NBA to ban tights

[Vingianx]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2390599


After instituting a "business casual" dress code and cracking down on the length of uniform shorts, the NBA has identified its next fashion crusade.

League and team sources have told ESPN.com that the NBA, starting next season, intends to ban the tights sported at various points this season by several players, including three MVP candidates: Kobe Bryant, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade.

Although NBA officials are not publicly commenting on the issue, sources say that the league simply does not like the look of players wearing visible hose. It's believed that the league office, which already has regulations in place to curtail short lengths, can unilaterally outlaw tights by simply amending its uniform code before the 2006-07 season.

Sources say that the NBA informed its 30 teams at last month's competition committee meeting in Houston that tights would be banned immediately after All-Star Weekend. But the league wound up holding off on that ban, perhaps to avoid a new controversy after the initial furor sparked by the off-court dress code faded quickly and quietly.

Players who wish to wear tights are required to send the league a written request from a team doctor detailing a "medical need" for the leggings. That's because the league, according to sources, believes that some players are merely wearing them because they like the look.

Yet there are numerous players who insist that wearing full-length spandex under their uniform shorts keeps limbs warmer and looser than anything seen previously in the NBA. Dallas Mavericks swingman Jerry Stackhouse is widely seen as the pioneer of this practice, relying on a pair of runners' tights throughout last season's playoffs to combat a longstanding groin injury.

"I'm a 100-percent advocate," Stackhouse said.

That's why the 11-year veteran felt compelled to call NBA vice president Stu Jackson directly after learning of the forthcoming ban upon returning from the All-Star break. Stackhouse bristles at the notion that he's merely trying to be fashionable, pointing out that he has worn tights to every behind-closed-doors practice and shootaround until expectedly shedding them in Dallas' past three games.

"I've had a couple groin injuries and they help me get comfortable," Stackhouse said. "I wear thigh sleeves, too, and the tights also help keep them from sliding down my legs. They just hold everything together.

"When I talked to Stu, he was sympathetic. They don't want to be the ones causing guys to get hurt. But I don't know what the end result is going to be. I get the feeling they think it's some fashion statement or culture statement. It's really not. I'm just trying to take every preventative measure that I can."

Said Mavericks team physician T.O Souryal: "The tights provide compression. Compressed muscles fire efficiently, especially if injured. Players with muscle strains benefit from the improved circulation and support."

The sight of tights on an NBA player has inevitably been mocked by some -- Denver's Marcus Camby chastised peers for wearing "pantyhose" -- but became more commonplace this season after Bryant unveiled his leggings in November. James wore them briefly as well in January after injuring his knee, but the Cleveland star hasn't been seen in spandex for more than 25 games ... in part because he grew weary of answering so many questions about them. Bryant has since decided to play tights-free in the Los Angeles Lakers' past five games.

But Wade still wears them in Miami and so does New Jersey's Vince Carter. The team most devoted to the concept is Milwaukee, with five everyday tights-wearers after Joe Smith tried them first: Andrew Bogut, Toni Kukoc, Michael Redd and Maurice Williams in addition to Smith.

Bogut recently told the Associated Press: "I don't like how it looks, but I don't play basketball for looks."

Smith told the AP: "It's something to keep you warm. It keeps my knee from swelling up, keeps some tightness around it so it won't blow up on me when I'm out there. It's meant a lot to me."

More than five percent of the league's players have worn tights at some stage during the season, including five of its top 10 leading scorers. At least eight players that have worn tights this year -- including Bryant, James, Redd and Carter -- are Nike-sponsored athletes, and the shoe giant now sells a "pro basic" pair of tights for $35 and a "pro thermal" pair for $50.

Stackhouse, though, supplies his own tights and has been since he came up with the idea almost a year ago.

"If they ban 'em," Stackhouse said, "I'll find something else."

[Dalamar_the_Dark]

David Stern is trying to turn the NBA into some kind of military facility. Dress code. Uniform code. Next up on the agenda will be that players will have to march into the arena during team introduction and learn other drills.

[Kori Ellis]

I heard a couple months ago that they would be banning long socks and tights. It will be interesting if it actually happens as a lot of players are wearing tights these days.

[MannyIsGod]

Thats retarded especially if players wear them for reasons such as those Stackhouse stated.

[Vingianx]

i hate stern more than any other sport's commissioner

[TDMVPDPOY]

I reckon they should get rid of the tights, there are other alternatives the players can wear like knee sleeves instead of tights.

They look gay in it!

[Spurologist]

Sternie's power is getting a bit out of hand. Long socks and tights have been trade mark clothing for many players. Who gives a shit what they were on the court. Apparently sternie has other ideas.

[timvp]

I was sure when I saw the tights get popular that the NBA would come out with some NBA Leg Enhancers and make a buck off of it.

[Vingianx]

then they all want to talk about the lenght of the shorts....wtf

[midgetonadonkey]

It's racial. How many white players wear the tights? Think about that.

[polandprzem]

:lol midget



hey is this real? WTF?
I agree with Sequ in that one.
What will be next? They won't allowe chewing gum cause somebody may choke :rolleyes
This leauge is changeing into kindergarten

[gospursgojas]

It's racial. How many white players wear the tights? Think about that.

Bogut wears them and he's Australian or something....

I dont agree with he rule, but I guess Stern will say something like he is protecting the integrety of the sport. He doesn't want the NBA to become the WWE and sports entertainment, instead of SPORTS... The NFL is doing the same with the new celebration rule...

[Darrin]

i hate stern more than any other sport's commissioner


I hate Selig more, but Stern is up there. Who cares if the NBA gets mocked for this? I don't like the idea of players wearing them because their shoe company is marketing them, but this is like banning knee braces because they clash with the uniforms.

Once again, Nazi Stern is driving me away from the game, not closer to it. The NBA is slowly becoming this showman league where defense is not rewarded and all the players say the exact same things when staring into a camera.

There comes a point when public relations starts to hurt the business' reputation because it's assumed that the business is serving its own interests over the truth. The Pistons were killed in the media in the late 1990s for having "yet another gimmick." Some even questioned Joe D's hire as trying to bank on the Pistons' Bad Boys past rather than putting the best person in position to run the organization.

Stern's working himself into that pitfall where he'll have to earn the consumer-base's trust back.

[Kori Ellis]

Again, when I first heard this a few months back, they said it might include knee high socks too. It's ridiculous to me. But look for it to happen.

[gospursgojas]

Again, when I first heard this a few months back, they said it might include knee high socks too. It's ridiculous to me. But look for it to happen.

Knee high socks too??? :rolleyes Now thats just getting ridiculous

High socks have been around for years

[T-Pain]

pretty damn queer

no doubt, Stern wants to see more whats under the shorts, spandex, and socks...

[Darrin]

Knee high socks too??? :rolleyes Now thats just getting ridiculous

High socks have been around for years

I used to wear knee-highs to hide some pretty disgusting looking skin problems. Are you telling me there is no room for hiding psoriasis in the NBA now?

[polandprzem]

Players should play in ties

[Kori Ellis]

Knee high socks too??? :rolleyes Now thats just getting ridiculous

High socks have been around for years

I'm not saying knee socks will happen for sure. I'm just telling everyone that is what has been being discussed this year.

[Spurologist]

I'm not saying knee socks will happen for sure. I'm just telling everyone that is what has been being discussed this year.

Even the discussion of such a thing is mind boggling to me. High socks have been the trade mark clothing for many players for many years. Has Sternie suddently developed a fashion sense he wants the nba to display. wtf. He should stop watching queer eye for the guy or whatever that show is called.

[polandprzem]

No mustaches and no afros, no white skin, no black skin, no yellow skin. Everybody will have green skin (painted permanently).

[Darrin]

Well, to be honest the NBA is hemmoraging in terms of their reputation in red states (sans Texas which is firmly entrenched with contenders). They brought in a consultant to change their image sometime midway through last season, and the NBA's been pissing me off ever since then.

So everyone get in line and look alike. People will "accept" you that way.

The next thing he's going to do is bleach the skin of every player in the NBA. That's really what this seems to be about.

[Buddy Holly]

Trust in Stern I say!

I mean, if he doesn't ban the tights, THIS is the future of the NBA:

http://www.ladyofthecake.com/mel/hood/images/menintit.jpg

[Shaolin-Style]

if it helps them in medical ways I think it's ridiculous to encourage players not to wear them.

[kalikot_boy_kr]

:drunk korea and japan wear them too, its not racial hahhahaha!

[SpursWoman]

They can't just make nude hose? :wtf :lol

[pache100]

It's racial. How many white players wear the tights? Think about that.

:tu

That thought crossed my mind, too.

[SpursWoman]

I've only seen about 3 players wear them in actual games. Is that really enough to assume any kind of racial bias?

[pache100]

I've only seen about 3 players wear them in actual games. Is that really enough to assume any kind of racial bias?

Probably not. I just noticed that the only people I have seen wearing them are black (I have not seen Bogut with them on yet). It was just an observation on my part, and the racial thing did occur to me for some reason when the talk about banning them started up. It just seems like a stupid thing to hone in on to me, generally speaking. It's a fad; if they just leave it alone, the fad will fade of its own accord.

[Supergirl]

Hahahahahaha.

This is so ridiculous I thought the article was a joke. I clicked the link just to make sure it was real.

[boutons_]

Tights are purely a question of style and preference, not utility and not medical. A medical use for wearing stockings would be to reduce or prevent oedema.

Stackhouse, "They just hold everything together", needs to discover the old technology of jockstraps. Or maybe the NBA should go back to tight-fitting hot-pants as in era before Michael Jordan?

Overdressing is common as in the American joe-college "layering" style, clothes on top of clothes.

Why TF do police, military, etc wear white, round-neck t-shirts under their uniforms IN THE MIDDLE OF SUMMER? Why are t-shirts defined as part of their uniform? Why do American men feel that putting on just a shirt with no undershirt in hot months is undressed?

For warmth? They lose a lot heat from their legs? Most heat is lost from the head (so the Stackhouse-like baldies should grow some hair), neck, and upper body, not from the legs. Owners are too cheap to heat the arenas? Why have the legs of generations of basketball players survived without tights until now?

European soccer players wear tights for games in outdoor stadiums in the dead of winter.

[SpursWoman]

Stackhouse, "They just hold everything together", needs to discover the old technology of jockstraps. Or maybe the NBA should go back to tight-fitting hot-pants as in era before Michael Jordan?


They aren't just for water retention. :lol They improve circulation and reduce the recovery time of over-stressed muscles and help prevent fatigue. They use compression socks (which are very similar) in the hospital all of the time to improve circulation and help prevent blod clots in patients who are not mobile. I'd say that's kind of medical. :)

Although, I have to admit, watching someone running up and down the court with a jockstrap tied around their thighs would be pretty damn entertaining. :fro

[leemajors]

i hate stern more than any other sport's commissioner

then you hate basketball.

[pache100]

You also see a lot of athletes (especially NBA players) using those thin bands around tendons in their elbows and knees to keep the tendons compressed. They don't look like they could do a thing, but they do. I think the tights are just a larger version of the "shooting arm sleeve" and the knee, elbow, shin, thigh, calf, ankle, etc., supports you see hundreds of the players wearing during games for various reasons. Some wear them because they have had an injury and some wear them for extra support for weak joints or muscles to prevent injury. What possible difference could it make in the long run if a guy wears athletic tights on the court? If you don't like the way it looks, don't look at his legs. It's as simple as that. I have my doubts as to whether or not it actually makes a difference in a guy's game, but if he believes it does, that's good enough for me. I just think this controlling what the players wear is getting a little out of control (IMHO, it's just Stern exercising what little power he has over the players - nobody seems to be worried about it but him?) and it needs to stop.

[boutons_]

Sure, medical uses of medical tights are fine for PROBLEMS.

Do all these game-shape pro athletes have medical problems with circulation in their legs?

no, it's just a distracting question of "urban" style :)

[SpursWoman]

I really don't have a problem with them as far as being considered out of uniform or whatever, in that respect I see the league's point, but I did have fun laughing at Kobe running around in purple tights. :lol

[pache100]

Sure, medical uses of medical tights are fine for PROBLEMS.

Do all these game-shape pro athletes have medical problems with circulation in their legs?

no, it's just a distracting question of "urban" style :)

The only reason it's distracting is because Stern is MAKING it a distraction. If everybody, especially Stern, just shut the hell up about it, it would go away by itself.


I did have fun laughing at Kobe running around in purple tights. :lol

That was pretty humorous! :lol

[SpursWoman]

Sure, medical uses of medical tights are fine for PROBLEMS.

Do all these game-shape pro athletes have medical problems with circulation in their legs?

no, it's just a distracting question of "urban" style :)


You are going to disagree with a woman about the benefits of support hose? :lol

Ever trying standing on your feet all day in heels? The difference in how tired your legs get is pretty significant between wearing support hose and not wearing them. They definitely make your legs last longer, so to speak. Just because they are generally in top athletic shape, doesn't make them immune to fatigue or injury...especially if they've already suffered an injury and are trying to protect it.

[pache100]

You are going to disagree with a woman about the benefits of support hose? :lol

Ever trying standing on your feet all day in heels? The difference in how tired your legs get is pretty significant between wearing support hose and not wearing them. They definitely make your legs last longer, so to speak.

:tu :cat

[greywheel]

I was sure when I saw the tights get popular that the NBA would come out with some NBA Leg Enhancers and make a buck off of it.

While I read the article, I was thinking why can't the NBA just make them more appealing. Last night was the first time I noticed someone (don't know who?) wearing what looked like white hospital (T.E.D) hose. It did look stupid. But would it be so bad if they were colored to match the uniform?

[SpursWoman]

I was sure when I saw the tights get popular that the NBA would come out with some NBA Leg Enhancers and make a buck off of it.


Could you see Shaq pimping Under Armour? :lol

[pache100]

Could you see Shaq pimping Under Armour? :lol

http://i2.tinypic.com/so1o3a.gif

[ambchang]

Who controls the past, controls the future.
Who controls the present, controls the past.

[Trainwreck2100]

So how will Tim, Dirk, Steve and Rash be able to dance together?

[1Parker1]

Doesn't the NBA have anything more important to discuss and debate with at their meetings other than players wearing "tights?" Banning them has got to be the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard for the simple fact that it's even an "issue" to begin with.

Stern really needs to concentrate on improving NBA ratings, keeping players like Artest out of the stands, and fixing the playoff ranking system instead of worrying about freakin tights 5% of the players wear!!!! :rolleyes

[pache100]

Stern and the league also desperately need to do something about the quality and consistency of the officiating.

[leemajors]

if it's anything like the dress code, it probably has more to do with keeping corporate sponsor money, which is of the utmost importance for any sporting league.

[pache100]

if it's anything like the dress code, it probably has more to do with keeping corporate sponsor money, which is of the utmost importance for any sporting league.

I don't understand how wearing or not wearing "tights" on the court could possibly affect that. I'm sure they are more likely than not manufactured by one of the corporate sponsors.

[boutons_]

Accessorizing __UNIFORMS__ for style won't stop with tights (it didn't start with tights, either).

There'll be short- and long-sleeve shirts under the jerseys, "I'm cold. Fuck you Stern, I won't make HoF if forced to play with naked arms and shoulders."

1970s pimp/pusher style with zebra and leopard fur on head bands and arm bands,

diamond-studded nose-masks with flashing LEDs

[Brutalis]

The dress code had some substance and points. The NBA wants a better image instead of looking like a thug. No harm in that, but maybe pushed a little far.

But no tights? Which are we talking about? Sleeves and such? Or under the shorts?

[nkdlunch]

next on the list, ban cornrows

[1Parker1]

if it's anything like the dress code, it probably has more to do with keeping corporate sponsor money, which is of the utmost importance for any sporting league.

I don't get it, it's not like you can see who the tights are made by...i.e. Nike, Reebok, etc. So how would that affect corporate sponsor money???

[Brutalis]

:lol

[SpursWoman]

I don't think I've ever heard of men wearing tights and thug in the same sentence. :lmao

[1Parker1]

I don't think I've ever heard of men wearing tights and thug in the same sentence. :lmao

:lmao Yea, cuz we all know that deep down, Superman and Batman were thugs.

[Sec24Row7]

Why dont they just get down to what they want to do and make the black players wear white body makeup?

[pache100]

But no tights? Which are we talking about? Sleeves and such? Or under the shorts?

http://i2.tinypic.com/so3i9w.jpg

[SpursWoman]

Why dont they just get down to what they want to do and make the black players wear white body makeup?


Oh great. So now not only are the league officials and corporate sponsors biggots, they are also homophobes.

:rolleyes


http://images.picturequest.com/common/detail/75/67/22426775.jpg



:lol :lol

[BigVee]

I guess I am in the minority here, but why call them uniforms if they are going to be different? What if a player wants one leg purple and the other gold? Is that okay? Or striped leggings? Okay? I personally don't like them or the shirts you often see underneath the jerseys. I believe a team should look like a team. And, believe the league needs to regulate things like this. Players hair, tatoos, etc are individual to their body...but I believe a uniform is supposed to be the same by definition, tradition and what looks the best.

[SpursWoman]

I really don't have a problem with them as far as being considered out of uniform or whatever :lol


Not the total minority....I just didn't say it very well. :oops :)

[Rummpd]

If they prevent injuries (which is fully medically plausible) in million dollar athletes playing important games = come up with a standard color and let em have it - in my move a sublime move without putting it out for discussion by medical experts.

[ambchang]

I guess I am in the minority here, but why call them uniforms if they are going to be different? What if a player wants one leg purple and the other gold? Is that okay? Or striped leggings? Okay? I personally don't like them or the shirts you often see underneath the jerseys. I believe a team should look like a team. And, believe the league needs to regulate things like this. Players hair, tatoos, etc are individual to their body...but I believe a uniform is supposed to be the same by definition, tradition and what looks the best.
So by that definition, they should all wear the same socks, shoes, no knee braces, no goggles, no ankle tape, etc ....
People working in a McDs wear things other than the uniforms. Rings, watches, etc ... people in those private schools have certain liberties in their uniforms, so why do atheletes have to conform to strict uniform regulations?

[tekdragon]

Damn, am I the only gone glad to see these awful things go?

Leave the pantyhose to the ladies. Please.

[tekdragon]

Correction:

I guess it's ok if Ray Allen wears them.

[infinite styles]

Next year they are going to bring in Michael Jackson as a consultant on skin bleaching techniques for the black players. 90% of the players are non-white but damn near 70% of veiwers are white so I guess Sterns is trying to set his demographic.

[SpursWoman]

I think we've already established that the league is nothing but a bunch of biggoted homophobes. :fro

[ALVAREZ6]

David Stern is rediculous.







In 5 years, you won't be able to have corn rows, white guys won't be able to have long hair, it will have to be combed or gelled.
There won't be any headbands, wristbands, sleeves of any sort allowed.

Stern will also force players to wear shoes that are only 1 color: white for home, black for away. Not even any accent colors, just all white or all black.



And in 10 years, players will be wearing bowties as part of their game uniforms.

Stern will also replace the draw-strings from the shorts with leather belts that are attached to them.




pathetic...

[Vashner]

OMG this is what stupid happens when you let suits come in and not players make rules....

I think it's time for leadership change. There should be some rotation... Stern is like a dictator that never wants to leave office.

Granted the little bugger is good luck with his NBA Champ EEn presentations...

argh.. I give up let the beeper stay till we win another ring THEN he goes...

[BigVee]

So by that definition, they should all wear the same socks, shoes, no knee braces, no goggles, no ankle tape, etc ....
People working in a McDs wear things other than the uniforms. Rings, watches, etc ... people in those private schools have certain liberties in their uniforms, so why do atheletes have to conform to strict uniform regulations?

Well I belive knee braces, goggles, ankle tape help prevent/mitigate injury. Yes I think half the team in regular socks and half knee high looks like shit. But that is just my opinion. I doubt I would call rings and watches part of a uniform. Would you have part of the team with regular jerseys and part in throw backs? Why not just practice jerseys, or better yet shirts and skins?

[leemajors]

OMG this is what stupid happens when you let suits come in and not players make rules....

I think it's time for leadership change. There should be some rotation... Stern is like a dictator that never wants to leave office.

Granted the little bugger is good luck with his NBA Champ EEn presentations...

argh.. I give up let the beeper stay till we win another ring THEN he goes...


suits pay the salaries. as soon as players start funding their own league, building their own stadiums, and start paying themselves, i'm sure they could make the rules. you really want one of the best commissioners this game or any other has ever seen to leave over some suits and tights? you do realize where the NBA was before stern took over don't you?

[Vinnie_Johnson]

It's racial. How many white players wear the tights? Think about that.

How many white players are in the NBA?

[LilMissSPURfect]

Correction:

I guess it's ok if Ray Allen wears them.
:lol
surely in his case they wouldn't be "tights" (nothing there to hold)
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.still fuming over that BeOTCH

[tekdragon]

leemajors rules.

So does David Stern. Be grateful you're not stuck with Selig.

[Vingianx]

I've only seen about 3 players wear them in actual games. Is that really enough to assume any kind of racial bias?

i don't even notice the players wearing them when they play, i only pay attention when the commentators bring it up during the game...

[Vingianx]

Hahahahahaha.

This is so ridiculous I thought the article was a joke. I clicked the link just to make sure it was real.

yeah, i thought it was an april fools joke from espn or something....here's to hoping it is

[Vingianx]

I guess I am in the minority here, but why call them uniforms if they are going to be different? What if a player wants one leg purple and the other gold? Is that okay? Or striped leggings? Okay? I personally don't like them or the shirts you often see underneath the jerseys. I believe a team should look like a team. And, believe the league needs to regulate things like this. Players hair, tatoos, etc are individual to their body...but I believe a uniform is supposed to be the same by definition, tradition and what looks the best.


I know what you're saying about being a TEAM is true... but remember we're talking about a league that is full of individuals who like to distinguisht themselves from the rest....i.e. if they take away the ben fro it would hurt the Palace's wig sales :lol

IMO i think this sort of things makes the league more fun and attractive than just watching a bunch of same looking players play and not knowing who just dunked it cus that player looks the same as the center, or PF, or SG, or PG

[ambchang]

Well I belive knee braces, goggles, ankle tape help prevent/mitigate injury. Yes I think half the team in regular socks and half knee high looks like shit. But that is just my opinion. I doubt I would call rings and watches part of a uniform. Would you have part of the team with regular jerseys and part in throw backs? Why not just practice jerseys, or better yet shirts and skins?
So does those tights. They help the muscles stay warm, and lessen the probability of pulling a muscle.
And you have illustrated my point exactly. Where do you draw the line by your definition? Do you draw the line at the tights? Or do you draw it further down the line, until every single player dresses in exactly the same fashion?
The biggest thing NBA had for them was the individuality of the players. Jordan with his double wrist band up his elbows, Kareem and his goggles, Rodman and his hairdo, Iverson and his rows, these are the things that markets them. But then, the NBA wants to kill something that is inconsequential. I seriously do not see how tights could affect the image of the league. So is some guy, some casual fan going to watch a game, noticed that 5% of the player on the court (that averages to have 1 every game with two teams of 10 regular rotation guys) wear those tights, doesn't like it, and never watch the game again?

[Circe]

First, what's the problem with playing shirts and skins? I'd love to see the shirts and skins game and maybe David Robinson would come out of retirement for it.

Secondly, uniforms identify the players with their team. They can do that without depriving players of whatever undergarments or assistive technology they feel they need to play their best game and avoid injury. If one guy has to wear a mask to protect his sinus cavity to feel safe and play well, let him wear it. If another guy wants to wear goggles to protect his eyes (I'm not sure why they all don't wear goggles), so he can play without worrying about getting his eye poked out, let him wear goggles. And if another player thinks tights keep his muscles from tightening up on the bench, let him wear freaking tights. Nose guards, goggles, and tights all look completely dorky, but if they help some of the greatest athletes in the world play even better, without giving them an unfair advantage or causing permanent injury, why would anyone mind--unless it's not really about the sport but some weird uniform gratification.

[veronicamae]

I really hate the tights, I think they look stupid, like Kobe running around with completely purple legs lol.

That being said, if they keep their lower extremities warmer than without, they will be less prone to muscle strains, and better able to play with pre-existing injuries. Kobe has worn a simple leave on his calf for more than a season, so I think it's safe that he's not doing it for the sole reason of fashion.

I believe it is within Stern's rights to implement whatever code he wants - it's his league after all. It's no different than any other workplace banning certain types of clothing.

And to the people that think this is racial - omg, get over it - why does EVERYTHING have to be racial? First the dress code was racial, now the banning of leggings? LOL it's time to stop playing the race cards...seriously.

[veronicamae]

David Stern is rediculous.

In 5 years, you won't be able to have corn rows, white guys won't be able to have long hair, it will have to be combed or gelled.
There won't be any headbands, wristbands, sleeves of any sort allowed.

Stern will also force players to wear shoes that are only 1 color: white for home, black for away. Not even any accent colors, just all white or all black.

And in 10 years, players will be wearing bowties as part of their game uniforms.

Stern will also replace the draw-strings from the shorts with leather belts that are attached to them.

pathetic...

dramatic...
:rolleyes

[veronicamae]

The dress code had some substance and points. The NBA wants a better image instead of looking like a thug. No harm in that, but maybe pushed a little far.

But no tights? Which are we talking about? Sleeves and such? Or under the shorts?

The tights that are full length, from waist to ankle:

http://www.deadspin.com/sports/kobetightsthing.jpg