Cavs Fan Guide: Five Must-Have T-shirts

When owner Ryan Weiss of Rock Everywear looks at his The Land: A City Reborn shirt ($20), one word comes to mind: champions. “It’s kind of like a mock-up of the championship trophy and the phoenix bird. [They’re] supposed to represent the birth of our city,” he says. rockeverywear.com

It’s important to remember that the NBA Finals is about the team as a whole, so the All the King’s Men shirt ($25) featuring the smiling (and bearded in most cases) silhouettes of the whole Cavs team makes us grin. “We just wanted to make a fun shirt that included all the Cavs in a fun way,” explains CLE Clothing Co. owner Mike Kubinski. 342 Euclid Ave., Cleveland, 216-736-8879, cleclothingco.com

Brothers and co-owners of GV Art + Design Greg and George Vlosich decided to strategically release this special edition shirt ($26) right after LeBron James made a game-winning shot against Chicago earlier in the playoffs. “Honestly, it’s such a great statement. I mean, nothing is given — you gotta earn what you have,” George says. 17411 Detroit Ave., Lakewood, 216-273-7188, gvartwork.com

Even with Kevin Love sitting the Finals out because of a certain shoulder mishap, and Kyrie Irving hampered by knee troubles, this shirt ($32) from Ilthy owner and designer Glen Infante featuring playful caricatures of Cleveland’s Big Three makes us hopeful. 15613 Detroit Ave., Lakewood, ilthy.com

We can't resist Fresh Brewed Tees’ can-do message on the All We Do is Win shirt ($25.99). Though that usually hasn’t been the case with Cleveland sports, we have no shame showing the world that 2015 is different. freshbrewedtees.com

By Emily McIntyre

Wear St. Paddy's Day On Your Sleeve

Nobody likes to be pinched on St. Patty’s Day, so show off your holiday spirit and wear one of our favorite festive T-shirts from CLE Clothing Co.

Photo courtesy CLE Clothing Co.

Cleveland Loves St. Party’s Day Unisex Crew, $25: If you’re planning on partying it up this St. Patrick’s Day, stay comfy and look good doing it in this bright green and orange T-shirt.

Photo courtesy CLE Clothing Co.

Beer Me I’m Clevelandish! Unisex Crew, $25: This year, don this beer me T-shirt and let everyone know what you’re after without even saying a word.

Photo courtesy CLE Clothing Co.

Kiss Me I’m Ohio-ish Men’s and Women’s Crews, $25: Not Irish? No worries. You can still feel the love in this clever Kiss Me I’m Ohio-ish T-shirt.

Cavs/Mavs T-Shirt Scores With Local Fans

George and Greg Vlosich have Clevelanders' backs. The designers of the Cleve Land That I Love and Lyin' King shirts, which expressed our vitriol at LeBron James, have come up with a new design for the NBA Finals. As the Dallas Mavericks face off against the Miami Heat, the Vlosiches have superimposed a cowboy hat and the Dallas Mavericks' "M" over a Cavs logo to create a Let's Go Mavs T-shirt.

In anticipation of Game 2 tonight, we spoke with Greg Vlosich, co-owner of GV Art & Design, about the company, the T-shirt and Dallas' chances of winning their first ring before LeBron does.

CM: What do you think LeBron [James] would think or say if he saw the Let's Go Mavs T-shirt?
GV: I think he’d get a kick out of it. Hopefully, he realizes you have to have a sense of humor about it. ... I think [the Miami Heat] know they’ve been the enemy the whole year.

CM: Have you sold many of the Let's Go Mavs T-shirts?

GV: Yes, the response has been really good. We wanted to do something that Cleveland could really rally around, and we wanted to do something because we didn’t have a whole lot to cheer for in the playoffs this year. So far it’s done really well, and everybody has really embraced it. It’s kind of funny, too, because it was in the Dallas Morning Journal today [as well as on] ESPN, ESPN's blog and CNN. Also, the woman on ESPN's SportsNation is going to be wearing it today. So it’s cool that it’s kind of putting Cleveland back in the spotlight when they’re not even in it. It’s bringing a lot of positive attention to Cleveland.

CM: What kind of feeling do you hope to promote among Cleveland fans?
GV: We started the Cleve Land That I Love T-shirt about a year and a half ago, and we wanted something that Clevelanders could wear and be proud of it. ... We’re getting pictures of people wearing [our apparel] [in places such as] the Great Wall of China and Australia. It shows that there are other people out there who are proud of Cleveland like we are, who don’t hate it.

CM: What else does GV Art & Design sell?
GV: [My brother George] does Etch A Sketch artwork, and we have sports art too. I’ve done a couple of pieces for some of the Browns players.

CM: Do you think the Mavs will win the Finals, and if so, how certain are you?
GV: [Laughs] I’m not extremely certain. If I had to bet my life on it, I don't know if I’d do it. I think Dallas has a shot. My only fear is that they’ve been hot during all the playoffs, so I figured they’d hit a cold streak at some point. But I’m hoping they don’t hit the cold streak now.

C.L.E. Clothing Co. vs. Cleveland Clothing Co.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right? Not if you ask C.L.E. Clothing Co., the local T-shirt company that we wrote about in our April issue.  

Shortly after forming, another eerily similar T-shirt company called Cleveland Clothing Co. popped on the scene with an eerily similar logo featuring the Cleveland skyline and an eerily similar Web site. 

C.L.E. Clothing Co. has been doing its best to let fans know there's a difference but its been hard when Cleveland Clothing Co. is producing laugh-out-loud T-shirts like the one above (which is on sale now for $10).

Since we believe in equal opportunity endorsements, we are also loving the latest design by C.L.E. Clothing Co. (below for $25) featuring a slathering of Cleveland favorites from the Leg Lamp to the Agora. We're still searching for the Cleveland Magazine logo ...