A predictive rating of every NBA City Edition hat
Writer and critic for The New Republic rates this year's crop of New Era caps.
I love hats, and I love basketball. That’s why I’m so grateful for the City Edition.
In 2017, Nike introduced the City Edition as a series of alternate uniform concepts. Most of these uniforms diverge refreshingly from the team’s core aesthetic, and they’re supposed to represent some meaningful connection to the city or region. Some of these look transcendently awesome; some of them look indescribably dumb.
But, every year, New Era Cap launches a new line of corresponding NBA City Edition hats, with just as transcendent a ceiling and just as dumb a floor as the jerseys. I await these drops like Christmas morning.
And so, as Basketball Feelings’ self-appointed visiting Hat Critic, I hereby offer these capsule reviews of every single New Era NBA City Edition cap for the 2025-26 league year, along with some brief, horoscope-like speculations about what these designs portend for the teams whose fans will wear them.
ATLANTA HAWKS
I look at this hat, and I feel nothing. But imagine if they made the whole hat that sweet sweet peach color that’s outlining the wordmark. Such a hat would make me feel many things: joy, for instance. We’re all waiting to fall in love with you, Hawks, if only you’ll let us.
BOSTON CELTICS
This hat is gold, apparently, because it represents Boston’s “timeless tradition of winning.” Winning? Your tradition is winning? Well, my tradition is rolling my eyes and theatrically sighing. On-brand hubris, though, for a team that’ll be good enough to avoid the lottery but not good enough to win in the playoffs.
BROOKLYN NETS
Nets core uniforms have all the visual dynamism of an “SNL Digital Short” title card, but their City Editions highlighting local artists like Biggie are always solid. The Nets, too, should focus on their homegrown talent. Trade MPJ and get that young locker room some vets who won’t make all their team meetings sound like Andrew Tate podcasts.
CHARLOTTE HORNETS
Pinstripes on a hat almost never work. So, credit to the Hornets for having theirs disappear two-thirds of the way up the crown. This hat, like the Charlotte Hornets, represents some good decisions, some bad decisions, some unforgivable decisions. And all of them too smushed together to see what a coherent version might look like.
CHICAGO BULLS
I think the disproportionately large side-panel design unbalances what’s otherwise an appealingly clean hat. That said, who am I to question the Bulls’ decision-making? I wouldn’t have made these design choices, but I also wouldn’t have bet on franchise player(?) Josh Giddey, so what the fuck do I know?
CLEVELAND CAVALIERS
The press release says the circus-peanut orange represents the “hues of Cleveland’s sunsets and fall foliage.” I love that they’re highlighting the unique, regional idiosyncrasy that Ohio has sunsets and also deciduous forests. Though I do like this hat. When’s the last time you watched the sun go down over the horizon? When’s the last time you really appreciated Donovan Mitchell?
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