The Detroit Pistons were one of many NBA teams to officially unveil their new 2024-25 City Edition uniforms.
Unlike many, the team seemed to kinda pack it in both with the unveil and the uniforms.
Unless I missed it, the team has not released a “hype” video (not that that’s a bad thing), and have only revealed a few photos. Even their press release announcement feels like an assignment for a term paper.
Here’s some of the few looks the team has put out.
The graphic below is basically the entire storytelling…
As you can see, the uniform has a cream base color (which the team is calling “bone”), and is relatively plain. There is black and orange piping around the neck and arm openings, and “Pistons” in what evokes an old automobile nameplate style. There is an orange number beneath the “Pistons” script, outlined in black. Down the sides of the jersey is a thin black/thick orange/thin black stripe.
The shorts have a black/orange/black waistband, and the sides of the shorts have the same stripe pattern as the side panel of the jersey. At the base of the left side of the shorts is a logo with “Pistons” at the base, in the same font as on the jersey, with “DETROIT” in block arched letters above. The logo is a basketball with “313” contained inside. The waistband has a “Det” script on black.
For reasons that aren’t immediately clear to me, the team is referring to these as “Detroit Bad Boys” (an obvious reference to the nickname of the squad that won back-to-back NBA Championships in 1989 and 1990). But again, unless I’m missing something, the uniforms worn during those Championship seasons bear no resemblance to the CE uniforms just unveiled.
Per the team:
This year’s uniforms are colored in “bone” and play on the skull and crossbones theme of the famous “Bad Boys” inspired logo. The Pistons script word mark is featured across the chest with vintage-inspired orange jersey numbers. An orange stripe down the side of the uniform is accented with a repeating 89-90 monochromatic number design. In a nod to the legendary Head Coach Chuck Daly, who led the “Bad Boys” to five straight Eastern Conference Finals appearances, three straight NBA Finals appearances and back-to-back NBA titles, the jersey jock tag features a special “back-2-back” emblem with Daly’s signature.
I wasn’t able to see any examples of the jock tag. The closest would be the image seen at the top of this post.
The Detroit Pistons City Edition uniforms will be worn 13 total times during the 2024-25 season, including six times at home. Each home game will coincide with “City Edition Nights,” tipping off on November 18. The team further announced a special edition court which will be used when the team wears the CEs, but I haven’t seen any photos of said new court.
The Pistons will also play those contests on a “Bad Boys” designed court. The court boasts “Detroit” in classic script font at center court as well as the modernized crackled logos on opposite ends of the playing surface. Skulls and crossbones with the jersey numbers of each player on the 1989 and 1990 championship rosters as well as Coach Daly are represented down the sidelines while the names of those who have been Detroit Pistons season-ticket holders for 20 or more years are etched inside the block Pistons logos on the baselines.
I certainly don’t want to especially single out the Pistons or their communications and social media teams, but this is one CE unveiling that almost feels like the team was just going through the motions.
As for the uniforms themselves — they’re pretty basic, and — unless I’m missing something again — don’t bear any resemblance or have any visual cues that would harken back to the 1989-1990 championship teams. That’s fine, but I don’t see anything here that either ties that in, nor does this feel in any way that it’s an homage to the City of Detroit. Other than the word “Detroit” on the pants or the “313” in that logo, nothing about this in any way says “Detroit” to me. Honestly, it’s pretty much just a color swap of their 2023-24 City Edition uniform.
Again, I don’t want to come down too hard on these uniforms, but based on the team’s social media and press release, it seems the team isn’t too thrilled with the entire CE program either.
Your thoughts?
Yep, just a color swap of last year’s CE, which is fine as a uniform but doesn’t look like a Pistons uniform. Would rather they pay homage the Bad Boys by changing their primary wordmark and numbers to the better looking ones worn in 89-90. Instead we get orange, black, and bone – with crackled logos and skulls and crossbones. Oh joy. Nike, please stop with this nonsense.
The colors and wordmark are based on a t-shirt that was sold in ’89-90 for the Bad Boys of Detroit. That is what they are referencing.
It (and last year’s City Edition uni) is a reference to this, a shirt design that was used back in the day: link
As far as “phoning it in”, that’s pretty much how the Pistons organization has been since the passing of former owner Bill Davidson.
This is top 3 CE this for me
If they swapped in pistons colors this is good enough to be a primary jersey in my opinion
Absolutely. The current identity is right the with the thunder as a generic non-brand. If they aren’t going to go for a car theme might as well do something with flair. Also why not make the standard logo the skull with crossed pistons?
Oh I get it. They’re bad to the “bone.”
After seeing the t-shirt they’re referencing, I guess kind of get what they were going for, but I think they’ve missed the mark with execution. They’d be pretty good uniforms for a college team like Oklahoma State or Oregon State.
Clearly they want to avoid using the skull-and-crossbones, which is understandable, but the design loses its intimidation factor. Since that was kind of the whole point of the source material, the idea seems a little doomed from the start. If you want to call yourselves “Bad Boys”, don’t self-censor your own logo.
Also on the pant logo, switching the city name and nickname is a strange decision (if not a mistake), and shoehorning the area code where the skull should be throws the logo way off.
They’re fine, I guess, but absolutely nothing about them says “Detroit Pistons” or “Bad Boys”.
Google “Detroit Bad Boys” See that shirt? Thats what theyre referencing
Very bland, not Detroit at all.
The font looks the same as the Raptors
To be honest, I liked the St. Cecilia 3rd uniform better. As a michigander it curated a curiosity to research the historical landmark. This one is probably more geared towards younger consumer