Over my career in the Team Sports and Outdoor industries, I’ve had the opportunity to be involved many different product categories. In the world of basketball, I’ve been able to bring some really fun illustration and animation projects to life.
The best of these projects have been for the NBA in an official capacity, helping their marketing team create fun illustration and animation projects.
Take a look below at some of the projects I’ve been involved with in the basketball space, and when you’re finished, hit the below button or the navigation at the top of the page to take a look at the rest of my Design work.
Basketball Creative
Working on a number of different NBA project outputs, I wanted to create a collection of logos that could be utilized across a number of mediums, without infringing on the copyrights of the various organizations. Working with a single-line thickness construction, I created simplified versions of existing logos using current and past logo imagery as the inspiration point. After many variations of each team mark, I finally had a set that felt cohesive and distinctive.
The project took off, rising to the top of r/NBA and receiving over 50,000 hits online. Thousands of people downloaded the free icon sets and phone wallpapers I put together, the NBA took notice, and the feedback was incredible - someone even sent me a message online showing off their new chest tattoo of my line work. It was a surreal experience and the first time I was able to blend my passion for basketball with design.
NBA Franchise Icon Set
Atlantic Division: Brooklyn Nets, Boston Celtics, New York Knicks, Philadelphia 76ers, Toronto Raptors.
Northwest Division: Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, Portland Trailblazers, Utah Jazz.
Central Division: Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Milwaukee Bucks.
Pacific Division: Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, Phoenix Suns, Sacramento Kings.
Southeast Division: Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Miami Heat, Orlando Magic, Washington Wizards
Southwest Division: Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets, Memphis Grizzlies, New Orleans Pelicans, San Antonio Spurs.
Chris Paul - 7,000 Dimes
As a part of my contract with the NBA, I was tasked with putting together a commemorative animation for Chris Paul’s milestone of 7,000 career assists. It was a lot of fun working on the concepting, storyboarding, illustrating, and animating of this project - and it was great to be a part of a special moment in NBA history. Chris is already working towards eclipsing this figure in his storied career - that’s a lot of pocket change!
Dwyane Wade - 19,000 Career Points
One of the most prolific scorers to ever suit up in the NBA, crossing the 19,000 point mark was a great milestone in the storied career of Dwyane Wade. It was great commemorating this moment for the NBA, drawing inspiration from his hometown of Miami, using palm trees and neon glow reminiscent of South Beach.
Isaiah Thomas - 1st All-Star Appearance
A player making their first All-Star appearance is a big deal. It’s an even bigger deal when he plays for your hometown Boston Celtics. And when he’s the shortest player to get the nod since Calvin Murphy did it in 1979? For the 5’ 9” Isaiah Thomas, this was just the latest accomplishment in what was a truly memorable season. It was great being a part of telling his story for the NBA in promotion of the 2016 All-Star Game in Toronto, Canada.
Anthony Davis - Brow Power
Kicking off my animation relationship with the NBA involved an outside-the-box concept centered around one of the most unique stars in the NBA - Anthony Davis. The animation concept and execution were a big hit with the NBA marketing team, and hopefully helped demonstrate the true source of The Brow’s power.
It was great partnering with the NBA Jr. digital team to help create some unique icons for use across the NBA Jr. website and digital applications. Icons were intended to clearly communicate app features and menu items across a number of languages.
NBA Jr. - Icon Set Development
Kevin O’Connor’s NBA Draft Guide
Partnering up with one of my personal favorite NBA writers Kevin O’Connor was a no-brainer, especially to anyone who’s familiar with his annual NBA Draft Guide. He brings a deep understanding of the game to all of his draft profiles, and I’m glad to have helped him construct some strong layouts to match. It was great wrangling all the scouting reports and notes into one cohesive document. You can now find the latest and greatest iteration of his Draft Guide can now be found on The Ringer.
