Why waste time worrying about whether a Yankees cap makes you look appealingly dangerous or not? The NBA, which stopped licensing Washington Bullets gear during the frenzy over Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas’ possession of (bullet-free) guns in the locker room, has approved the production of new Bullets merchandise , MSNBC reported:
Even though the league has approved licensees to make retro Bullets items again, the selection is quite [sparse]. A search on NBA.com revealed that only two Bullets items, both by Mitchell & Ness are being sold. The Washington Wizards online store only has five Bullets items, including three pennants.
The team’s image management (not unlike its on-court performance) has been confused and self-defeating for years and years now. The Wizards’ late owner, Abe Pollin, cited the scourge of gun violence when he changed the name from Bullets to Wizards in the ‘90s. He also took the opportunity to change the team’s colors from red, white, and blue to dusty blue and bronze. Red, white, and blue are the colors of the United States of America, which—like gun ammunition—is often associated with aggression and violence . They are also much sharper-looking colors for athletic wear than the Wizards’ current mess.
But unlike Yankees gear,
Bullets gear
demonstrates that the wearer is not some success-chasing front-runner.
