The NBA’s “Spanish” Jerseys Are Back, And No One’s Impressed

(By Glenn Davis, SportsGrid) - When Chad Johnson changed his name to “Chad Ochocinco,” one of the most common reactions (besides “Wow, this guy will do anything for attention”) was, “Oh, come on – that’s not even Spanish for ‘eighty-five.’ It’s just the numbers ‘eight, five’ in succession.” But it was ultimately just craziness for the sake of craziness, so what did it matter?

The NBA, on the other hand, has no excuse. For its annual “Noche Latina” initiative (described by the league in 2009 as “a program that recognizes the NBA’s fans and players from across Latin America and U.S. Hispanic communities”), several teams sport Hispanic-themed jerseys. Here’s what those look like:



Yes, all they do is slap “Los” or “El” in front of the team’s name (or change “New” to “Nueva”). No, this does not constitute actual Spanish. Yes, it would have been much, much cooler if the NBA jumped in with both feet and actually had put full Spanish names on the jerseys (specifically if the Bulls had become “Los Toros”).