Detroit Pistons unveil new Statement Edition uniforms

The “chrome” is gone and the Detroit Pistons finally unveiled what is taking its place as the team released the first look at their new Statement Edition jerseys with a hype video and photos featuring Cade Cunningham and Saddiq Bey.

The new jerseys are black and bold, with “DET” in big block lettering stitched across the chest and blue and red stripes underneath in a nod to the Bad Boys era warmup jackets of the 1980s. The stripes go from horizontal to vertical along the sides o the shorts, which feature the Pistons 313 logo.

Frustrated Fan Inspires Change

The story of the jersey goes a bit deeper, though, as detailed in The Athletic, as one of the guiding lights for the new jersey was an angry voicemail left by a fan in 2020 with the incredibly badass name of Cochise Hardy.

His plea for a bold new jersey concept made the rounds among Pistons HQ, and eventually landed in the hands of Tyrel Kirkham, VP of brand and marketing strategy.

As Kirkham recounts to Edwards in the piece:

“… [T]here was something special about this voicemail that was worthy of pursuing further. It found its way to a larger audience. We laughed, but there was a serious nature based on what he was saying, knowing that we were starting the ‘restoration’ on the court, and the way we look and feel is equally important.

“A ton of inspiration was spurred from a simple voicemail.”

That voicemail even made its way into the official Detroit Pistons hype video.

Bye-Bye Chrome

The Statement Edition jerseys will replace the chrome look with the red, blue and teal piping of the prior years’ Statement Edition jerseys and will be worn by the Pistons for at least two seasons with an option to renew the look.

They join the Classic Edition teal jerseys previously announced by the Pistons and an as-yet-unreleased collaboration with Detroit rapper Big Sean, who was previously named the team’s creative director of innovation.

In it For My City Nights

The jerseys and a custom court will be on display for all games with the In it For My City theme. Games featuring the jerseys (subject to change) include:

Oct. 26 vs. Atlanta
Nov. 4 vs. Cleveland
Nov. 12 vs. Boston
Dec. 16 vs. Sacramento
Jan. 13 vs. New Orleans
Feb. 10 vs. San Antonio
March 13 vs. Indiana

Cade and Saddiq Show Off New Jersey

Cade Cunningham and Saddiq Bey were featured in the hype video and took part in a photo shoot to announce the new jerseys, similar to rookie Jaden Ivey showing off the Teal classics earlier in the offseason.

What do you think, Pistons fans? Do these jerseys go hard? Are they too busy? Do you love the stripe and the homage to the 80s or are you puzzled by the team’s continued insistence to adding a stripe motif to its alt jerseys?