The 76ers on Thursday "blended the old with the new, the winning of the past with the rebuilding of the present as they unveiled the team's new uniforms in front of a Wells Fargo Center crowd estimated at 2,500," according to Bob Cooney of the PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS. Former NBAers Allen Iverson, Billy Cunningham, Moses Malone and Bobby Jones were among those who "spoke of the rich tradition of the organization and a fan base that they all considered the best they ever encountered." The uniforms are "another attempt by the organization to bridge the gap between the glory years and the recent ones." The team tried to "blend the best features of its uniforms of the glory days of the 1960s, '70s and '80s" (PHILADELPHIA DAILY NEWS, 6/19). The Sixers unveiled three jerseys, a home white, road blue and alternate red (76ers). In Newark, Eliot Shorr-Parks wrote the Sixers "might not be ready to compete, but at least next season, they are going to try to look good while tanking." In many ways the jersey is "similar to the one they wore last season." The "main difference is the stars down the side, and the change from 'SIXERS' to 'PHILA' on the front" (NJ.com, 6/18).
LOVE 'EM OR HATE 'EM? ESPN.com's Paul Lukas wrote sometimes, "less is more, and sometimes it's fine for a team to make small, incremental changes instead of attempting something more drastic." But it "would have been nice if the Sixers had been a bit more adventurous here with their typography, and the alternate jersey feels like a wasted chance to create something more exciting." But overall, this will "continue to be a good-looking team" (ESPN.com, 6/18). YAHOO SPORTS' Eric Freeman wrote just when the Clippers' new uniform launch "could not have gone any worse," the Sixers have "stepped in to make [Clippers Owner] Steve Ballmer's rebranding effort look like even more of a debacle." Like the Clippers, the Sixers "went with a minimalist look," but "unlike the Clippers, their designs do not look like an amalgam of focus-group responses." The 76ers uniforms "do not appear simultaneously overthought and undercooked, in stark contrast to the Clippers' new look." The key is that the Sixers "figured out ways to inject nostalgic elements and minor branding notes without having them overwhelm what's ultimately a pretty standard look" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 6/18). CROSSINGBROAD.com's Dan Fuller wrote of the new uniforms, "Yes, they’re nice. That’s about it, though. Definitely not 'great,' but they’re a very nice logical extension of the current uniform design" (CROSSINGBROAD.com, 6/18).
TWITTER REAX: Reception of the 76ers' new uniforms on social media was generally positive. WIP-FM Marketing Dir Cindy Webster tweeted, ".@Ike58Reese loves the new @Sixers uniforms-talking about it @SportsRadioWIP." CSN Philadelphia's Steve Bucci wrote, "Love the Sixers new uniforms!" Philadelphia sports blog The 700 Level tweeted, "The more I see the more I like @Sixers." Grantland's Zach Lowe wrote, "Digging these new Philly jerseys." The Palm Beach Post's Andrew Abramson tweeted, "Why not write Philly instead of Phila on these new Sixers jerseys? Seems like you'd sell more jerseys that way."
THE ANSWER? In Philadelphia, Marc Narducci reports former 76ers coach Larry Brown "has been lobbying" the team to hire Iverson as an assistant GM. Iverson said Thursday, "I am a basketball genius and I really believe that, so at any capacity I could help this franchise, that is what I am going to do, whatever they ask me to do" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 6/19).
