Note: I actually started writing this piece a few weeks back, way before LeBron returning to Cleveland seemed like a real possibility. I got distracted with other stuff, but with LeBron officially a Cav again, now it seems all the more appropriate (I'm just waiting for Bron to decide which number he's going to wear now and then I can order a current Cavs jeresy).
In February 2009 my girlfriend and I visit New York, mostly so I could make a pilgrimage to Madison Square Garden and see LeBron and the Cavs play. The journey out was about as bad as possible, and we arrived in New York at 4:00am, a whole 12 hours late after battling snow storms in the UK and cancelled flights. So after some much needed sleep we started our first day in NY, and of course a visit to the NBA store was one of the first things on the schedule.
I already knew what I was looking for. In the fist week of January the Cavs had debuted a new jersey against the Boston Celtics as part of Cavfanatic night, a promotional night with the Cavfanatic social media site. Since then its become an annual event, with a new jersey each year. You can read a great write up and interview about them on Uni-Watch here. The reaction to the 2009 jerseys were pretty mixed, but LeBron seemed to give them the nod, saying "I like 'em, they're colourful... like a bag of Skittles". I loved them, and definitely had to get one.
So with great excitement I tore around the NBA store searching for the jerseys, eventually finding them tucked away on a bar with some of the yellow Cavs throwbacks they'ed also been wearing that season. But there was only one blue jersey... and it was an XL. Now I'm not the biggest guy so an XL would have just swamped me, plus I wanted to actually play in it, not star in a 90's rap video. I checked with a sales associate if they had any others, but no luck. So I left without it, and over the course of our time in New York I checked every sports store we saw (I picked up some Soldier 2's and Zoom Flight 95's along the way), but didn't find the jersey anywhere else.
The jerseys are a re-colouring of the original 1970's Cavs design but in royal blue with the traditional Cavs wine and gold moved to the trim. I love the bold contrast of the blue, the red, and then the pop of gold. I particularly like the plain style numbers and name without any piping or edging, it really captures the vintage feel. It also has some nice detailing. The NBA logo on the chest is in a darker red & blue than a regular jersey, with off white used on the Jerry West silhouette further emphasising the vintage look. Plus it has the Cav Fanatic tag which is a really nice touch.
After going to the Cavs vs Knicks game and watching LeBron drop 52 points and a triple double, I decided to make do with one of the yellow Cavs throwbacks instead. Heading back to the NBA store I found the yellow jerseys exactly where they had been before, with the one blue jersey still tucked at the back of the rack. I found my size in the yellow, but grasping at some vain hope, and just to be make double sure, I checked the sizing on the one blue jersey.
To my complete shock and disbelief it had magically become a medium! I don't know if it was a return, or if they'ed found an odd jersey in a box out the back, but I had it in my size. Suffice to say I snatched it up and paid for it as quickly as possible before there was a chance that this was some kind of mistake. Five years later and its still one of my favourite jerseys, I played basketball in it this weekend, and it always reminds me of a great trip to NY and my little New York miracle.
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