Another day, another promotional product in the news for an overlooked decorating detail. We saw it happen last year with the “My Favorite Color is Hitler” tote bag, and now it’s the NBA that is in foul trouble.
Here’s the deal:
Over the weekend, the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers won their respective NBA playoff conferences. When the players went to celebrate their huge victories, they did what playoff contenders have done for years: wore NBA Finals hats. While these hats ordinarily signify victory, a design decision made them the subject of confusion.
Unfortunately, the design team failed to notice that the logos for the winning teams obscured the “NBA” letters on the hat. As a result, “NBA” looked a lot more like “NRA,” which we all know typically stands for the National Rifle Association.
https://twitter.com/kathylaluk/status/1001845186073313280
While the NRA might enjoy the free press, most NBA fans were quick to point out the mistake. In addition, SFGate added that many of the NBA players and coaches, including Warriors coach Steve Kerr, have voiced their disapproval of the NRA, so the error could be considered even worse.
In the world of promotional apparel, we know more than anyone the importance of double checking your decoration. We’re not quite sure what happened with these NBA hats, but it’s a good reminder that smart logo and text placement is one of the keys to a successful promotional product.
