Pelicans unveil new uniforms

Pelicans players (from left) Jason Smith, Ryan Anderson, Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday pose in the team's new uniforms. (Derick E. Hingle/USA Today Sports)

Pelicans players (from left) Jason Smith, Ryan Anderson, Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday pose in the team's new uniforms. (Derick E. Hingle/USA Today Sports)

The Pelicans unveiled new uniforms on Thursday to officially complete their rebrand. The presentation featured New Orleans players Anthony Davis, Jrue Holiday, Ryan Anderson and Jason Smith.

Unfortunately, the new duds -- the franchise's first since shedding the "Hornets" moniker in April and adopting a red, blue and gold color scheme -- are as pedestrian as they come. 

The design isn't bad; it's just generic. Rather than choose a more interesting concept based on a new name and palette, New Orleans went with a safe, bland look without much character. The uniform, which has some interesting flourishes here and there, could certainly be worse. But this feels like a missed opportunity for a franchise that has long stood out with a distinct, teal-driven theme. Now the Pelicans will fade into the red-and-blue NBA masses with an ultra-conservative jersey set.

(NBA.com/Pelicans)

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The Pelicans' road uniforms are primarily a dark blue to symbolize Louisiana's state flag, while their home uniforms are a conventional white.

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Among the aforementioned flourishes, per the team's official release:

The Pelicans’ partial logo is featured on the side of the shorts, while the “Bird-de-Lis” will be highlighted in the center back of the neck of the jersey. At the center of the waistband of the shorts sits a unique ligature that combines the letters ‘N’ and ‘O’ to form a basketball. This new mark, created specifically and exclusively for the Pelicans, will be used selectively by the team and incorporated into Pelicans' branding.

Greater variety should come in due time. Although NBA teams are not permitted to introduce a third, alternate jersey in such a rebrand, the Pelicans intend to unveil alternate uniform schemes for the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons.

(nba.com/pelicans)

While the uniforms don't make much of an imprint, the "Pelicans" name has proved to be fairly polarizing among fans.

“I mean, it’s funny, I’m not going to lie,” Holiday told The Point Forward of the new name. “It’s funny saying it. ‘We’re the Pelicans.’ But I’ve said it about half a million times now, so I’m used to it.”

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