Happy New Year everyone! We are not only in a new year of 2020 we are in a new decade! With a new decade upon us, I thought it would be great to do a more fun type of blog than I usually do. One of the more underrated aspects of the NBA that I love is the jerseys. The NBA used to only did special jerseys for the All-Star Game which would inspire alternate jerseys that teams could wear on an every other game basis on the road or at home. The NBA and its players starting to take fashion more seriously on and off the court led to experimentation with team uniforms outside of the run of the mill home and away jerseys. For a while, teams experimented with holiday theme jerseys for Christmas and St. Patrick’s Day for example but it seems like those have been phased out. City jerseys are now the new wave as all 30 teams have special jerseys that represent the city of the corresponding team. With that being said, I thought I would take a look at each team’s best jersey ever. This will not include alternates, holiday editions or any other special edition jersey. This will strictly be the best home/away jersey in each team’s history. I may make a blog ranking the top 10 best alternate/special edition jerseys of all-time one day but for now no special edition jersey will be featured. With that being said let’s begin!
SPOILER ALERT: SHOTS WILL BE FIRED!
Eastern Conference
Atlanta Hawks
This is for sure one of my favorite jersey designs of all-time. This jersey designed has aged like fine wine as far as I’m concerned. Maybe if they brought these jerseys back full-time it could distract Hawks fans from how bad the team is. (SHOTS FIRED!)
Boston Celtics
Classic. Just classic.
Brooklyn Nets
I had to take it back to the ABA days for the Nets best jersey. It was honestly between these and the Drazen Petrovic Nets era jerseys but I edged it to these. I just like the color scheme and the stars and stripes type look to these. This is definitely a look the Nets should revisit on a theme night or a special occasion game (minus the short shorts of course LOL).
Charlotte Hornets
Although I’m not a huge fan of the color scheme, I’m a sucker for pinstripe jerseys. Plus, Charlotte has not had a very good history in terms of jerseys but they at least look better than the Hornets have played. (SHOTS FIRED!)
Chicago Bulls
When talking about what team has the best overall jersey catalog ever I would pick the Chicago Bulls. The script jerseys get the nod for me just because it looks so simple but its effective. Its a change of pace from their regular jerseys that just have Bulls on the front in that generic font. Again, it’s not a huge change and its not over the top flashy, but to me it gets the job done.
Cleveland Cavaliers
Again, I am a sucker for script jerseys and the Cavs are no exception. The Cavs actually had a surprising number of great jerseys that I had to choose from but it was these that got the nod. I really like how the “C” in Cavaliers is designed on the jersey. Even though I’m usually not crazy about the ketchup and mustard color scheme, this jersey pulls it off well.
Detroit Pistons
Not much to say here I’m not a fan of the teal color in their 90s jerseys with the Piston in the logo so I opted for their more basic jersey. Not great but not bad either just ok.
Indiana Pacers
This is probably the most underrated jersey design ever. I like the pattern on the jersey with the white, yellow and navy going from left to right and I especially like how they designed the team name and number on the jersey. I would love for this jersey to make a return.
Miami Heat
If I were to include special edition jerseys into this equation, I think we all know I would have picked the Miami Vice jerseys. But, they weren’t included so I’ll stick with these. Not that they don’t look good they look great, they’re just not the Miami Vice jerseys LOL.
Milwaukee Bucks
I know most will go to the 90s purple/green jersey with the Buck on the side but I personally am not a fan of those. Those, to me, are an example of jerseys going over the top and failing. These, on the other hand, get the job done without doing too much.
New York Knicks
Again, not much to say but if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. If only the Knicks knew how much their franchise needed fixing they could finally win an NBA championship after 50 years. (SHOTS FIRED!)
Orlando Magic
Not only is their pinstripes in this design, there is also a star as the “A” and the dot on the I in Magic. Honestly, this same design without pinstripes look good the pinstripes are just the cherry on top. Definitely one of my favorite jersey designs ever.
Philadelphia 76ers
In a way this is an emotional pick because I grew up a huge Allen Iverson fan and this jersey was synonymous with his time in Philly. With that said, the design of this jersey looks very good. I love the imagery of the basketball flying from the star underlining the Sixers logo. I am a sucker for stars taking the place of he dot over the “I”. Its just a great jersey design the emotional connection is just a plus.
Toronto Raptors
I, like most people, did not like these jersey when the Raptors first started wearing them. I don’t know when they started to grow on me but they did. I maintain that I don’t like the purple/black/red color combination but that’s just a minor nitpick.
Washington Wizards
I wanted to pick their gold alternate jerseys from the mid 2000s but as previously stated I can’t. That should not take away from how nice this jersey is. To me, the jerseys were better when they were the Bullets compared to their jerseys as the Wizards (don’t @ me). I especially love the hands over the Ls designed to look like its reaching for the basketball above.
Western Conference
Dallas Mavericks
So far in this blog, we have learned I am a sucker for script jersey designs, and stars as letters or letter accessories on jerseys. Now the next thing I am a sucker for is a skyline jersey design hence this Mavs jersey. Although this jersey is very well done, I do kind of wish the logo was a bit lower on the jersey and the skyline was bigger. This is a very good skyline jersey but its not best one I’ve seen. Which is the best? Well…
Denver Nuggets
…why this one of course. I absolutely love this jersey. Home, away it doesn’t matter both of them look amazing. I went with the away version just because I think the blue magnifies the rainbow stripes and skyline better than on the white jersey. Either way, this is for sure one of my all-time favorites.
Golden State Warriors
This is another very underrated jersey. I love the way they incorporated the bay bridge on this jersey. I do w
Houston Rockets
Most would pick the pinstripe jerseys as the best for the Rockets and while I do like those, I like these slightly better. It may look simple but the font looks different from any other jersey. I honestly don’t know what attracts me to this jersey specifically I just know that I like them a lot.
Los Angeles Clippers
Before the LA Clippers were the Clippers we all know and…they were the San Diego Clippers and before that they were the Buffalo Braves. As the Buffalo Braves, they had one of the most underrated jerseys of all-time. I love everything about this jersey from the color scheme, the black and orange lines going diagonally across the jersey and the logo placement. If only I included city jerseys in this list this year’s Clippers city jerseys would give it a run for its money. At the same time thank God I didn’t because I would have a tough choice to make.
Los Angeles Lakers
See Boston Celtics description.
Memphis Grizzlies
Now usually I’m not a big fan of teal but this is a huge exception. Oh my goodness this jersey is amazing. There are so many things I love about this jersey but probably my favorite is the design on the collar and shoulder lining. This would definitely be a candidate for my top 10 jerseys of all-time not only in the NBA but arguably in sports period.
Minnesota Timberwolves
Another jersey that uses the collar and shoulder line effectively. From the mix of colors to the logo and number fonts this is just a well done jersey. My one nitpick is I wish they found a way to incorporate the Timberwolf (or whatever the singular word for Timberwolves is) from the logo onto the jersey.
New Orleans Pelicans
Not much to say here but for all the wrong reasons. This is the Pelicans/Hornets best jersey by default quite honestly. This is a franchise that has never done well with making aesthetically pleasing jerseys in their history. If only they could win a championship, or at least make a Western Conference Finals, we wouldn’t have to notice how ugly their jerseys are. (SHOTS FIRED!)
Oklahoma City Thunder
BRING THE NBA BACK TO SEATTLE! No disrespect to Oklahoma City some of the best moments in recent NBA memory have occurred in OKC. I just miss the NBA in Seattle and more than that I miss seeing these jerseys on the NBA court. They may look simple but that’s what make them great. Green and yellow is an amazing color combination and the design looking great is just the cherry on top.
Phoenix Suns
Another well done amazing jersey. This is a flashy jersey that doesn’t look like its trying too hard. I honestly prefer the black version of this jersey but all the color combinations for this jersey look great.
Sacramento Kings
I had to take it back to the Oscar Robertson days for the Kings best jersey. The Kings really made me think about this one they have had great jerseys in every era. It was between these, the checkerboard Kings jerseys from the 90s, and the baby blue Kings script jerseys. These get the nod from me because I love the layout of the jersey design with the team name displayed on the side vertically as well as they red and white lines.
San Antonio Spurs
The Spurs old teal, pink and orange although it looked great didn’t make sense because their jerseys were black, white and silver. I think if they made their jerseys to match the colors to match their logo they would have looked great–but they didn’t. That doesn’t mean these don’t look good because they do. I personally love the Spurs logo as the “U” in the team name on the jersey. But their jerseys are just like how they are on the court not flashy but effective.
Utah Jazz
Last, but not least, we have this masterpiece of a jersey from the Utah Jazz. The mountain in the background is obviously the main appeal of the jersey but the underrated aspect of the jersey is the font used to spell out Jazz. I love the imagery of the Jazz name on the jersey made to look like its flying through the mountain. The color scheme is great I mean this jersey is just the full package and the best way to end this list.
Short Cuz the Sports Plug 