— a lengthy, passionate voicemail from a local fan whose words became the catalyst for the uniform change.In November 2020, with the NBA season delayed due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Detroit native Cochise Hardy, 38, was at home scrolling through Twitter when he decided that enough was enough. On his timeline, Hardy saw nearly every NBA organization except his favorite hometown team, the Detroit Pistons, reveal new uniforms. He was jealous.
“I’m like, ‘Those are fire. Those are fire. Those are fire.’,” Hardy told The Athletic. “I’m waiting for Detroit and they didn’t drop anything. I decided I was going to call them. I don’t remember if it was that night or that day, but I called and spilled my heart. It was time for an upgrade. This isn’t what’s up.”
The voicemail was heard by someone in the Pistons’ ticket-sales department. It made its rounds around the office. Many people laughed at Hardy’s passionate rant — which featured Detroit lingo like “dog-ass jerseys” — including Tyrel Kirkham, the Pistons’ vice president of brand and marketing strategy. However, Kirkham heard the love tucked inside the humor, and as the organization was preparing to mock up uniforms for the following seasons, Kirkham wanted everyone on his team to keep Hardy’s voicemail in mind.
“Oftentimes, you get these voicemails and you listen to them,” Kirkham said. “If there’s a call to action, you follow through, but there 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 as important.
― Spottie, Wednesday, 7 September 2022 21:56 (one year ago) link