Brooklyn Nets launch new logo. Reactions mixed
The Brooklyn Nets have released a new logo, designed by rapper and co-owner Jay-Z. Love it or hate it, it won't really catch on until the Brooklyn Nets start winning more basketball games.
Brooklyn Nets basketball player Brook Lopez tries on a hat with the new Nets logo during a news conference to unveil the new logos in Brooklyn, N.Y., Monday, April 30, 2012.
Seth Wenig/AP
The newly relocated Brooklyn Nets went one step further in their franchise transformation Monday, releasing a new logo that鈥檚 a complete do-over of the red, white, and blue threads of the team鈥檚 days in New Jersey.
Designed by hip hop mogul and Nets minority owner Jay-Z, the new Nets logo is monochromatic, retro, and a tad literal. A black, badge-shaped backdrop encases the 鈥淣ETS鈥� name, written in thin, all caps font. That sits atop a basketball engraved with a 鈥淏鈥� for Brooklyn. Another variant has the 鈥淏鈥� basketball encircled by the world 鈥淏rooklyn New York.鈥�
"The Brooklyn Nets logos are another step we've made to usher the organization into a new era," Jay-Z said in a statement. "The boldness of the designs demonstrates the confidence we have in our new direction. Along with our move to Brooklyn and a state-of-the-art arena, the new colors and logos are examples of our commitment to update and refine all aspects of the team."
The design is inspired in part by the signage of the New York Subway system, according to a statement on the Nets website.
The new logo was unveiled at a press conference in a Modell鈥檚 sporting goods store near Barclays Center on Flatbush Avenue 鈥� the Nets鈥� new arena. Nets star Brook Lopez was in attendance, as well as Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz. The Nets are the first major professional sports team to call Brooklyn home since baseball鈥檚 Dodgers packed up for Los Angeles in 1957.
The Nets join the San Antonio Spurs, Chicago White Sox, and Oakland Raiders in the ranks of pro teams sporting a noncolor color scheme (a short subway ride away, the New York Yankees could probably be included in this group, but their pinstripes are technically navy). The Nets鈥� uniforms won鈥檛 be unveiled until later this year, probably September.
But shirts hats, and other Nets merchandise are now available, and reactions around the web are decidedly mixed. While some hail the logo as sleek and appreciate the aggressive courting of the urban market (the products are peppered with Jay-Z lyrics and other hip hop references), others complain that they are plain and derivative, some bemoaning the lack of color.
鈥淭hey鈥檙e ugly. I expected more from Jay-Z,鈥� analyst Tony Kornheiser lamented on ESPN鈥檚 鈥淧ardon the Interruption.鈥� The logo is the only one in the NBA to use a black and white color scheme, but a column in the Wall Street Journal griped about the tired use of a basketball in the logo, noting that 20 out of the 30 NBA teams also have basketball-centric logos.
But whichever side of the uniform debate wins out, it won鈥檛 matter unless the team can turn its fortunes around on the court. During the Nets鈥� 35 seasons in the NBA, the franchise has never won a championship. They鈥檝e only made it to the NBA finals twice, in 2002 and 2003. The Nets haven鈥檛 made the playoffs since 2007. For the shortened 2012 season, they had the worst record in the Eastern Conference's Atlantic Division, at 22 and 44.聽 In a crowded professional sports market like New York, with storied franchises like the Yankees and Knicks, such a history will have a hard time attracting new fans.
But start winning, and the Nets can do anything they want with their team look. Case in point: The University of Miami Hurricanes, a team with five national championships and arguably the sports world's most horrid color scheme. Should the Nets win five titles, nary a soul will be complaining about Jay-Z鈥檚 logo design. The San Antonio Spurs have won four NBA titles since 1999, and they wear their black and gray in peace.