I think the Village People are going to get played a lot at Hawks games going forward, because the team has just announced that the YMCA of Metro Atlanta will be the team’s new uniform advertiser. The deal is being described as “multi-year”; financial terms were not disclosed. The ad will make its on-court debut tomorrow night, when the Hawks host the Pacers.
The deal also extends to the team’s affiliates in the G League (the College Park Skyhawks) and the NBA 2K League (Hawks Talon GC).
Here are some additional photos:
I remain opposed to all uniform ads, but this one is certainly easier to stomach than most of the others we’ve seen, because the Y is a nonprofit community organization with a deep connection to basketball, instead of some corporation looking to piggyback on the NBA’s lifestyle coattails. I’m frankly a bit surprised that the Y would want to spend a significant chunk of its budget on a uni ad, but maybe the Hawks gave them a sweetheart deal or something. In any case, this is definitely the most unexpected uni ad since the Jazz went with “5 for the Fight.”
Also worth noting: The team’s press release says, “The Hawks partnered with Excel Sports Management on the jersey patch opportunity.” In other words, the Hawks hired an agency to find a uni advertiser, a process I delved into in this recent Substack article.
I like how they made the logo to red and yellow on the white jersey to match the uniform better. Though I can’t believe I’m giving a jersey ad any compliment at all…
I think the Red/Yellow colorway is an officially accepted colorway also. The logo at my Y is maybe a little more orange than yellow, but it’s close.
You can get yourself clean, you can have a good meal
You can do whatever you feel
I can support this one. Not only is it a non-profit (which I have plenty of reservations about, but theoretically it’s doing good) but it’s also basketball adjacent. And rendered in team colors!
And, it looks like they have best Y-League youth basketball unis ever!
What a way to turn your team in to one never ending punchline!
Ad aside, I’m surprised the Hawks red and white uniforms don’t get more attention for being absolutely beautiful and arguably the best in the league.
This ad actually looks and feels good to me. Really basketball related, for a change.
How do you feel about it being a religious institution (at least, I think it still is?)