Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant(L) and Chicago Bulls guard Michael Jordan(R) talk during a free-throw attempt during the fourth quarter 17 December at the United Center in Chicago. Bryant, who is 19 and bypassed college basketball to play in the NBA, scored a team-high 33 points off the bench, and Jordan scored a team-high 36 points. The Bulls defeated the Lakers 104-83. AFP PHOTO VINCENT LAFORET (Photo by VINCENT LAFORET / AFP) (Photo credit should read VINCENT LAFORET/AFP/Getty Images)
NBA: 5 players that should be on the new NBA logo
NBA Photo by Elsa/Getty Images
During its 75-season run, many things have changed in the NBA. The playstyle has shifted around countless times, from feeding the inside bigs, to stretching the floor and shooting threes, which is what seems to be happening at this day and age.
One thing that hasn’t changed is the NBA logo. The historic white-blue-red emblem of the association was set in action in 1969, after a few rather unsuccessful previous attempts at creating an appealing logo.
The man behind the white shadow is no other than Jerry West. Marked as one of the greatest to ever do it, West was a charismatic scorer, being one of the very few to lead the league in scoring and in assists throughout the course of their career.
Jerry West is an all-time great member of the Los Angeles Lakers and holds a certified spot in their own Mt. Rushmore. Despite failing to win a championship with the team, he remains the only player in NBA history to win a Finals MVP award on a losing team in 1969.
So what’s all this sudden fuss about? Well, similar to every picketing happening around the league these days, this too was kicked off by yours truly, Kyrie Irving.
Known for his out-of-this-(round) world conspiracy theories and rituals, people usually restrain from paying any attention to his rallies nowadays. But this time, Kyrie may actually be onto something.
The NBA should go for a much-needed change and modernize its logo, by having a more recent superstar as the face of the league.
Iconic as it is, the NBA logo could go for a change. Teams change their own logos once every few years, meaning that the NBA does not have any reason not to. While it does make sense to stick with the original artwork from a financial point of view, a fresh update would go a long way.
People these days, myself included, have never watched Jerry West in action. On the contrary, we’ve grown up watching the legends from the more recent decades and have grown accustomed to them.
The logo, while being aesthetically pleasing, does not yell “Jerry West” when you first glance at it. How many people would recognize the past Lakers superstar without googling it first?
Honorable mentions: Shaquille O’Neal, Stephen Curry, Magic Johnson, Allen Iverson
