You remember those amazing Oregon Ducks football uniforms that Nike debuted a few months ago? The ones with the space-age cooling technology, the light-weight feel, and the sick design. Well Nike has now taken their talents to the world of College Basketball, committed to their goal of constantly being on the cutting edge of uniform style and technology. Looks like they killed it once again with the Hyper Elite Platinum Uniform. University of Kentucky and 8 other schools will wear the uniforms in select games this season. And they look sick.
Nike’s focus has been on superior uniforms for performance and functionality. In Basketball, your uniform doesn’t have quite as much to do with how you perform as it might in Football, but for an elite company like Nike, there’s always cuts, additions, and all-out replacements that can be made. According to Nike themselves, the shorts include “laser perforations” along the sides to increase breathability. The neckline is a bonded hem to aid comfort and style, and the front of the jersey is a lightweight “Sphere Fabric” while the back features “Nike Aerographics.” Basically, these things are designed in labs to make you go harder and longer, and look as sleak and stylish as anything else that’s ever come out of a factory with a swoosh on it.
Another thing Nike is stressing with this batch of gear is their strong efforts to Go Green. Nike has vowed to make use of more recyclable and sustainable materials in order to keep pace with the growing green trends in modern industry, and probably save themselves some serious cash as well. Practically the entire uniform is made from recycled polyester, the jersey itself at 96% and the shorts at an even 100%. Nike doesn’t have the best reputation for moral business practices (sweat shop debacle?) so hopefully this will help their industry image become as sleek as their kicks.
The uniforms will be debuting in big games and will be worn by 9 teams that Nike considers to be proven “Elites.” These teams include The University of Arizona, Baylor University (women’s), Duke University, University of Florida, University of Kentucky, Syracuse University, The University of Connecticut (men’s and women’s) and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Not all dates are known but some of them are listed below. If you’re an NCAA Basketball fan, you’re going to want to tune in. This is the future of uniform technology.
Nike’s Elite Dates Include:
UConn vs. Notre Dame (1/29), Kentucky vs. Tennessee (1/31), Duke vs. Maryland (2/11), Baylor (women’s) vs. Texas A&M (2/11), Florida vs. Tennessee (2/11), Syracuse vs. USF (2/22), Arizona vs. UCLA (2/25), UConn (women’s) vs. Notre Dame (2/27) and UNC vs. Maryland (2/29)
