Colours eerily similar to New York
The Bobcats will have a new look in 2006-07, as they unveiled their new alternate team uniform on Wednesday, with blue as the predominant color and accented by the team’s other official colors of Bobcats Orange, black and silver. This uniform serves as the second road uniform, to be worn in addition to the orange away uniform the team debuted before the inaugural 2004-05 season.
“Alternate uniforms have proven to be very popular with fans across sports and we are proud to introduce our third uniform to Charlotte Bobcats fans,” Bobcats President and Chief Operating Officer Fred Whitfield said. “Bobcats Blue is one of our team colors and the new blue uniform will look sharp on our players and complement our orange and white uniforms very well.”
The Bobcats Blue road jerseys will bear the “Bobcats” wordmark across the chest, similar to the team’s white home jerseys, with white letters and numbers. The uniforms include a solid black side stripe, compared to the side panel design featured on the current white and orange uniforms. Orange is still present in the uniforms with vertical stripes flanking the black side stripes and also running along the bottom of the shorts. Silver piping separates the black stripes from the orange stripes along the sides of the uniform.
Additional features on the jersey include black stripes along the outside shoulders of the jersey and inclusion of the Bobcats’ partial logo on the back of the neck. On the shorts, the Bobcats secondary logo sits within the black side stripes on both sides.
The Bobcats worked with the NBA to design the blue uniforms, which include the signature wider opening at the jersey’s back V-neck to allow freedom of movement. Charlotte is the only NBA team to sport that unique feature. The blue jersey also mirrors the current set with angled numerals on both the front and back of the jersey and includes an insert (orange in color) at the front V-neck.
The jerseys will be on sale in mid-November in coordination with the team debuting the uniforms on Saturday, Nov. 18, when Charlotte plays at Orlando and two days later at home for the first time on Monday, Nov. 20, when Dallas visits Charlotte Bobcats Arena. A full list of retailers who will stock the blue jerseys will be announced in November. The Bobcats will wear the alternate uniform for a minimum of six games during each season and up to a maximum of 15 games.
Authentic blue jerseys are currently available exclusively as part of a special offer for Bobcats fans. New season ticket holders who sign up for two or more club seats beginning with the 2006-07 season will receive an authentic blue jersey, autographed by the player of the customer’s choosing.
“Once again, the Bobcats have developed a uniform that is unique but respects the classic basketball silhouettes that are core to the game,” said Christopher Arena, vice president of apparel licensing for the National Basketball Association, which worked together with the Charlotte Bobcats as the architects of the Bobcats identity. “Second road uniforms allow teams to extend their identity and connect to the fans in an authentic manner. The Bobcats second road uniform, while utilizing many of the core elements of the team’s identity, features the Bobcats Blue with black inserts and integrates their signature orange in a bold, unique way.”
In contrast to the team’s current uniforms, the principal uniform fabric on the blue uniforms is adidas clima-cool diamond back mesh which permits air flow to keep the players cooler. The side panels are adidas clima-cool shimmer, which wicks moisture away from the skin to the outside of the fabric where it quickly evaporates.
