Why Some NBA Players Have Special Jersey Patches to Open Season

Karl Rasmussen | Oct 20, 2025

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the NBA's reigning MVP. / Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

There will be a slight tweak to the jerseys of some specific NBA players for the opening night of the 2025-26 season. Award winners from the 2024-25 season will be recognized with a unique gold Logoman patch on their jersey, which will only be present for the first game of the year.

Winners of the MVP, Defensive Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year will be honored with a special jersey patch of their respective trophies just above the Nike swoosh on the front of the uniform. As such, Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous Alexander (MVP), Cavaliers forward Evan Mobley (DPOY) and Spurs guard Stephon Castle (ROTY) will all have the custom patch on their jersey on opening night.

There will also be patches on the uniforms of players who made the All-NBA, All-Defense and All-Rookie teams in 2024-25.

In addition to the Topps gold logo patch, SGA will also reportedly wear a special MVP patch for opening night.

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Individual awards will be prioritized over all others, so, for example, Gilgeous-Alexander, who won MVP and made the league's All-NBA first team will don the MVP patch and not the All-Pro one.

Additionally, all NBA rookies will wear a different patch, which commemorates their debuts in the league.

Finally, award-winning coaches and executives will also be recognized for their achievements. Reigning NBA Coach of the Year, Cavaliers’ Kenny Atkinson, and Executive of the Year, Thunder‘s Sam Presti, will wear lapels celebrating their accomplishments.

Why do some NBA players have special patches on their uniforms?

The idea of inserting special patches onto specific players' uniforms was first introduced in 2022.

“We wanted to shine a little bit of a light on what those trophies are, what they look like and give those players a little moment. Now, do I think at the first game of the year they’re all gonna get out there and get a standing ovation? Maybe not,”Christopher Arena, head of the NBA’s on-court and brand partnerships said, via ESPN.

”But they’re gonna walk in that day, they're gonna see that trophy patch on their jersey and they’re gonna remember that that's what they did and maybe it’s motivation for that one night.”

In total, 35 players will wear the special award patches, in addition to the entire rookie class which will wear the "debut" patches.

Every NBA player who will have a special patch on their jersey

Player	Team	Award/Patch
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander	Oklahoma City Thunder	MVP
Evan Mobley	Cleveland Cavaliers	Defensive Player of the Year
Stephon Castle	San Antonio Spurs	Rookie of the Year
Jalen Brunson	New York Knicks	Clutch Player of the Year
Stephen Curry	Golden State Warriors	Twyman-Stokes Teammate of the Year
Payton Pritchard	Boston Celtics	Sixth Man of the Year
Dyson Daniels	Atlanta Hawks	Most Improved Player of the Year
Jrue Holiday	Portland Trail Blazers	Sportsmanship Award
Giannis Antetokounmpo	Milwaukee Bucks	All-NBA First Team
Nikola Jokic	Denver Nuggets	All-NBA First Team
Jayson Tatum	Boston Celtics	All-NBA First Team
Donovan Mitchell	Cleveland Cavaliers	All-NBA First Team
Anthony Edwards	Minnesota Timberwolves	All-NBA Second Team
LeBron James	Los Angeles Lakers	All-NBA Second Team
Cade Cunningham	Detroit Pistons	All-NBA Third Team
Karl-Anthony Towns	Minnesota Timberwolves	All-NBA Third Team
Tyrese Haliburton	Indiana Pacers	All-NBA Third Team
Jalen Williams	Oklahoma City Thunder	All-NBA Third Team
James Harden	Los Angeles Clippers	All-NBA Third Team
Lu Dort	Oklahoma City Thunder	All-Defense First Team
Draymond Green	Golden State Warriors	All-Defense First Team
Amen Thompson	Houston Rockets	All-Defense First Team
Toumani Camara	Portland Trail Blazers	All-Defense Second Team
Rudy Gobert	Minnesota Timberwolves	All-Defense Second Team
Jaren Jackson Jr.	Memphis Grizzlies	All-Defense Second Team
Ivica Zubac	Los Angeles Clippers	All-Defense Second Team
Zach Edey	Memphis Grizzlies	All-Rookie First Team
Zaccharie Risacher	Atlanta Hawks	All-Rookie First Team
Alex Sarr	Washington Wizards	All-Rookie First Team
Jaylen Wells	Memphis Grizzlies	All-Rookie First Team
Matas Buzelis	Chicago Bulls	All-Rookie Second Team
Bub Carrington	Washington Wizards	All-Rookie Second Team
Donovan Clingan	Portland Trail Blazers	All-Rookie Second Team
Yves Missi	New Orleans Pelicans	All-Rookie Second Team
Kel'El Ware	Miami Heat	All-Rookie Second Team

A total of 35 players will wear the NBA's special awards patches during their first game of the year. Those players will receive a uniform to keep as their own, though the 35 game-worn jerseys will be auctioned at Sotheby's.

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