The newest generational divide involves the Grant Hill Detroit Pistons teal jerseys.

I cannot stand them.

Many younger generation Pistons fans love them, wear them and display them. That’s probably why the Pistons announced last week they will bring back the teal as a “Classic Edition” uniform for the 2022-2023 season.

That’s the bad news.

The good news is the return to teal will likely last for just one season and be worn for a handful of games. I’ve hated these jerseys from the day they rolled off the production line. I’m more of a traditional red, white and blue man worn by Isiah Thomas, Rick Mahorn and Bill Laimbeer.

The only drawback is that since the Pistons first wore those uniforms, we’ve thrived and survived the baggy shorts of the Fab Five and Michael Jordan eras. The old Pistons look like they are wearing hot pants — popular shorts, shorts mostly worn by women in the 1970s.

The pants looked hot on women. They now look like a hot mess when the Pistons wear them.

I spoke to some of my younger friends about the teal uniforms and they used teams like “fire”, “swaggy” and “fresh” to describe them. They asked why I did not like the jersey.

I am not a fan of teal as a primary color. I do admit the uniform was more appealing in black with hints of teal. Mostly I am not a fan of the horses head and tail pipes.

“Oh man. That’s the best part,” one of my younger people screamed. “You don’t like the horses head?”

There is no teal in my closet unless you want to count the blue jeans that were accidentally washed with a spoonful of too much bleach.

Many years ago, I attended a press conference when former Pistons’ legend Isiah Thomas took over basketball operations for the Toronto Raptors. The Raptors also paraded out their Barney the Dinosaur jersey with the dinosaur paw print on the shorts. I was not a fan of that either.

“This jersey is not for you,” Thomas told me. “These are for young fans. They are the ones that buy the jerseys. You don’t.”

And I won’t.

Teal jersey sales explode when they are made available to the public. I just won’t be waiting in line or waiting online to purchase one. If you like them, go for it. They are just not for me.

Follow Foster on Twitter at TerryFosterDet.

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By Published On: March 3rd, 2022Categories: NBA

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