Skip to content
100 Objects #14: Basketball Sleeve episode artwork

Aug 21, 2026 41 min

100 Objects #14: Basketball Sleeve

from 99% Invisible Hosted by Ramtin Arablouei

Producer and reporter Ramtin Arablouei (co-creator of the NPR show, Throughline) has a simple question: why are so many NBA players wearing a compression sleeve on their arm? It seems like everyone has one. Do they all have elbow issues? The answer is really the story of Allen Iverson, an underdog player who went from a prison cell to international fame in just a few years. And through the story of him and his sleeve, you can see the whole history of basketball’s relationship with race, with respectability politics, and who gets to look like what on the court. A History of the United States in 100 Objects is a production of 99% Invisible and BBC Studios. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of 99% Invisible ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus.

Episode details come from the podcast's RSS feed.

Embed this episode

Producer and reporter Ramtin Arablouei has a simple question: Why are so many NBA players wearing a compression sleeve on their arm?

Ready to play

100 Objects #14: Basketball Sleeve

0:00 41:50

No transcript yet.

Requests help us decide what to transcribe next.

Frequently asked questions

How long is this episode of 99% Invisible?

This episode is 41 minutes long.

When was this 99% Invisible episode published?

This episode was published on August 21, 2026.

Can I download this 99% Invisible episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.