Will the Charlotte Hornets bring back the purple, teal and white uniforms?
The Bobcats will be re-named the Hornets for the 2014-15 season. (Brian Drake/NBAE via Getty Images)
The Bobcats are turning back the clock, dropping the Bobcats nickname for the Hornets, but the status of the iconic Hornets' colors (purple, teal and white) is still up in the air.
Owner Michael Jordan wouldn't confirm what colors the new Hornets would adopt, but the designer of the original Hornets uniforms is hoping to reintroduce them to a willing public (via NBC Charlotte):
Alexander Julian told [NBC Charlotte] that story by phone Tuesday, and if anyone knows about the teal and purple, it’s him. He came up with the combination, and the original Hornets uniforms that featured it. “I brought that combination to the public,” he said.
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There’s one [color] that he really likes -- teal. It’s a color that just looks good on everybody, he said. Add purple, and you’ve got a combination that’s held up for more than 25 years. Julian calls them his signature colors. They’re the ones he used when Shinn asked him to create the uniforms for Charlotte’s new NBA franchise.
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He’s still pleased that even after a quarter-century, the Hornets style is still popular and the teal and purple haven’t gone away. “It was a great honor [to design the original uniforms],” he said. “I’d love another shot at it.”
The article also notes that, by 1995, the Hornets were selling "more jerseys than any other NBA team, despite the fact that they would never make it past the second round of the playoffs."
Bringing back the original colors would seem to be a strong move for a team looking to reconnect with its fan base. The original Hornets joined the NBA as an expansion franchise in 1988 and spent 14 seasons in Charlotte before being moved to New Orleans by former owner George Shinn in 2002. (The New Orleans Hornets officially changed their name to the New Orleans Pelicans in April.) For what it's worth, the BackBuzzCity site used to promote the Hornets' return to Charlotte uses the purple, teal and white colors.
The Bobcats have cycled through four uniforms since entering the NBA in 2004, starting with an orange/red color scheme and moving to a predominantly navy blue look.
The NBC Charlotte article includes an awesome video of the original Charlotte Hornets uniform unveiling that we just had to share. Enjoy: