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Photo: Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle

The Golden State Warriors aren’t rookies when it comes to producing some of the most innovative, and controversial, jerseys.

There’s the introduction of “The City” logo back in 1966, which “endured ridicule” at the time before becoming a classic. The Dubs also introduced the NBA’s first short-sleeve jersey in 2013, which was labeled “a franchise-shaking abomination.” And in 2020, the team’s decision to include “Oakland” across the chest — a year after the team left the East Bay for San Francisco’s glittery shores — caused a regional uproar.

But this season’s latest fashion statement may be the boldest uniform to date, as many Warriors fans were surprised to see a giant flower adorning the team’s latest “City Edition” jerseys.

The look is unlike anything the Warriors or any team in the league has ever brandished. Most notably, the black kit features a hand-drawn, photorealistic rose on the jersey’s lower half that fades out in a gradient shade of yellow as it blooms upward. The NBA is calling the “photo-real style the first of its kind on an NBA jersey,” according to Nadia Roohparvar, the league’s manager of on-court and brand partnerships.

Photo: Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle

On first look, it doesn’t seem like a basketball design, particularly for a team whose archive of former logos includes a Native American warrior, lightning bolts, a cartoonishly muscular man of thunder, the Jack London Oak and the Bay Bridge. There have never been flower petals. Until now.

That’s probably because no NBA franchise has ever hired anyone like Allison Hueman. The Oakland-based Filipina American muralist is known for her colorful, community-centered artwork focusing on growth, healing, women’s empowerment and motherhood.

“I’m dedicating this design to the women in Iran. And for my half-Persian daughters,” Hueman, whose husband is Persian American, shared on Twitter upon revealing the bold design in November amid a major women’s rights movement that sparked a worldwide call for liberation.

Photo: Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle

The design recognizes the impactful roles of women in the community, said Jen Millet, the Warriors' chief marketing officer. It honors the thousands of Warriors fans like Hueman — more than a third of Golden State’s fans are women, according to a study released in 2022 — who were raised around basketball but have never seen themselves directly reflected in the sport’s fashion.

“I grew up watching the Warriors,” Hueman, 37, told The Chronicle. “I remember my older brother had a Warriors Starter jacket and I would always take that and wear it. It’s been a part of our lives growing up in the East Bay. They’re a household name.”

Now, she and the Golden State team — including vocally supportive players like Stephen Curry, for whom Hueman designed a signature UnderArmour sneaker in 2020 — can sport a boldly updated look of solidarity that today’s Warriors are aiming to stand for. It’s an important reminder that a uniform can do more than just echo the past through team colors; it can function as a symbol of unity for members of the basketball community who aren’t predominantly viewed as part of the sport’s growth.

This jersey is “about paying tribute to ‘community connectors,’ and nobody connects the Bay Area community more than women,” said Millet, who was involved in the jersey’s development from its inception in 2021.

The rose-covered jersey is not just a one-off gimmick, Millet added. The Warriors plan to continue their collaboration with Hueman throughout the season. The team already has released the jersey for fans to buy and plans to release an entire line of apparel that showcases Hueman’s trademark style of hyper-colorful, realistic art with touches of feminine strength.

Photo: Golden State Warriors

The team and a key sponsor, Rakuten, plan to also donate $25,000 to the Women's Sports Foundation, a New York-based advocacy organization, in honor of the jersey’s mission and as part of the Warriors’ ongoing community outreach efforts.

This isn’t the team’s first attempt at uplifting women in basketball. In 1969, the then-San Francisco Warriors tried to draft Denise Long, a high-scoring Iowa high schooler, with the 175th draft pick. But Long’s would-be NBA career ended quickly when Commissioner Walter Kennedy nullified the pick.

Though Long never played with the Warriors, her presence led to the creation of one of the first professional women’s leagues in the country. Nearly 30 years before the arrival of the WNBA, games featuring Long and other women were played before Warriors home games.

It’s a forgotten history, but one that Hueman’s design hopes to recall — emphatically reminding fans that basketball isn’t strictly for men. Hueman said she was particularly moved by a story her friend relayed about one fan’s reaction to the new jersey.

Photo: Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle

“My friend overheard a woman talking to a bartender in Geyserville and this woman said she used to play basketball in the ’60s, back when women were only allowed to play half-court,” Hueman said. “She was telling her history as a women’s basketball player and how special it was that the Warriors chose to honor women in this way. She got choked up. That’s who the jersey is for.”

Along with such positive reactions, however, the jersey has attracted a heap of negativity, much of it on social media. For some fans, Hueman’s reimagining of the uniform has led to pushback, evoking sexist jokes and bewilderment.

One Denver-based basketball podcast was particularly dismissive of the jersey’s purpose and ranked it as one of the league’s worst. The hosts questioned whether “an NBA basketball jersey is a place to honor women’s suffrage,” and suggested that in-game announcers shouldn’t be expected to address the wage gap every time a 3-pointer is made.

Hueman said such perspectives miss the point. There is nuance in conversations about representation, and perhaps no other major sports league in the world is better suited to challenge the status quo than the NBA.

Photo: Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle

Through it all, Hueman has embraced the public criticism, even laughing it off and saying that the hate she has received makes her feel “powerful.” She also hasn’t let it stop her from celebrating the accomplishment with her 3-year-old daughter, Sophie. The toddler appeared with Hueman in a video that was used to debut the design last month.

“She might not understand it yet completely,” Hueman acknowledged, “but the other day when (the Warriors) played the Suns, she pointed to the screen and said, ‘My mom made that.’ ”

Part of the jersey’s role is to provoke discussions that aren’t typically had in sports: How can a uniform be re-envisioned to represent more fans? Who is a part of designing sports logos, and who isn’t? Why can’t sports be a place to discuss real-world issues like female empowerment?

In that sense, it’s not about whether the jersey is liked or not. It’s about whether its presence can push dialogue and awareness beyond basketball stats and the usual locker room banter.

“It was always going to be centered around women,” Hueman said. “I went through so many rounds of designs, but that rose that we see now, that was always a big one I was pushing for because it was the boldest and I knew I wanted to create something completely different.

“The Warriors … wanted something the NBA hadn’t seen before. I wanted to lean into that and do something crazy. It’s a starting point.”

Alan Chazaro is a freelance writer.

Right-hander J.T. Ginn narrowly defeated Gunnar Hoglund to claim the 15th spot on the Athletics Nation Community Prospect List. Robber Salinas joins the voting list as the latest nominee.

Here is the Top 15:

Here is the process:

From MLB Pipeline

Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 50 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 60 | Overall: 50

Hoglund’s stuff plateaued in his first two college seasons, as he showed the same 89- to 93-mph riding fastball and average breaking ball that he had in high school. His stuff ticked up last fall, however, and he now works at 92-95 for five innings at a time and displays a tighter, harder slider at 84-86. His low-80s changeup serves as a solid third pitch and he can give batters a different look by dusting off a curveball he relied on more as a prepster.

With a durable 6-foot-4 frame, an easy delivery and a history of quality strikes, Hoglund already had a high floor as a back-of-the-rotation starter. Multiple scouts have likened him to a bigger version of Tanner Burns, another SEC right-hander whom the Guardians drafted 36th overall last June. Now the A’s will have to be patient to see how his stuff and control returns from the surgery, but if it does, it’s possible they got a top-10 talent from last year’s Draft.

From MLB Pipeline

Scouting grades: Fastball: 60 | Curveball: 50 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 50 | Overall: 55

The right-hander is one of the most interesting and dynamic prospects in the class. His arm is electric, and it continues to dazzle scouts.

Back in Cuba, he was the best U-18 pitcher on the island, setting a record for strikeouts (161) in 82 2/3 innings between 2019 and 2020. He made his debut with Cuba’s Serie Nacional with Sancti Spiritus in 2021 and defected later in the year while playing for the Cuban U-23 team in Mexico.

He projects to be a top-of-the-rotation pitcher as his fastball sits between 94-97, and he has emerging secondary pitches, including a slider, changeup and curveball. While in Mexico, Morales trained with Maels Rodríguez, a former Cuban National team pitcher and Olympian who is best known for his 100 mph fastball, to help hone his primary pitch. Morales has added about 10 pounds of muscle mass in recent months to quell any concerns about his overall strength. He is represented by Magnus Sports. The Athletics are among the teams who have shown strong interest in Morales.

From FanGraphs (Note: Write up is from last year’s Dodgers list via The Board)

The Dodgers have two older corner defender/DH types who have been superlative performers in the upper levels of the minors, both of whom were acquired from other teams. You have Justin Yurchak, who came over from the White Sox a few years ago in exchange for Manny Bañuelos, and Noda, who was a PTBNL from Toronto in the deal for Ross Stripling, and who has one of the more selective approaches in pro baseball. Not only does Noda know how to take a walk (he’s walked at a 13.3% career clip), but he tends to swing at pitches in a specific part of the strike zone, typically offering at strikes up and away from him. While he’s not toolsy or explosive in any way, Noda has enough power to be dangerous, enabled partly by his keen notion of which pitches to hunt. Average at first base (his hands are pretty good over there, his range is not) and below average in both outfield corners, Noda could play a lefty-hitting corner role for a contender or be a low-end everyday first baseman for a needy club.

From MLB Pipeline

Scouting grades: Fastball: 75 | Curveball: 60 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 40 | Overall: 50

Medina features electric arm speed and produces premium stuff with little effort, beginning with a fastball that sits at 96-99 mph and peaks at 103 with natural cutting action. At its best, his low-80s curveball is a true hammer that can be more unhittable than his heater. His changeup also grades as a well above-average offering at times, sitting around 90 mph and diving at the plate with splitter action.

Though Medina is athletic and has no glaring flaws in his delivery, he averaged 6.3 walks per nine innings in his first five seasons as a pro and 5.1 walks per nine last year. He doesn’t require pinpoint command to succeed with his arsenal, but he won’t be able to stay in the rotation unless he becomes more efficient. While he still has a ceiling of a frontline starter, it’s becoming increasingly more likely that he’ll wind up in a relief role.

From Baseball America

Scouting Grades: Fastball: 65. Curveball: 60. Slider: 60. Control: 40

Scouting Report: Salinas is a big-bodied righthander listed at 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, though he’s quite a bit heavier than that listed weight. He attacks hitters with a powerful three-pitch mix headlined by one of the best fastballs in the system. Salinas sat 93-95 mph with his four-seam fastball and touched 98 in 2022. The pitch has plus carry in the top of the zone, with high spin (2,400 rpm) and more than 18 inches of induced vertical break. He pairs his fastball up with multiple breaking balls that have improved significantly during the 2022 season. Salinas previously threw his slider and curveball with slower, loopier shape. By the end of the season, he was throwing a gyro slider around 87 mph that touched 90 as well as a hammer, downer curveball in the 80-82 mph range. Scouts are mixed on which breaking pitch they prefer, though both were bat-missing pitches at a high level. Salinas’ slider was thrown for a strike more frequently and was used more often, while his curve could pair nicely as a north-south complement to his fastball, with more velo separation. Salinas currently has below-average control.

Vote in the comments below for your favorite by Rec’ing his “Vote: (Player Name)” comment, and post your nomination for the next round as well.

Playing his first full season of professional baseball in 2022, the A’s No. 3 prospect began the year with Double-A Midland and only needed 87 games before earning a promotion to Triple-A Las Vegas at the end of the season. This came despite Gelof having to miss six weeks in the middle of the season due to a freak injury which resulted in a torn labrum in his left shoulder after diving for a ball up the middle.

Moving through the ranks at such a fast pace, logic says Gelof will get his first call to the Majors at some point in 2023.

“It’s tough to not look ahead and look at the big leagues,” Gelof said. “When I get an opportunity, I know I’m supposed to be there and stay up for a long while.”

It shouldn’t really come as a surprise that Gelof finds himself on the precipice of achieving his big league dream this quickly. Rave reviews of his advanced approach at the plate date back to his college days at the University of Virginia, leading to Oakland’s selection of him in the second round of the 2021 MLB Draft. As he’s advanced through each level, Gelof has fortified that high praise by slashing .287/.371/.490 with 54 extra-base hits, including 25 homers, and 96 RBIs in 132 career Minor League games, setting lofty expectations as a big part of Oakland's future.

For Bobby Crosby, a former A’s shortstop and current manager with Double-A Midland, Gelof doesn’t need much more grooming in the Minors from an offensive standpoint.

“We haven’t really tinkered with him too much,” Crosby said of Gelof. “He’s a student of the game. He’s a guy who knows his swing. He knows what he likes to do. So far, it’s played at every level. I know it’ll play at the big league level.”

What stands out about his offensive game?

“He has really good power to the opposite field,” Crosby said. “I know he thinks to go that way, and if they throw something offspeed, he can turn on that and has really good power that way. He thinks like a big leaguer already. That’s the biggest thing for me. He goes into every at-bat and it’s a competition that he’s going to win.”

The only real question surrounding Gelof is what position awaits him in the Major Leagues. Though he was a third baseman throughout college and early into his pro career, the A’s used him primarily at second base last season. With supreme athleticism another of his impressive traits, Gelof adapted well to the new position and appeared more than capable.

“I think his arm slot works a lot better at second,” Crosby said. “He is such a good athlete that I knew he was going to be able to cover the ground that he needed. At third, it’s like he almost moves too good to play there, in a sense.

“The main thing was seeing the throwing motion. He has a strong arm, but it’s more of a sidearm delivery. He handled it great. The turn [at second] was easy. He’s such a good athlete that you can put him wherever and he’ll figure it out.”

Gelof will only be in camp for a handful of Cactus League games before leaving for Florida to play for Team Israel in the World Baseball Classic. But he’s already made a strong impression in front of manager Mark Kotsay, who visited with Gelof and other top A’s prospects during the Arizona Fall League.

“I’ve been impressed with his work ethic,” Kotsay said of Gelof. “He’s a very intense individual. Very baseball knowledgeable. You watch his BPs and it just looks like there’s an intent to do damage every time he swings the bat.”

While Gelof looks forward to the Classic, particularly the challenge of being in the same group as powerhouses like the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Puerto Rico, all of which feature star-studded pitching staffs, he is locked in on utilizing his time in Arizona to show Oakland’s big league staff what he’s all about.

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“It’s not often you get to face basically a Hall of Fame team between those other teams in that group,” Gelof said. “But ultimately, the focus is here with the A’s. I’m trying to keep getting better here, be an ultimate professional, and win a spot.”

revor May and the Athletics are learning all about each other in spring training. T

Speaking with reporters Wednesday, A's manager Mark Kotsay explained how May's experience and veteran presence are imperative in helping the club determine what his role will be in the 2023 MLB season.

"I think for Trevor, identifying a role once we break camp and getting him to feel comfortable and maximizing his performance," Kotsay said. "There's nothing to say that Trevor can't pitch in the back end of games.

"In all expectations, that's where he's going to fit and pitch in high-leverage spots."

An eight-year veteran, May spent the first six seasons of his career with the Minnesota Twins, compiling a 23-21 record with a 4.44 ERA in 215 games (26 starts). May spent the last two seasons with the New York Mets, recording a 4.00 ERA in 94 combined games.

For his career, May is 32-24 with a 4.35 ERA in 403 2/3 innings pitched with 12 career saves. In the offseason, the 33-year-old signed a one-year, $7 million contract with the A's after receiving interest from 12 to 15 teams.

After signing with Oakland, May said he chose the A's because he felt he was going to a place where he felt "valued" and was a fan of the Bay Area's hyphy movement, listening to rappers and groups such as E-40, Too Short, Keak Da Sneak and others.

With a personality like that, it's clear that May is a unique person, which Kotsay appreciates. The A's manager also revealed that he was told May had a popular YouTube channel and shared how that could be beneficial for the team.

"Yeah, he's got a personality that may not be reflective of every guy in that locker room," Kotsay noted. "But I think we need different types of personalities and so for Trevor, I think it would be fun to watch him go through his processes and share in those as well."

Kotsay said that he has not seen May's channel -- which boasts over 42,000 subscribers -- but eventually will get to it when the time is right.

"... For me, I think it's great that he engages in the social media aspect and utilizes that for his platform -- it's kind of where we are in this day and age," Kotsay continued. "Maybe one day I'll flip it on and check it out."

RELATED: Why new A's reliever May saw Oakland as perfect landing spot

With the A's gearing up for a bounce-back season behind Paul Blackburn's renewed focus and newcomer Shintaro Fujinami, May's experience and personality should pay dividends for Oakland.

As spring training games get underway, May and the A's will have time to learn more about each other and how to best approach the season.

IN A VICTORY for Oakland students, families and community, the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) board voted on Jan. 11 to stop five schools from being closed and one from being scaled down.

Last February, the board had voted to close 11 schools only a week after making the proposal public. The schools marked for closure would affect Oakland’s most vulnerable students and communities. Massive community outcry followed, including a rally/march in downtown Oakland in February and a hunger strike by two Oakland educators.

Despite the pleas of students, educators, parents and others, the board reaffirmed its decision to close schools as soon as the end of this school year, refusing to consider alternatives or delay the decision. But subsequent actions under the leadership of Oakland Education Association, among others, prevailed and convinced the board to change plans.

“After months of protests, advocacy and a hunger strike by two district employees, Oakland educators are proud of [the board] vote,” said OEA President Keith Brown. “This win is a culmination of the power of educators, parents, students and community members joining together to do what is right for the future of Oakland.”

OEA and allies’ actions included organizing the huge February march that demonstrated parent and community support, a one-day unfair labor practice strike, and helping elect new school board members in the Nov. 22 election who voted against closures. OEA was supported by multiple partners; NEA contributed financial support.

CTA President E. Toby Boyd praised the collaborative work. “This is a victory for Oakland public schools and testament to what happens when educators, parents, students and community … band together to advocate for the public education Oakland’s students need and deserve.”

He also said that regarding major decisions and proposals, the district should allot more time for input and discussion by stakeholders. “Parents, educators and community members must be given the opportunity and time to provide input on important decisions that impact OUSD students without having to go on hunger strikes or organize protests to be heard.”

Brown admonished district officials and the school board for ignoring stakeholder opinion, saying “it should not have taken this long for our leaders to listen to our voices and do what is right for students.” He called for measures to heal the resulting rifts.

“As educators, our mission is always to protect students’ lives and be pillars of our communities. This is why we cannot ignore the harm this has caused to our most vulnerable, whose lives were upended since this debate began. The next step is to repair the pain and stress our students and communities feel and continue the fight for racially and socially just schools.”

Boyd said in support, “Speaking on behalf of 310,000 CTA members, we stand with Oakland’s educators in their fight for equitable resources and equal access for all students.”

At press time, a fiscal trustee is requiring OUSD to adjust its budget to recognize the costs in keeping the schools operating. Also, the state Public Employee Relations Board said in a proposed decision that the OUSD board’s vote last year to close or merge schools violated labor law, as it was made “without providing notice and the opportunity to bargain the effects of that decision” with OEA.