My appreciation for jerseys generally grows when the player is at their worst. For starters I am a big time loser myself…in athletics. I mean, don’t worry, my outlook on life is great at the moment. I’m referring to the fact that I have played organized sports since I was 6 and never won anything. A few playoff appearances here, a couple second place finishes there, and a lot of trash in between. So I can relate to things not going well. But even bigger than that, bad teams get desperate for cash and start cutting their losses with the greatest two words in sports: CLEARANCE SALE.

There’s a few different ways to end up in red tag land. A great example is LeBron being drafted by the Cavs. The team had been terrible so they decided to make new merch with the King coming in. All that old stuff ended up in the bargain bin in hopes that the front office can still afford to live in the good gated communities. 

My jersey stems from a different version of trying to forget failure. A bad fallout with a star player. When the Knicks drafted Kristaps Porzingis the hope was real. He’s a 7 feet tall athletic wonder nicknamed The Unicorn. In the new NBA where everybody on the floor needs to be able to shoot 3-pointers his skill set seemed invaluable and, for a while, the people got behind it. He had the Latvian part of Queens going crazy.

He showed a lot of promise in New York. His stats increased in all 3 seasons he was there, but he was plagued by injuries and couldn’t stay on the floor so his personal success never translated to the team. It all came to a head when Porzingis tears his ACL during a game in 2018. The Knicks shipped him off to Dallas ASAP.

In summer after the trade, rape allegations surface from that same night he blew out his knee. The Mavericks, a team that is no stranger to sexual assault charges, accept Kristaps with open arms. Soon after Kristaps gets socked outside a club in Lativa. It looked like the big white man may never play again, but with modern science, hella lawyers, and the drafting of Luka Doncic, Porzingis was given another chance to right the ship. 2 years later he’s still with the team, but seems to be looking for a way out if you ask certain bloggers. Not to mention the Knicks were great without him in 2021. Here’s where I come in. 

After watching the Mavs falter in an exciting playoff series against the Clippers I did what I always do, cruise the NBA Shop clearance section. Whenever I cancel plans with somebody or vice versa I get a wild hair up my ass and see how I can capitalize on a soured relationship between team and player in the form of a clearance priced jersey. As I’m scrolling I see it: a brand new white Nike New York Knicks Kristaps Porzingis jersey for $20 dollars in my size. Which if you know jerseys is an unreal price these things retail for $110! ($109 if you live in Delaware). I don’t mind that he’s not on the Knicks anymore. To be honest it’s more about the name on the front than the back anyway. Current logo AND manufacturer? Needless to say, I jump on the deal without thinking. I had honestly forgotten about the rape case because there’s no more stories about it after 2019.

It finally hits me again as soon as my jersey comes in the mail.

I had never stopped to think about why that price was so low and honestly thought NYC just hated him for his frail body. Whether he did it or not, I’m very ashamed to own this thing and will likely never wear it. Plus, white is not my color. 

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Feature image from the NBA Store