Welcome back for another edition of NBA uniform matchup ranking. Today, we have some weird phenomena. There are no color-on-color games, yet there is only one traditional home vs away uniform matchup. Road teams are wearing white in six of the seven games, and they just so happen to be the worse looking team in every game. I dislike exactly zero of the home sets, and this might be my favorite lineup of home teams on any given day this season. All of that combines to make a very close bottom five, a very high-quality number two, and a number one that may be competing for best looking game of the year.
As always, all image credits go to Lockervision, and without further ado, let’s kick off at number seven.
7-Grizzlies at Knicks
When I said we had a close bottom five, I did not mean close as in they were all bad. This game does not reach good status for me, as I still don’t like how empty Memphis’ uniform looks, but it meshes decently with the Knicks. New York may have a uniform that would qualify as basic, but it just works for me. I like the flashes of orange, and I always love returning to the basics of a block number font. If Memphis brought any creativity to the table, this game would rank higher.
6-Timberwolves at Bulls
Here lies our only home vs away uniform matchup of the day, and it was a pain to put it this low. I love the Chicago Bulls uniform set, as they (almost) all feel timeless and iconic. The same cannot be said about Minnesota. Take elements of two better uniforms in Dallas and Washington, mash them together and use a drab double blue color scheme, and you get whatever they were going for with their current set. All it does is make me long for better and more creative uniforms. Together, the matchup isn’t bad, but it averages out to meh.
5-Rockets at Pacers
This is a slightly better version of white with red vs blue. Houston’s white jersey can’t compete with Chicago’s, but Indiana brings a much better blue uniform to the table than Minnesota. Putting the city and the team’s name around the numbers is still a little odd to me, but that doesn’t take this jersey of the good category in the league. And while Houston’s white is not great on its own, I actually like how it looks when paired with Indiana here. An actually pretty good-looking game if you ask me.
4-Mavericks at Nets
The Jason Kidd game is actually not bad. You might think what with me calling for a Mavs rebrand to move off these outdated uniforms and the Nets uniforms being so basic that I would despise this game, but they mesh really well in my opinion. Where Dallas is too busy, Brooklyn tones it down with their simplicity. This combines to make a game that I can’t wait to watch highlights for (hurry up and get rid of Bally please).
3-Magic at Heat
I’ve said my piece about both of these uniforms. Orlando, with every rebrand and new uniform, strips down their uniforms to no end. That means this current era of Orlando simply can’t compete with the earlier, much better uniforms of the Shaq era. As for Miami, they have a set that I don’t think enough people give credit for just how great it is. They truly have a classic set on their hands. That greatness combines with the mediocrity to put out a solid game, but one that can’t compete with these last two.
2-Bucks at Suns
This game might be first on a number of days this season. It harkens back to the Finals between these two teams where Phoenix was wearing their Valley alternate jerseys. I loved that set, and I love this current iteration almost as much. I also love how Milwaukee’s uniforms fit matchup-wise. They are seemingly much simpler, but they have their own awesome touches, such as the Irish rainbow stripes. The green goes with the oranges and purples of Phoenix’s numbers and stripes. All in all, I really do like how this game looks. It just ran into a juggernaut today.
1-Thunder at Jazz
Yeah, these Utah uniforms might be my favorite in the whole league. It is such a cool way to modernize their best uniform, while also finally bringing purple into the current era. The Jazz are 3-0 in their history with city uniforms, and (for the third time) I am begging Utah to build a whole set around their city uniforms. Ever since Nike took over NBA uniform manufacturing, Utah never looks better than when they are wearing their city uniforms. A new set around these would both get rid of the worst set in the league and place Utah right among the best.
As for Oklahoma City, I will defend these Thunder jerseys till the day I die. I love how the blue, orange, and yellow mesh on the stripes, and the rest of the uniform has become so iconic in my opinion. Where many NBA uniform connoisseurs see bland, I see them hitting a home run right out of the gate when they moved from Seattle. All in all, this game is an absolute banger that I can’t wait to see on League Pass.
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