and the NBA worked together to create four core uniforms for each team, classified as “editions,” which draw from the rich heritage of the NBA and its respective franchises.”
Nike has already revealed the Association and Icon editions of their new jerseys. Those are the new names for what were home and road jerseys, respectively. The release also added that the other two jerseys, which reflect the NBA athletes mindset and the teams communities, respectively, “will be revealed in the coming months.”
The only potential issue here is that it will force road teams to carry four times as many jerseys on long road trips. But that’s really nothing more than a minor inconvenience.
As long as the jerseys contrast well enough with each other, many fans aren’t likely to even notice the change within games.