Next week, Nike is hosting the PK80 invitational in honor of Phil Knight’s 80th birthday. This is a hell of a birthday party considering it includes some of the best programs in the nation. The names include Duke, Texas, Florida, Gonzaga, Michigan State, Oregon and Michigan State, amongst many others. It is possible we could see a rematch of the Champions Classic thriller between MSU and Duke in the final of this prolific preseason tournament. There are plenty of superstars and ample opportunity for upsets, which really is what makes the college basketball world go around. Teams like Oregon and Texas can assert themselves as good, others, like Florida or UNC, can assert their dominance over the sport.
But amongst all these fantastic storylines are some really awesome party favors for each of the guests. Nike is providing exclusive alternate uniforms for each of the 16 teams. Some, like UNC’s, are a stretch to me. No one should ever mess with the baby blue and this is no exception. Others, like Portland or DePaul simply don’t have enough going on to make my eyes pop out of my head. Others are absolutely dope uniforms and ones that teams should implement into their annual rotation. I figured I should power rank my favorites.
5. UCONN Huskies
Are these pretty boring? yes, but they are damn clean as hell. Silver as a primary color is going to make stud guard Jalen Adams look like a blur of super fresh dominance flashing across the floor. There aren’t many teams that are going to look classier on the floor than the Huskies.
4. Arkansas Razorbacks
I am and always have been a big fan of logo uniforms. Everyone can throw their name on the front of the uniform. What I want to see is a big fat pig on the front of a basketball jersey. It does help that Arkansas has a pretty cool mascot, but the idea is one that has always intrigued me. It was enough to bump them above the plain Jane tier and get them into the next level with the big boys. The side panel on the shorts are really great, too. All around win for the hogs.
3. Butler Bulldogs
There is a lot going on here without them being overwhelming in any way. The tops are clean and classy, just like the Butler way. The side paneling is flashy in the subtlest of ways, all leading to the iconic bulldog at the bottom of the shorts. Maybe my favorite part of these uniforms is the B on the waistband. It ties the whole uni together in a really clean and professional way that contrasts the side paneling and keeps it completely Butler.
2. Stanford Cardinal
These are ranked this high because of a very subtle intricacy. I’ll give you a second to see if you can pick it out before I point it out. Look on the shorts……… YES! The black side paneling is shaped like an evergreen tree. This is one of the reasons Nike stands out as a man amongst boys in the sports apparel industry, their attention to detail. Nothing about these uniforms pop, but that clean design aspect makes them some of the best in the tournament.
1. Gonzaga Bulldogs
The whole thing with the “Zags” has always thrown me off a bit about the Gonzaga basketball program. I’ve never questioned it or made fun of it because I respect them highly as a program, but it just didn’t quite click for me. Now I totally understand. This whole time, they have just been waiting for Phil Knight to invite them to their birthday party so they can rock the dopest uniforms in the history of mankind. They have zig zags on the side of the shorts! Come on. That is too cool. Along with a fantastic black and red color scheme, this is just perfection. Go Zags (until they play Nova December 5).