Overdone logo crutch

[o.m.]

Too many NBA logos incorporate a ball. Why the unoriginal crutch? 67% (20 out of 30 teams) have a basketball somewhere in their primary logo. Compare that to MLB, only 33% use a ball (10 out of 30 teams) NHL, 13% use a puck (4 out of 30) and NFL, 6% (2 out of 32) use a ball. Yes we know your team plays basketball, we don't NEED to see it in the logo. It is a cheap and lazy gimmick that you don't see in other products. Think of the logos for McDonalds, Apple, Nike, NBC, ect. A good logo does not need a hamburger, computer, shoe, or television to convey a brand. What do you think? Are you as sick of it with the NBA as I am?

[The Imperfect]

I think it makes sense to have a basketball in the logo cause you know, they are a basketball team...

[FGWB]

Too many NBA logos incorporate a ball. Why the unoriginal crutch? 67% (20 out of 30 teams) have a basketball somewhere in their primary logo. Compare that to MLB, only 33% use a ball (10 out of 30 teams) NHL, 13% use a puck (4 out of 30) and NFL, 6% (2 out of 32) use a ball. Yes we know your team plays basketball, we don't NEED to see it in the logo. It is a cheap and lazy gimmick that you don't see in other products. Think of the logos for McDonalds, Apple, Nike, NBC, ect. A good logo does not need a hamburger, computer, shoe, or television to convey a brand. What do you think? Are you as sick of it with the NBA as I am?

If it works as a part of the logo, why not?

[JTernup]

I don't see a problem with it, many of these logos would look wierd and just plain bad without balls.

[wloowarrior22]

The NBA encourages teams to incorporate a ball into their team identity. I have no idea why, but I remember reading about it when Golden State was doing all of their recent changes.

[jaha32]

lots of it just has to do with the way logos evolved over time for each respective league, so why does it matter if basketballs appears on a basketball team's logo?

football logos dont have room for a lot of detail or even words since they are shrunk onto helmets any extra detail would get lost. nba primary logos are usually quite big on courts so they have room for words, balls, and anything else.

and in your statistical breakdown, you say only 33% of hte mlb uses a ball, but baseball also uses bats, gloves, and even diamonds. so if you break it down that way almost all mlb logos use some element of the sport which would be even more than basketball.

[Wilt]

I guess this is just NBA thing. I don't mind incorporating basketball somewhere in the logo, especially when it's done smartly. What I find most boring in many NBA logos, is that they are script logos (Spurs and Nuggets, for example do not even need a ball). However, I wouldn't change most of them because they are part of team's identity (e.g. U-shaped Spur) and I'm happy that Pistons and Warriors dropped their 90s logos. As for merchandizing purposes the alternate logos are widely used nowadays. I can understand NHL fans complaining about Ducks logo, because in hockey you need something round and disctinctive to put on the jerseys. IMHO, each sport has their own traditions and unwritten rules (I hope I won't start another Kings discussion with this sentence). Another point is that the NBA teams have rather ambigous names so the script logo is the easiest solution normally. However, when a new franchise is established, one should tried harder than the Thunder people did.

When it comes to incorporating basketball, I think that must have something to do with NBA global exposure. I imagine that most of the people in the world know about Lakers and Bulls but after seeing Thunder or Clippers logo for the first time, they could associate it with a sport discipline better.

[number81]

Too many NBA logos incorporate a ball. Why the unoriginal crutch? 67% (20 out of 30 teams) have a basketball somewhere in their primary logo. Compare that to MLB, only 33% use a ball (10 out of 30 teams) NHL, 13% use a puck (4 out of 30) and NFL, 6% (2 out of 32) use a ball. Yes we know your team plays basketball, we don't NEED to see it in the logo. It is a cheap and lazy gimmick that you don't see in other products. Think of the logos for McDonalds, Apple, Nike, NBC, ect. A good logo does not need a hamburger, computer, shoe, or television to convey a brand. What do you think? Are you as sick of it with the NBA as I am?

Only 4 NHL teams use a puck, but 8 NHL teams (Atlanta, Florida, LA, Washington, Pittsburgh, Vancouver, San Jose, and Islanders) use a hockey stick in either their primary or alternate logos. If you throw in identities from the 2000s - you can add Anaheim, Edmonton, Columbus and Phoenix.

[leggman01]

If you take all the major 4 sports logos to a class of 1st graders, most of whom don't know what logos belong in what league. I'm very certain that the NBA would have the highest percentage correct.

1st graders aren't exactly the nba's target market, though

[Morgan33]

Too many NBA logos incorporate a ball. Why the unoriginal crutch? What do you think? Are you as sick of it with the NBA as I am?

The NBA is hardly the pinnacle of Sports design... in fact its likely the nadir of the four major sports logo wise.

[BrandMooreArt]

i agree with the OP. theres no need to be so literal, which is usually a lack of creativity. there are some exceptions like Indiana and Orlando, but whenever i see a BB logo featuring a ball i just think "try harder".

[o.m.]

If you take all the major 4 sports logos to a class of 1st graders, most of whom don't know what logos belong in what league. I'm very certain that the NBA would have the highest percentage correct.

First graders sure know McDonalds when they see it, no burger needed in the logo.

[nash61]

My pet peeve isn't so much the ball in nearly every logo, it's the wordmark.

EVERY logo has some form of a wordmark.

[UnclearInitial]

My pet peeve isn't so much the ball in nearly every logo, it's the wordmark.

EVERY logo has some form of a wordmark.

That's because the NBA wants that

[YessSir32]

I don't see any problem with this, the NBA promotes it and they wouldn't look right without basketballs incorporated in them.

[Morgan33]

My pet peeve isn't so much the ball in nearly every logo, it's the wordmark.

EVERY logo has some form of a wordmark.

That's because the NBA wants that

Which completely kills any potential for a good primary logo. Almost every one of these teams has an alternate logo that would do a far better job of symbolizing them.

A few Examples are the New Orleans "Fleur De Bee," The Mavericks logo with just the horse and basketball, The Nugget's Crossed Pickaxes, The Cavaliers Sword and Flag, the Timberwolves Howling Wolf, etc etc.

This aspect of NBA logos annoys me even more than using the basketball motif as a crutch.

[loogodude90]

My pet peeve isn't so much the ball in nearly every logo, it's the wordmark.

EVERY logo has some form of a wordmark.

That's because the NBA wants that

Which completely kills any potential for a good primary logo. Almost every one of these teams has an alternate logo that would do a far better job of symbolizing them.

A few Examples are the New Orleans "Fleur De Bee," The Mavericks logo with just the horse and basketball, The Nugget's Crossed Pickaxes, The Cavaliers Sword and Flag, the Timberwolves Howling Wolf, etc etc.

This aspect of NBA logos annoys me even more than using the basketball motif as a crutch.

I disagree with all those examples. I like the fact that all NBA teams include their nickname in their primary logo. It looks nice and consistent when you look at them as a whole, as opposed to a hodgepodge of logos that look like they are in different stages of completion.

Sounds like you would enjoy NFL primary logos... so deal with the NBA logos being the way they are and go admire the NFL primary logos.

[MDC]

My pet peeve isn't so much the ball in nearly every logo, it's the wordmark.

EVERY logo has some form of a wordmark.

That's because the NBA wants that

Which completely kills any potential for a good primary logo. Almost every one of these teams has an alternate logo that would do a far better job of symbolizing them.

A few Examples are the New Orleans "Fleur De Bee," The Mavericks logo with just the horse and basketball, The Nugget's Crossed Pickaxes, The Cavaliers Sword and Flag, the Timberwolves Howling Wolf, etc etc.

This aspect of NBA logos annoys me even more than using the basketball motif as a crutch.

I think youre taking the word 'primary' too literally. Yes, each of those logos is designated as the team's 'primary' logo, but you never see the Philadelphia 76ers use that logo. The NBA requires a wordmark do that collections of logos look cohesive and each logo is identifiable. The Hawks, Bulls, Rockets, Grizzlies, Heat, Sixers, and Wizards all have the slapped-on wordmark in their primary logo, but things like uniforms, court designs, and merchandise almost always use the graphic alone

[nash61]

My pet peeve isn't so much the ball in nearly every logo, it's the wordmark.

EVERY logo has some form of a wordmark.

That's because the NBA wants that

Which completely kills any potential for a good primary logo. Almost every one of these teams has an alternate logo that would do a far better job of symbolizing them.

A few Examples are the New Orleans "Fleur De Bee," The Mavericks logo with just the horse and basketball, The Nugget's Crossed Pickaxes, The Cavaliers Sword and Flag, the Timberwolves Howling Wolf, etc etc.

This aspect of NBA logos annoys me even more than using the basketball motif as a crutch.

Gentlemen, your new NBA:

[RyanB06]

And 19 of those have a ball in them. Not much of an improvement.