Jersey Style from Each NBA Team That Should Never Ever Be Worn Again

There is constant debate, and therefore constant change, when it comes to NBA uniforms. People love certain jerseys, while others hate them.

There is one thing for sure: It's hard to make a single uniform universally accepted as a good look for a team over an extended period of time.

Teams start to get tired of certain colors, certain jersey styles and even certain logos, and when a new era is on the horizon, teams will usually change their uniforms to reflect the change in their philosophy or roster.

Something I have found over the years is that the uglier the uniform, the more that team's fans are attached to the uniform, like the rainbow mountains the Denver Nuggets had adorning their jerseys for most of the 1980s.

Love 'em or hate 'em, here I have my least favorite uniforms in each team's history. I'm sure there will be plenty of people who disagree—there aren't many topics out there that alienate people more.

Atlanta Hawks: 2005-2007 Alternates

For some reason in the mid to late 2000s, many teams turned to a yellow uniform as their go-to alternate unis, for seemingly no reason other than to wear yellow uniforms.

The problem with the Hawks going to mustard yellow is that mixed with the red of their Hawks logo, they start to look like hot dogs.

In fact, just replace the dark blue trim along the side with a little relish green and you have yourself five fully dressed frankfurters rolling up and down the court.

Boston Celtics: 2007 NBA Live Tour in Italy

I'm all for the Celtics sprinkling a little Irish color into their uniforms; that totally makes sense. But to throw in the colors of the Italian flag? Now that's just confusing.

The Celtics wore these uniforms during their exhibitions in Italy on the 2007 NBA Live Tour, and it seems they took it upon themselves to throw the Italian flag into their color scheme, as I couldn't dig up any other teams with Italian flair in their jerseys.

Charlotte Bobcats: 2008 Bobcats Racing Day Uniform

If you were to pick two sports that are polar opposites in terms of, well, basically every aspect, what two sports would they be? For me it's basketball and racing, without a doubt.

So when the Charlotte Bobcats decided to throw a checkered flag along the sides of their shorts for their "Racing Day," it's hard for me to fathom what they were thinking.

I understand there is a rich history in auto racing in Charlotte, but does it really overlap with basketball that much?

Besides, if they really wanted to honor NASCAR, they should have just plastered the whole uniform in advertisements.

Chicago Bulls: 2009 Green Week Uniforms

I remember seeing the Bulls run around in these uniforms back in 2009, and I remember being thoroughly confused.

I was convinced that there was a problem with the graphic in the corner of the screen that said "CHI" because there was no way that the guys running up and down the floor in the green uniforms with the red trim were not the Milwaukee Bucks.

It took a close-up of Derrick Rose before I realized that the Bulls were just wearing some completely idiotic color schemes.

The fact that they were trying to help the NBA raise awareness in their first-ever Green Week is great, but there had to be a better choice in these colors.

Cleveland Cavaliers: 1981-1983 Home Uniforms

In the early 1980s, Ted Stepien ran the Cleveland Cavaliers into the ground with idiotic cost-saving techniques, polka fight songs, terrible trades, firing Joe Tait (Cleveland's play-by-play man) and trotting the team out in these hideous uniforms.

It seems that Stepien didn't have the money to spring for the gold that the Cavs' traditional wine and gold colors showed off, so he settled for bronze instead.

Dallas Mavericks: Alternate Uniforms 2004-2009

This is just one uniform style that I don't think looks particularly good in any instance.

I'm not a fan of them using their green as a main color for their color schemes and think it would look much better with the blue and green switching places, which would make a much better reference back to the 1980s, when they had green as their main colors.

Other than that, I just find these uniforms to be ugly.

Denver Nuggets: 1983-1985 Home Uniforms

The only thing good about the Denver Nuggets that these uniforms ever remind me of is Alex English dashing around the court as the rainbow warrior.

I'm not sure who created the design for these uniforms, and I'm not sure who let him out of Denver without at least going to trial, because these things are nearly so ugly that it's illegal.

Detroit Pistons: 1996-2001 Road Uniforms

One of my least favorite things that teams have done over the past decade or so is when they, for no reason, just completely switch colors, like the Detroit Pistons did with these gems.

It's as if they were in a meeting about these uniforms and had been sitting there for hours until someone jokingly said, "Hey, let's use teal," and the rest of the people jokingly agreed and that was that.

I think these uniforms are the reason Grant Hill left Detroit. Who would want to continue wearing these?

Golden State Warriors: 1998-2002 Road Uniforms

Throughout the 1990s is when most of the uniform atrocities happened, and the Golden State Warriors are just as guilty as the rest of the league.

Instead of just sticking with a nice solid line down the side of their unis for the trim, they decided to throw a giant lightning bolt on there for good measure.

Houston Rockets: Current Alternate Uniforms

I don't have many problems with these particular uniforms or the color scheme that they display, but they do remind you of a particular fast food restaurant as soon as you set your eyes upon them.

When you see the Rockets trotting up and down the court in these masterpieces, you can't help but think that this is a local business league and not the Rockets on the court, but the local McDonald's staff playing some ball.

Indiana Pacers: 1985-1990 Road Uniforms

I'm not a big fan of the futuristic look that a lot of teams went for in the 1980s, as well as many other things that came of the 1980s culturally.

The yellow stripe across the chest along with the font, which is an obvious attempt to look futuristic and Star Wars-ish, just looks tacky to me, especially when it is put up next to their old logo of a hand and a basketball outlined by a "P."

Los Angeles Clippers: Current Road Uniforms

The Clippers' new uniforms are just too dull and boring to me to reflect the new exciting era that the team is embarking on.

They feature the noodle script that is a throwback to the early 1980s, but it seems like the reason they stopped using that in the first place is because people didn't like it back then.

I was hoping they would go back to when they first came to Los Angeles and used almost Willy Wonka-like letters with a giant "C" starting out the word "Clippers."

Los Angeles Lakers: 1961-1965 Home Uniforms

I'm not a huge fan of the cursive "Los Angeles" on the throwback uniforms that the Lakers have, and I'm for sure against "Lakers" being down the side of the shorts.

I think what makes me so against these uniforms is the color scheme, which is completely different from the yellow and purple they had immediately after these uniforms in 1966, and every year thereafter.

Memphis Grizzlies: 2008 Euro Live Tour Uniforms

Oddly enough, as a person who has said that he isn't a fan of all the crazy uniform styles of the late 1990s, I was a fan of the Grizzlies uniform with a grizzly bear plastered on the front of it.

These Euro Live Tour unis that Memphis wore in Spain have an homage to the Spanish flag, but with the dark blue that covers most of the uniform, it just looks silly.

Miami Heat: 1996-1999 Road Uniforms

These uniforms by themselves wouldn't look too bad, but when you look at them you are reminded of another team.

The mid to late '90s uniforms of the Miami Heat are a blatant ripoff of the Chicago Bulls uniforms, which turns me off them almost immediately.

Milwaukee Bucks: 1996-1999 Alternate Uniforms

I want to know who first showed the owner of the Bucks in the 1990s these uniforms and what they said to get the guy to like them, because they are just over-the-top ridiculous.

Basically they took their uniform at the time, made the primary color green instead of purple and slapped a deer on the front that fades into nothingness halfway across the stomach.

It's just too much to take in at once.

Minnesota Timberwolves: 1990-1996 Road Uniforms

These uniforms are not only bland, but they also blatantly rip off the uniforms of another team in the NBA.

The Dallas Mavericks had almost the exact same uniforms from 1981 to 1993, only the fill color for the numbers and letters was white instead of green.

The thing that confuses me about the T-Wolves' copy of the Mavericks style is that they copied such a terrible team, as they started wearing these in 1990, the point of downfall for the Dallas Mavericks.

New Jersey Nets: 1999-2000 Alternate Uniforms

Before you jump on me and say that these were some of the alternate best uniforms of the 2000s, I have to clear something up. These were only used for one year before they switched white for blue as the fill color for the letters and numbers.

For some reason, that simple switch did wonders for these uniforms and made them as cool as any jersey throughout league history.

New Orleans Hornets: 2006-2007 Home Uniforms

These uniforms are the epitome of bland, ugly and uncreative uniforms that littered the NBA in the middle of the 2000s, before teams started pulling styles out of their past and making them modern.

I'm not a fan of the color scheme, with the gold piping outlining the blue letters and numbers, and the overall uniform itself just looks lame.

New York Knicks: 1980-1983 Road Uniforms

If there is one thing nice about these Knicks uniforms that I can say, it is that they are unique and will probably stay unique.

Never does putting the numbers on top of the team name look good; it just looks like somebody messed up when they took the design to the printers.

It looks so ridiculous that they only stuck with this style with four years, and no other team has tried to make it work since.

Oklahoma City Thunder: Current Home Uniforms

There aren't but two uniforms throughout the short history of the Oklahoma City Thunder, so there isn't a whole lot to choose from.

Of their road and home unis, I am more of a fan of their road uniforms because of the blue fill that covers the whole thing. These just seem a bit more bland.

Orlando Magic: 2004-2008 Home Uniforms

When I think of the Orlando Magic, I think of tight pinstripes or their uniform covered in stars, reminding me of the Shaquille O'Neal-Penny Hardaway era in Orlando. They made seemingly goofy-looking uniforms look good.

That's why this bland cop-out style from the mid 2000s is my least favorite Magic uniform style. Thankfully they brought back the old pinstripes and made it look modern.

Philadelphia 76ers: 1992-1994 Road Uniforms

I don't really know what to say about these 76ers uniforms except one thing: Ugliest. Uniforms. Ever.

Never mind the extremely uninspiring block letters that adorn the front of the uniform. Never mind the number being pushed off to the side as if it is unimportant. Focus on the obvious.

It looks as if the designer just vomited stars all over the front of this jersey, pushed the numbers out of the way and turned it in. To make matters worse, the rest of the people he showed it to approved it, and they wore these monstrosities for three years.

Phoenix Suns: 2004-Current Alternate Uniforms

For some reason, I'm not as much of a fan of the all-burnt orange uniforms as a lot of Suns fans out there.

I'm usually all for trying different color schemes so long as they make sense, and these definitely do, but these just don't work for me.

I'm not sure if it is the silver trim or just the "PHX" adorning the front that turns me off, but I'm just not a fan of these.

Portland Trail Blazers: 1992-2002 Home Uniforms

The Blazers have never had very compelling uniforms; they have always pretty much been the same. At least in the early days of the uniforms they had the neat bubbly lettering instead just putting on a slightly slanted block font.

Then they put a stripe down only one side of the shorts, which I have never really liked; that was the icing on the cake for me.

Sacramento Kings: 2006-2007 Alternate Uniforms

It makes sense that a king should be adorned in as much gold and silver as possible, but seeing just the purple and silver for so long makes these a bit shocking.

Introducing a bit of gold into the color scheme would have been fine, but it seems they had the Midas touch and touched their jerseys too much.

Then they have the single stripe down the leg of the left side that arcs a bit, which instead of pulling the whole thing together tears the whole thing apart.

San Antonio Spurs: No Real Complaints

The San Antonio Spurs have been called the most boring franchise to have the most boring dynasty with the most boring superstar of this era, and their uniforms reflect that.

Throughout their history, the Spurs have never changed their color scheme (they did have their fiesta logo for a short period of time in the 1990s, but their uniforms stayed consistent) and have never tried to rock the boat.

Honestly, their white, black and silver color scheme looks good and has looked good ever since George Gervin wore it back in the '70s.

Toronto Raptors: 2007-Current Road Uniforms

As a child of the '90s, the first two things I think of when I hear the words "Toronto Raptors" is their dinosaur and the color purple.

Naturally, when they got rid of the dinosaur in 2007, opting instead for just a basketball with claws on the shorts, and switched out the purple for dark red, I was disappointed.

They got rid of the two best aspects of their old uniform in an attempt to move forward from their less than stellar past, but they changed too much.

Utah Jazz: 1997-2004 Road Uniforms

We get it. You're in Utah; there are mountains in Utah. You don't need to plaster them all over your uniforms.

It's bad enough they didn't change the name of the team when they moved from New Orleans back in 1979, but to basically flaunt the fact that the name of your team makes no sense is insane.

Washington Wizards: 2007-2009 Alternate Uniforms

Whenever I see these uniforms, the first thing I think of is Gilbert Arenas pulling out a gun on Javaris Crittenton. I can't help myself.

Despite the bad memories, these uniforms are just god-awful and in the running for worst uniforms of all time.

The shorts look like swim trunks, and the gold covering the whole top reminds me of a battery. Thankfully they got rid of them after three seasons.

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