Kyle Kuzma trashes Nike's NBA jerseys for ruining nostalgia and brand identity

Washington Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma expressed his disappointment in the excess of city edition jerseys after the Los Angeles Clippers jerseys leaked on X (formerly Twitter).

Kuzma does have a point. In fact, Frank Michael Smith replied to Kuzma and claimed that we're in the middle of the most boring and uninspiring era of NBA jerseys. The thread reveals an alarming move towards minimalism, and not going to lie, it's hard to watch.

City Edition uniforms were introduced in 2016 to celebrate cities' heritage and culture. This also allowed Nike to take design risks that might be less well-received for standard jerseys. However, what was once a window into the city's culture no longer seems to be the case. For example, look at the Chicago Bulls jerseys that were leaked earlier this Fall.

Via Legion Hoops:

Can someone please explain what's so Chicago about this? As Kuzma said, brand identity is lost. Gone are the legendary Bulls' pinstripes which have been replaced with what appears to be something the antagonist would wear in a Disney Channel original movie.

City edition jerseys are all about marketability, of course. They exist to give fans another way to represent their favorite team each season. The classic colorway will always be there. That city edition jersey, on the other hand, will not. As consumers, "limited-time offers" put pressure on NBA fans, and this one is no different.

It can be argued that some city edition jerseys look better than others. In reality, most of these fits are disposable. Maybe that’s where Kuzma was headed with this. Few of these uniforms will have a lasting impact. Either way, Nike will keep churning these city editions out. That's the problem.