Boston Celtics Will Use Alternate Logo Featuring Silhouette of Leprechaun

The Boston Celtics are one of the NBA's most iconic franchises, and now, they are looking to expand their brand even more.

The team's current logo was designed by Red Auerbach's brother, Zang, in the early 1950s. 

Jim Rogash/Getty Images

Boston's made a few tweaks to the classic look in order to create the alternate logo, which features the silhouette of Lucky the leprechaun with a green background around it.

Does the team believe that fans will accept the alternate logo? 

Celtics chief marketing officer Shawn Sullivan discussed the new logo, via The Boston Globe's Baxter Holmes, saying: “It’s such an iconic silhouette that people, when they see it, they’ll know exactly what it is."

The Celtics’ creative director—and the logo’s designer—Keith Sliney said, via Holmes, that the alternate logo will not replace the team's primary logo. Sliney also revealed that there are no current plans to put the new logo on uniforms. For now, it will just be used on apparel and merchandise. 

Creating the new logo was also about timing. As Sliney pointed out, it had been 16 years since the team had introduced the secondary shamrock logo. 

“We thought it was a good time to create a mark, something new, something fresh, yet with a lot of history behind it,” Sliney said.

It's not a drastic new look, but it's just enough to mix things up.

[The Boston Globe]