NBA 75th Anniversary: Marketing, New Ball, New Uniforms, 75 Greatest Players Named

By Barry Janoff

July 30, 2021: As part of the festivities to honor its 75th Anniversary Season, the NBA said it would select the “75 Greatest Players in League History.”

The honor roll and overall NBA 75 season “will pay tribute to generations of basketball fans around the world, as well as current and former players and coaches.”

This will be the fourth such team commemorating NBA history.

The NBA 25th Anniversary Team was unveiled on Dec. 11, 1971. (See the team below.)

The NBA 35th Anniversary Team was named on Oct. 30, 1980. (See the team below.)

On Oct. 29, 1996, NBA commissioner David Stern unveiled the 50 Greatest Players in league history to commemorate the NBA’s 50th anniversary. (See the team below.)

“The 2021-22 season will be truly special as we celebrate 75 years of NBA basketball,” NBA commissioner Adam Silver said via the league.

“We look forward to honoring the players and teams — both past and present — who have inspired generations of fans around the world.”

The NBA previously unveiled its 75th anniversary diamond logo.

In 2021-22, Wilson returns as the league’s official game ball (replacing Spalding) for the first time since the
1983 NBA Finals, having been used during most of the NBA’s first four decades.

Wilson basketballs were seen in the green room and elsewhere throughout the NBA Draft (July 29) and have already been incorporated by the WNBA and Basketball Africa League.

“Wilson is excited to unlock our history and heritage with the NBA to grow the game of basketball on the global stage,”  Kevin Murphy, GM-Wilson Team Sports, said via the company.

“On the heels of launching our WNBA and BAL partnerships, we will continue building for the future of the sport. Wilson will focus first on supporting the league and its players with its high-performance game balls, then extending our basketball family to reach fans, coaches and players at all levels, around the world.”

“Our partnership with Wilson fittingly comes to life as we approach our 75th anniversary season,” Salvatore LaRocca, NBA president,-global partnerships, said via the league.

“As the NBA’s official game ball for the league’s first 37 seasons, Wilson makes its return building on our shared history and looking ahead toward the continued growth of the league.”

The NBA Draft Cap from New Era featured the commemorative NBA 75th Anniversary Season logo and was the first league-licensed product to carry the logo. New Era will also have Tip Off Edition caps.

Nike will celebrate NBA 75 with diamond-embellished jersey details and new Classic Edition and City Edition uniforms across the league.

The commemorative NBA 75 logo will appear throughout the season on courts and official NBA merchandise, inside arenas and in original broadcast, digital and social media content; and integration around marquee events such as NBA All-Star 2022 in Cleveland. (Cleveland last hosted NBA All-Star in 1997, when the league celebrated its 50th Anniversary Season.)

NBA 75 will see a continuation of the “That’s Game” campaign, which launched at the start of the 2021 NBA Playoffs.

According to the league, “The campaign will honor the past, present and future of the NBA across the court, community and culture.

“It will be a 360-degree, fan-focused celebration delivered through linear, social, digital and physical activations as the league ramps up to season tip-off and returns to its traditional schedule.”

The NBA said activation involving teams and fans will be unveiled as the season approaches.

For the 2021-22 season, the NBA will return its Play-In Tournament from this past season. It is scheduled to take place April 12-15, 2022, between the last day of the regular season on April 10 and the start of the playoffs on April 16.

Among the key dates for the 75th anniversary season:

• Sept. 28, 2021: Training camp begins

• Oct. 19, 2021: Regular season begins

• April 10, 2022: Regular season concludes

• April 12-15, 2022: Play-In Tournament

• April 16, 2022: Playoffs begin

• June 2, 2022: NBA Finals begin

• June 19, 2022: Game 7 of NBA Finals (if necessary)

• June 23, 2022: NBA Draft

NBA 25th Anniversary Team

• F Bob Pettit
• F Dolph Schayes
• F Paul Arizin
• F Joe Fulks
• C Bill Russell
• C George Mikan
• G Bob Cousy
• G Bill Sharman
• G Bob Davies
• G Sam Jones
• Coach Red Auerbach

NBA 35th Anniversary Team

• C Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
• F Elgin Baylor
• C Wilt Chamberlain
• G Bob Cousy
• F Julius Erving
• G/F John Havlicek
• C George Mikan
• F Bob Pettit
• G Oscar Robertson
• C Bill Russell
• G Jerry West

NBA 50th Anniversary 50 Greatest Players in NBA History

• Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
• Nate Archibald
• Paul Arizin
• Charles Barkley
• Rick Barry
• Elgin Baylor
• Dave Bing
• Larry Bird
• Wilt Chamberlain
• Bob Cousy
• Dave Cowens
• Billy Cunningham
• Dave DeBusschere
• Clyde Drexler
• Julius Erving
• Patrick Ewing
• Walt Frazier
• George Gervin
• Hal Greer
• John Havlicek
• Elvin Hayes
• Magic Johnson
• Sam Jones
• Michael Jordan
• Jerry Lucas
• Karl Malone
• Moses Malone
• Pete Maravich
• Kevin McHale
• George Mikan
• Earl Monroe
• Hakeem Olajuwon
• Shaquille O’Neal
• Robert Parish
• Bob Pettit
• Scottie Pippen
• Willis Reed
• Oscar Robertson
• David Robinson
• Bill Russell
• Dolph Schayes
• Bill Sharman
• John Stockton
• Isiah Thomas
• Nate Thurmond
• Wes Unseld
• Bill Walton
• Jerry West
• Lenny Wilkens
• James Worthy

NBA Unveils Key Days For 75th Anniversary 2021-22 Season, Play-In Tourney

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