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National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...
's (NBA) dress code was introduced on October 17, 2005, under NBA
commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to incl ...
David Stern David Joel Stern (September 22, 1942 – January 1, 2020) was an American lawyer and business executive who was the commissioner of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1984 to 2014. Stern oversaw NBA basketball's growth into one of t ...
. The dress code was mandatory for all NBA and
NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of the 2024–25 season, ...
players, making the NBA only the second major professional sports league to have a dress code, after the
National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
. The dress code went into effect at the start of the
2005–06 NBA season The 2005–06 NBA season was the 60th season of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Miami Heat defeated the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals, four games to two, to win their first NBA championship. This marked that it was the final ...
. It was significantly relaxed shortly before the 2020 NBA Bubble.


Details

The dress code stated that all players must dress in business or conservative attire while arriving and departing during a scheduled game, on the bench while injured, and when conducting official NBA business (press interviews,
charity Charity may refer to: Common meanings * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sha ...
events, etc.). The first dress code banned fashions most often associated with
hip-hop culture Hip-hop culture is an art movement that emerged in New York City, in the borough of The Bronx; Primarily within the black community. Hip Hop as an art form and culture has been heavily influenced by both male and female artists. It is charac ...
, specifically: jerseys,
jeans Jeans are a type of trousers made from denim or dungaree cloth. Often the term "jeans" refers to a particular style of trousers, called "blue jeans", with the addition of copper pocket rivets added by Jacob W. Davis in 1871 and patented by ...
, hats, do-rags, T-shirts, large
jewelry Jewellery (or jewelry in American English) consists of decorative items worn for personal adornment such as brooches, ring (jewellery), rings, necklaces, earrings, pendants, bracelets, and cufflinks. Jewellery may be attached to the body or the ...
, sneakers and hiking boots (specifically, Timberland-type boots). Under current NBA dress regulations, if a player does not dress to participate in a game, he must dress in a manner suitable for a coach. In the NBA, a suit or a
sport coat A sport coat, also called a sport jacket (or sports coat or sports jacket in American English), is a men's smart casual lounge jacket designed to be worn on its own without matching trousers, traditionally for sporting purposes. Styles, fabrics, ...
used to be required for coaches, as well as a
necktie A necktie, long tie, or simply a tie, is a cloth article of formal neckwear or office attire worn for decorative or symbolic purposes, resting under a folded shirt collar or knotted at the throat, and usually draped down the chest. On rare o ...
, however starting with the 2020 NBA Bubble coaches were permitted to wear team-issued polos, quarter-zips, sweatpants, jogging pants. Banned clothing was not allowed to be worn by players to interviews, games (on and off the bench), charity events, or any other occasion affiliated with the NBA and its developmental league. Violators of the dress code were to be fined or suspended upon repeat offenses. With Stern stepping down and
Adam Silver Adam Silver (born April 25, 1962) is an American lawyer and sports executive who is serving as the fifth and current commissioner of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He joined the NBA in 1992 and has held various positions within the ...
becoming commissioner of the NBA in 2014, the dress code became more lenient, allowing players to be more expressive with what they wear.


Support

The dress code was announced as a direct consequence of the Malice at the Palace, as the NBA sought to undo its image problems, which were hurting its business. In 2019, Stern said that the
National Basketball Players Association The National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) is the labor union that represents National Basketball Association (NBA) players. It was founded in 1954, making it the oldest trade union of the four major professional sports leagues in the U ...
(NBPA), the
labor union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...
representing NBA players, originally supported the idea of a dress code, although the NBPA then attacked Stern after he announced the dress code.
Charles Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player who is a television analyst on NBA on TNT, TNT and CBS Sports. Nicknamed "Sir Charles", "the Bread Truck", and "the Round Mound of Rebound", ...
, in a 2005 interview on ''
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the fourth and sixth installment of ''The Tonight Show''. Hosted by Jay Leno, it aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009, replacing ''The Ton ...
'', conceded that there were racial overtones with the new dress code, but he generally supported it. Barkley said that bosses at all businesses are entitled to enact dress codes, and that athletes influence young fans. Writing for ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'' in 2016, Zack Graham said that although players were initially critical of the dress code, "Over the years, NBA players accepted, then embraced and eventually began to have fun with the new dress code, changing men's fashion in the process." This was also seen as a business opportunity, as NBA superstars often wanted to be the first to sport the newest fashion trends, with some collaborating with fashion houses create collections. Consequently numerous official NBA events including press conferences were being viewed as catwalks. Younger players, however, disliked the pressure to wear similarly expensive fashions as top players.


Opposition

Critics such as
Allen Iverson Allen Ezail Iverson ( ; born June 7, 1975) is an American former professional basketball player. Nicknamed "The Answer", he played 14 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as both a shooting guard and point guard. As an NBA rook ...
, Stephen Jackson and
Paul Pierce Paul Anthony Pierce (born October 13, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player. He played 19 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA), predominantly with the Boston Celtics. As of September 2024, he is a contributo ...
claimed that the dress code would not change a person's character regardless of what type of clothing they wore, and that associating hip-hop style of dress with
crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...
or a bad image is
racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...
. Iverson said, "the dress code is not who I am and doesn't allow me to express myself." Rod Benson wrote that, as a prospect in the D-League in 2006, the dress code created a financial burden for him. Many NBA and non-NBA sports figures also claimed that it targeted young black males and
hip-hop culture Hip-hop culture is an art movement that emerged in New York City, in the borough of The Bronx; Primarily within the black community. Hip Hop as an art form and culture has been heavily influenced by both male and female artists. It is charac ...
. Many NBA players are sponsored by rappers and casual wear brands such as Nike,
Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized in all lowercase since 1949) is a German athletic apparel and footwear corporation headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the ...
, Puma and Converse.


References


External links


NBA Dress Code specifics at NBA.com
{{NBA Dress code Dress code Clothing controversies African-American-related controversies Rules of the National Basketball Association Hip-hop fashion Organizational dress codes it:National Basketball Association#Codice di abbigliamento