The Best Slogans For The Remaining NBA Playoff Teams, Ranked

Every NBA team has a slogan they brand themselves with early in the season. It helps sell tickets and get fans fired up, but only if you do it right. And you better! Because if you’re lucky enough to make the postseason, that slogan is heavily monetized with shirts and other accessories available for purchase during said playoff run.

But which team still fighting for an NBA title has the best slogan? How did the marketing wizards do for, well, the Washington Wizards? Let’s pick an NBA champion based entirely on what they put on a shirt, using the NBA Online Store to figure out the official team slogan and peep some “playoff participant” merch.

8) San Antonio Spurs

Slogan: Go Spurs Go

Wait, what?

Did Tim Duncan come up with this? Tim Duncan came up with this. Only he could come up with something this straight forward. There are, generally, two types of team chant fans trust themselves with in North American sports. One is “Let’s go (team name).” Another is “Go (team name) go.” The chant each fanbase uses basically comes down to syllables. This slogan is basically someone in marketing counting on their fingers, saying “San Antonio JUST WON’T WORK!” and giving up.

7) Washington Wizards

Slogan: DCFamily

This is more of a hashtag than a slogan, so it should probably count as the worst one. But at least it’s mildly creative. Or was it stolen from a close-knit comic book message board? Are they trying to get a LEGO Batman crossover going or something? And why would you need DCFamily slides? John Wall is a fashionable and fun guy. Let him come up with something better than this.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BQOljzjgDKS/

Out of all of the hashtags he used there, DCFamily is the worst one. But we’re making progress.

6) Houston Rockets

Slogan: Run As One

Just because something rhymes doesn’t mean it actually makes sense. Running in symmetry is very, very difficult. And probably not very practical for an NBA team to actually utilize in a game.

The other slogan Houston seems to run with is “Clutch City,” which is a throwback to their 1990s days. Nostalgia is always a good play, and we’d be fine if this was their actual slogan. Especially if Houston is trying to make a memorable run through the Western Conference.

5) Boston Celtics

Slogan: It’s Not Luck

This one is slightly clever given the Celtics/leprechaun mascot ties, but it just reminds me of an unfinished marketing slogan more than anything.

Maybe she’s born with it. Maybe it’s luck!

It’s not luck, it’s Digornio.

It’s not luck, it’s the chaos of this universe randomly jettisoned into untold directions while our human minds search for order and rationalize trends over finite and all-too-small sample sizes to form meaningless superstition.

Yeah, something like that.

4) Golden State Warriors

Slogan: Strength in Numbers

I like that this actually makes sense, which gives them a leg up in their inevitable showdown with either the Rockets or Spurs. This is good tactical logic, too. Forget about what you’ve seen in old episodes of Scooby Doo: never split the party!

Still, “Strength in Numbers” already feels a bit played out. If the Dubs were smart, they’d hook up with Lin-Manuel Miranda and get something Hamilton-related in here to really zazz the place up. “Shoot to kill in Weehawken?” or “Suck it, King George.” Listen, it needs work but I know Steph Curry would love it.

3) Toronto Raptors

Slogan: We The North

We The North has been the slogan for a few seasons now, and like all things in the vein of Game of Thrones it simply refuses to die. That’s because, like Game of Thrones, it’s also not bad!

And who doesn’t love a geography-based slogan? Toronto is the only NBA team in Canada, and although it’s usually seen as a very friendly nation, it’s incredibly jingoistic when it comes to sports. Like the Jays in Major League Baseball, the dinosaurs truly are Canada’s team. Unless the Oilers or Senators make it to a conference final in the NHL, then Toronto’s on its own for another week or so.

2) Cleveland Cavaliers

Slogan: Defend the Land

The more I thought about this one the more it grew on me. Its first inspiration comes from the general inferiority complex that comes with Cleveland sports. That’s a solid emotional foundation (of sorts) for a fanbase to rally around, as evidenced by the popularity of the Cleveland vs. Everybody shirts that are also now available in the team store.

And though that defiant sentiment is now diminished by the Cavaliers winning it all last season, it still works. Now they’re defending an NBA title, and trying to keep the trophy in Cleveland. It’s good, but not as clever as …

1) Utah Jazz

Slogan: Take Note

Oh, hell yeah.

This is a good slogan that makes great use of the Jazz nickname and primary logo. It’s actually a subtle nod to the team’s rebranding efforts in recent years, moving away from the mountains and back to the J stylized as an eighth note, which the team rocked until the mid-90s.

Also, consider the Jazz and their current place in the NBA. Utah finished 20 games over .500 this year after a 40-42 season in 2016. They won the Northwest Division and beat the Clippers despite not having Rudy Gobert available for much of the series. Utah appears to be a team on the rise, and NBA fans are starting to take notice.

Utah also wins for the best impromptu shirt of the playoffs as well.