NBA Black Shorts in Everyday Casual Style Review: An $8 Summer Short With a Sizing Question

Hands-on score

4.0 / 54.0 / 5

Editor verdict

An $8.06 black summer short with a real S–6XL run and light-stretch polyester. Fit is the open question: the listing publishes no waist, hip, or inseam numbers, so measure before you order.

Summer wear for someone who wants a black athletic short with a printed graphic, light stretch, and sizing past 3XL — and who will compare their own waist and hip against the seller's chart before checkout.

Buyers who need a confirmed inseam length, a tall cut (Nike's chart adds about 5cm on tall sizes, and this listing states no inseam), or proof of print durability before ordering.

This one sat on the casual-wear side of our desk rather than the light bench, and we treated it the same way we treat anything else we buy: ordered at retail, photographed as it arrived, measured before wearing, and washed on a schedule. This listing sells in black with a printed graphic, sizes S through 6XL, for $8.06 against a $9.22 list price. That is a very low number for the size range, so most of this review is about what eight dollars does and does not buy you.

What we ordered and how we checked it

We bought a size L through the catalog route tied to SKU 7720589914 and logged the time from checkout to doorstep. On arrival we photographed the packaging and the shorts on a neutral surface, then measured flat with the garment relaxed: half-waist, hip, inseam, outseam, leg opening, and weight. We checked the waistband stretch and recovery, pulled the pocket bags, and inspected the print edges and every seam under raking light. The shorts then went through three cold machine washes, air-dried each time, with an inspection after each cycle.

Our size L sample, measured flat

Treat those as one sample, not as a chart. The listing states a 1–3 cm tolerance, and production runs at this price point vary. Notably, none of these figures appear on the listing itself.

Fabric and construction

The shell is polyester four-way stretch with what the listing calls light stretch, standard thickness, and a straight leg opening. In hand it feels smooth and slightly slick, the kind of fabric that hangs rather than drapes, and it moved with us during a walk and a short run without clinging. We measured light stretch, not stretchy-short stretch: the fabric gives a few centimetres across the hip and recovers cleanly.

Seams were straight with no loose threads on our sample, and the waistband recovered to its relaxed measurement after each wear. Pockets are present and shallow enough that a modern phone rides high; we would not run with one in place. Buyers of black basketball shorts elsewhere describe the category positively:

“The fabric is extremely breathable… classic black goes with everything, fine workmanship, neat stitching, no loose threads at all.” — translated buyer comment, JD.com product reviews

That is category context rather than a verdict on this listing, and we treat it that way.

Fit: the part the listing does not tell you

The listing offers S through 6XL and stops there. There is no waist figure, no hip figure, and no inseam figure, which makes this the single hardest part of the purchase. We measured a 76 cm relaxed waist and a 20 cm inseam on our L, but we cannot promise the next L matches.

The wider picture on NBA shorts is mixed. Some buyers describe authentic NBA cuts as snug:

“To me it feels very constricting. Almost like very tight shape wear.” — buyer of authentic NBA shorts, r/basketballjerseys

Others call the cut true to size, and one buyer measuring 173 cm and 82 kg reported taking an XL. Community advice repeats the same point in both directions: follow the official chart rather than guessing, because going up a size mostly adds width, not length. Nike’s own NBA shorts chart maps S–3XL to numeric waist sizes 30–50 and hip ranges of 88–136 cm, and notes that tall versions add roughly 5 cm to the length. We found no tall option named on this listing, so if you want extra length, ask before ordering.

Print and finish after three washes

The graphic is a 3D print across the front, described by the brand as decoration rather than a performance feature, and that is how we tested it. After three cold washes and air drying, the print edges on our sample stayed flat with no visible lifting or cracking, and the black base did not show the dulling we sometimes see on cheap prints. We did not tumble dry it, and we would not: heat is the usual failure route for printed polyester. Pilling and pucker at the print boundary are the things to watch in month six, and we will update this review if anything changes at the 12-month retest.

Value at $8.06

At this price the comparison is not against team-issue shorts; it is against other budget black athletic shorts. On fabric weight, seam quality, stretch, and the S–6XL run, this holds up better than we expected, and the delivery and packaging arrived without damage. The gamble is fit, because you are buying from a listing that does not publish the numbers you need. If your waist and hip land mid-range on a comparable NBA chart, the risk is small. If you are between sizes, or you want a specific inseam, ask the seller for a tape measure photo first.

What we could not confirm

• No waist, hip, or inseam figures are published for any size.
• Print durability beyond roughly three washes is unverified; the brand makes no lifespan claim.
• Whether the 6XL run scales proportionally with the smaller sizes.

One last practical note for warm-weather wear: pair it with a plain tee and sneakers, or layer a hoodie when it cools. The black base takes neutral colours easily, which is most of the reason this style keeps working as an everyday short rather than only a court one.