NBA Power Rankings: Rating the 30 NBA Teams’ Home Uniforms

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Now that most rosters are close to being solidified, you've probably read several articles previewing the upcoming NBA season.

The signings of Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, and one other guy, I forget his name...oh yea, Mike Miller...made an über-team in Miami that looked like it was only possible on paper. Now they're the team to beat...right?

Maybe not. The Lakers and Celtics are as strong as they've ever been, adding a few minor pieces to bolster their respective rosters.

The Bulls put together some quality pieces that will actually complement their core of Derrick Rose and Joakim Noah.

Don't sleep on the Magic, who could make things difficult if Dwight Howard returns to his '09 playoff form.

And if Chris Paul gets traded to a premier team, or even a fringe contender, it will alter the NBA landscape even more.

But it's not just about winning—you've got to look good while doing so. And the one thing that makes a player look sharp on the court (you know, besides how he actually plays) is his uniform.

A dominant scoring guard might look a little better wearing a Bulls jersey than he would donning Sacramento's colors (not suggesting that they would actually play better, but just have a more natural look) .

So without further ado, let's get into a different type of NBA list for this week: one that ranks the uniforms of all 30 teams.

Keep in mind, this list is based solely on each team's home jersey, not their away, alternate, or throwback unis.

(Many thanks to SportsLogos.net for their assistance. Be sure to check it out—whatever jersey any NBA team has ever worn, they have it on record. Some photos used in this slideshow are credited to their site.)

Let's start at No. 30...

30. Minnesota Timberwolves

Poor Minnesota. Even on a list like this, they can't get any love.

There's just way too much going on here. Blue, green, white, and black, with no apparent rhyme or reason to the pattern.

You can barely make out the tree outline on the shorts—it looks more like two bishops on a chessboard.

The look on Corey Brewer's face in the picture is exactly how I feel when looking at these unis.

29. Sacramento Kings

The Kings may be one of the more youthful and exciting up-and-coming teams in the West, but their uniforms suggest otherwise.

Sacramento just introduced these recently, but they're unimpressive—unoriginal font, the trim on the side isn't appealing, and it's seemingly the same jersey we've seen from about half the other teams in the league.

I like the purple and black combo...it just feels like this jersey should be flashier than it actually is.

28. Atlanta Hawks

The old red, yellow, and white Hawks jerseys from the Dominique Wilkins era are something worth having in your collection.

The mid-'90s ones with the actual Hawk swooping across the front? Not so much.

But I don't understand why the Hawks suddenly threw blue into the mix. If it were replaced with the old-school yellow, these unis might be worth a second look.

The outlines on the numbers are kinda cool, but I just can't shake the bland, generic feeling I get from looking at them.

27. Washington Wizards

The new-look Wizards jerseys just don't cut it.

A few questions...why is there trim on just the one side? Why put that ridiculous "W" mascot on the side of the shorts?

And why does the "W" on the front look like one of the batarangs used from The Dark Knight?

On the plus side, these are infinitely better than the worst uniforms in NBA history: the gold-and-blue model from the '06-'07 season.

26. Oklahoma City Thunder

To be fair, once the game starts, OKC's unis aren't awful to look at.

But in this picture, the colors are so bright it's almost blinding. It's like you're looking into a 3-D poster.

And not to bring any more pain to the already miserable Seattle fan-base, but if this team were in the old Sonics jerseys...now there's a sight.

25. Toronto Raptors

I actually like the trim on these—maybe it's just the inner-Ohio State fan, since this reminds me of scarlet and gray.

It just seems unimaginative. You see similar font on jerseys from Minnesota, Sacramento, Houston, and Golden State.

Come on, NBA braintrusts, let's see some creativity here! At least bring back that original Raptor and stick it one the side of the shorts or something.

24. Philadelphia 76ers

Rarely do NBA jerseys or logos go unchanged these days. Even a basketball tradition-rich city like Philadelphia has undergone many changes over the years.

But in this case, they took the inventive Sixers logo with the star and basketball and replaced it with something bland and uninspired.

This just screams boring.

23. Cleveland Cavaliers

The Cavs changed the team's color, uniforms, court layout, everything in 2003.

Now might be time for another change. I don't know about other Cavs fans, but looking at this layout is only going to remind me of something (or someone) I don't ever want to come across again.

May I recommend switching back to the late '80s, early '90s orange, blue, and white layout? Whenever they wear those as throwbacks, it looks fantastic.

Just looking at the side picture is making me more irate by the second. Let's just move on...

22. Golden State Warriors

I like the colors, which are labeled as "Warriors Royal Blue" and "California Golden Yellow." It looks more like an orange, but whatever works.

It's not so much the simplicity that bothers me—it's the fact that the layout is like so many other teams.

Slanted letters in the team name, an off-center number, logo on the side of the shorts...we've seen it already.

21. Indiana Pacers

My only real problem with this jersey: as mentioned earlier, I'm an Ohio State grad, and blue and yellow just shouldn't be mixed together...for obvious reasons.

I have an unfair prejudice against Indiana's colors. Sue me.

20. Orlando Magic

The creative minds behind Orlando's jerseys were wise to replace the floating stars with the pinstripes of the early '90s.

But why switch up the original Magic logo on the front? What was wrong with stars and darker pinstripes?

Instead of the wacky number outline and "Comic Sans"-esque font, they went to something more basic and generic that 25 percent of the league has already done.

19. Miami Heat

Yaaaaaawn. These are essentially the same uniforms from the '80s when the Heat first started playing, only with more emphasis on the trim around the shorts.

Next!

18. Utah Jazz

Few teams employ the all-white jerseys anymore, but it works for the Jazz.

The only drawback is the universal-used design on the front. The more we go through this list, the more it seems like every team is using block lettering with a bit of 3-D shadow.

It's better than having mountains on the front, though (see: '97-'98 Utah). Something about seeing the peaks and the word "Jazz" right underneath it just screams glaring contradiction.

17. Phoenix Suns

Again, pretty basic. But the Suns get credit for the circle around the numbers. At least it's something different.

16. Houston Rockets

The harmony between the jersey and shorts is what makes this work—the concave, red lines that swoop up and down the sides, and the matching logo on each end of the shorts.

It's a proven fact that people find symmetry aesthetically pleasing. This is about as symmetrical as NBA jerseys get.

15. New Jersey Nets

Similar to several other jerseys on the list, but I give New Jersey an edge because the "s" at the end looks like a Z.

Isn't "z" a prominent letter in the Russian language? See, Mikhail Prokhorov is making an impact already.

14. San Antonio Spurs

Look at the Spurs jerseys and compare it to the team: not flashy, not exciting, but in the end you get a solid result.

Let's just pretend the orange, pink, and teal days of the '90s never happened.

13. Portland Trail Blazers

Because of my gripe of how unimaginative some of the jerseys are, I've got to give Portland credit for thinking outside the box.

The diagonal red, black, and silver stripes across the front aren't anything mind-blowing, but the design is unlike anything else.

Props that they've kept pretty much the same outline for the last 30-plus years.

12. Charlotte Bobcats

The block letters across the front, the double-line trim on the side, the team logo on the side of the shorts...it's all been seen before.

So why is Charlotte ranked all the way up at No. 12? Because of the pinstripes!

When something like a quarter or a third of the league's uniforms are basically interchangeable, having pinstripes sets you apart. Plus, the shade of orange they use is faaaaaan-tastic.

11. Los Angeles Clippers

This might be the highest the Clips rank on any list besides the "who has the worst owner in sports?" countdown.

Blue and red go together often, but it's the almost periwinkle-like trim that pulls this together. The outline that surrounds the team name is quietly sharp as well.

And they're the only team in the league to use cursive on their jerseys...which is slightly odd. It looks nice, you would think more teams would jump on board.

10. Dallas Mavericks

Something about the Mavs jerseys stand out above the others that are similar in design...

...but it's probably just because I think dark and baby blue is a fantastic combination.

9. Milwaukee Bucks

If you like Christmas, you'll like Milwaukee's threads. I feel confident making that statement.

8. Detroit Pistons

Detroit gets credit simply for the trim—red in the front, blue in the back.

Plus, the names on the front and back are in two different colors. Kind of a creative way to market the same jersey we've seen 10 times now.

And since the Pistons switched back to these, we can pretend the teal, yellow, and red jerseys with the horse on the front never happened.

7. Chicago Bulls

Chicago has virtually had the same homecourt uniforms since the '92-'93 season, other than adding the Bulls name-plate to the back in '04.

There's something quietly elegant about them. It's not fancy and it's not overstated, but it's not unoriginal nor is it boring.

And the greatest player ever wore this same jersey. Subconsciously, that means something for every basketball fan that can remember watching Michael Jordan play.

6. Boston Celtics

Much like Chicago, Boston's unis are almost identical to the ones of the mid-'90s. In fact, they're nearly the same as the ones from 1946!

Love 'em or hate 'em, they reflect 17 championships, two of the greatest to ever play (Bill Russell and Larry Bird), and as much tradition and history that can go into a uniform. That's worth something.

5. Memphis Grizzlies

Vibrant colors, innovative designs on the team name and number...sometimes it's that easy to get a quality product.

4. Denver Nuggets

Denver's baby blue-and-gold jerseys provide some of the best color contrast in the league.

It's like they put too much silk into these uniforms—they glisten under the bright lights more than any other team's apparel.

For whatever reason, they're strangely mesmerizing.

3. New York Knicks

Take everything that was written about Chicago and Boston and apply it to New York (aside from the championship pedigree in the last 30 years, of course).

A classic that should be apart of every NBA junkie's collection.

2. Los Angeles Lakers

The only team in the league not to employ white as the base for their home uniforms, Los Angeles' gear is similar to that of Boston, New York, and Chicago in the sense that it's an original classic that has remained relatively the same throughout the years.

The only substantial difference is that the numbers are now white instead of purple, and the trim now extends down the side of the jerseys as well.

It makes you wonder why more teams don't have colors other than white. But maybe I should keep my mouth shut before David Kahn has the Timberwolves coming out in pale green home uniforms next year.