It’s championship ring season! Well at least that’s the case over in the US, as the Golden State Warriors are about to receive their rings for the 2017/8 NBA season.
Few sporting organisations celebrate like the NBA. And even fewer celebrate their champions with such extravagant prizes. But it doesn’t stop us from dreaming BIG.
Maybe your club doesn’t have the budget to sign the Steph Curry's or Kevin Durant's of the world. But should that stop you from owning a championship ring just like them? Absolutely not!
To get your mind moving, our Director – Troy Daniels – has analysed and ranked his favourite NBA championship rings from the last 10 years.
Take inspiration from the list below and any other ring you happen to see. If you see something you like, we can redesign it to suit your winning team.
5. Miami Heat (2013)
No one in Australia would wear this. It’s too big. It’s too blingy. It’s so far from what we’re used to seeing. But I love it. Bring on the bold look, I say. What I like about this ring is it’s rectangular, as opposed to a square. It covers the knuckle nicely, and is something I’d definitely recommend – especially for senior men’s teams in Australia. The Heat were lucky enough to go back-to-back, and they represent that well with both trophies on the front of the ring. I love that they’ve used the rectangular stone in the letters, and just the standard round-cut diamonds for everything else. Impressive!”
4. Los Angeles Lakers (2009)
“Who would want their own face on a ring? I don’t know. But if there are people in Australia who do want their faces on a ring, I want Jewel Empire to be the people who make them! I love the roman numerals on the side here. It’s a different touch which adds a level of sophistication. I like how the ring is raised too. The design is really sharp.”
3. Golden State Warriors (2017)
“I’m a BIG fan of this ring. It's a lot softer than the others with rounded edges. This is more the shape and style of ring that Australian's would wear. One of the things I love about the design is you'll notice the lack of wording or text on the face of the ring. They've got the iconic bridge and NBA trophy. They don't need anything else. Simple, elegant and I love it!”
2. Miami Heat (2012)
“This is a nice one. It uses black onyx, which is a stone, and that’s how they get the nice black finish behind. It’s a solid finish. The creativeness of having the Miami logo wrap around the trophy is really good as well. I definitely take inspiration from that. The ring isn’t dazzled with stones and I like that. Sometimes less is more. This is a rounded-rectangular shape which I really like. They’ve also enamelled the highlights in the logo as well. The black lines in the white logo makes it pop even more than if it was just stones. This is definitely one of my favourites.”
1. Cleveland Cavaliers (2016)
“I love the two-tone with the gold and the silver. And if you want your ring to stand out from the rest, what better way than to use a strong, coloured logo. Cleveland have done that here with the enamelled red ‘C’. The intricacies on the sides also really impress. I love how they’ve put the NBA logo instead of the zero in 2016. That sort of creativeness can really set a ring apart from others. It’s not always easy to be an individual, but the Cavs definitely stand out from the rest with these rings.”
