NBA Bans Ninja-Style Tie Headbands Citing Safety Concerns
Due to safety concerns related and issues regarding consistency in length and size, the NBA has banned the "ninja-style headwear" that became popular among players last season.
League spokesperson Mike Bass told Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.com that the headbands that players manually tie around their head had not gone through the league approval process.
"When some players began wearing them last season, we didn't want to cause a disruption by intervening midseason, but we notified our teams in May that they would not be part of this season's uniforms," Bass told Wojnarowski.
Mike Scott, a forward on the 76ers and one of the many players who wore the headbands throughout last season said on Twitter on Friday that Nike was behind the move and claimed the gear was unprofessional.
In addition to Scott, Pelicans guard Jrue Holiday, Heat wing Jimmy Butler and Clippers big man Montrezl Harrell all wore the "Karate Kid" headband. In an Instagram post earlier this offseason, LeBron James asked whether he should wear one for this upcoming season.
