Got Purp?
Because the Raptors sure don’t anymore. An Amer—um, Canadian tragedy.
Big news out of Canada. Did they give TJ Ford an extension? Hire another Babcock? Sign yet another Euro? Nope to all. What they did is eliminate purple from their uniforms, even though they haven’t unveiled the new ones yet. Apparently the new red and white (and white and red) unis will be “more Canadian,” whatever that means. Personally, I hope it means they’re designed by Nickelback.
The Raptors have only been around since 1995, but their first uniforms—featuring elaborate pinstriping and a gaudy dinosaur—already seem incredibly dated. It was a bad time for uniforms in general, with teams like the Rockets, Grizzlies and Hornets also clad in sartorial suckiness. But the Raptors were the worst. The players in the uniforms were fine—Marcus Camby, Damon Stoudamire, Tracy McGrady and Vince Carter—but the Jurassic Park jerseys were horrific.
The next ones were better, at least. Still purple, but way less busy. And made from that Dri-Fit material that might very well be the best thing to ever happen to basketball jerseys. The dinosaur took a back seat, remaining in the logos but off the jersey.
And now it appears that the dinosaur will disappear altogether on the uniforms and court, giving way to the “claw” logo. Oooh, watch out for the scary footprints! I can’t wait until the Raptors move to Vegas.
26 Responses to “Got Purp?”
Sep.19 at 8:34 pm
Wizfan41 says:
Didn’t Mo pete already leak the uni’s on his myspace?
Sep.19 at 9:18 pm
Gord says:
Didn’t Lang post a link to Morris Peterson’s myspace page with pictures of the jerseys awhile back on The Links? Also, don’t talk about the Raps relocating…you have quite a following from Raps fans here…and we’ve got a bright future…so it had better be highly unlikely. But I agree, the claw is weak, they should at least have some form of a Raptor for the logo.
Sep.19 at 9:19 pm
Gord says:
Oh yeah, and I don’t care if they’re Canadian, Nickelback blows.
Sep.19 at 11:20 pm
Chou says:
Yeah, Nickelback blows big time. I once saw Chad Kroeger on the cover of High Times.
Sep.20 at 3:52 am
Blinguo says:
Those leaked unis were a photoshop done up by someone since the original photo was taken of Chris Bosh in the regular purple jerseys, in his rookie PR campaign. The photos were shown in the comments section by other SLAMonline commenters from a number of sources including NBA.com I also noted that they were the photos SLAM ran in Issue #74’s In Your Face section for CB4.
Sep.20 at 4:32 am
Boing Dynasty says:
Weird, i just got that Mac jersey on monday
*shakes off the haters* Hawks,BETcats,Sonics,Magic all have a better change of moving to sin city, the Raps are always in the top half in attendance, even on the terrible teams of the last 5 years Now i just need to find a tequise Big Country jersey with a Bear on it.
1
Sep.20 at 3:49 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
I kinda forgot about the MoPete thing. Oops. Not sure what’s scariest about a Big Country jersey—the jersey itself, or the very thought of Big Country. Wonder how life is in Gans?
Sep.20 at 4:47 pm
Homie says:
don’t hate on big country! Actually, hate all you want - him and Stu Jackson made the Grizz a laughingstock here. I think I’d rather have Isiah as GM instead of Stu, and that’s saying a LOT.
Sep.20 at 6:18 pm
Waltonia says:
Thank god we’re past the dark days of pinstripes in the NBA. No one should ever have to see Barkley in Pinstripes. But if we don’t remember the mistakes of the past we’re doomed to repeat them.
Sep.20 at 7:51 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
And I guess the Raptors would probably move somewhere else before Vegas. Like Venice, or Madrid, or Paris…
Sep.20 at 9:11 pm
Jake Appleman says:
The Raptors would never move to Madrid. Madrid only cares about forwards. In a really ironic twist, Jose Calderon wouldn’t be allowed back to Spain.
Sep.20 at 9:21 pm
Btownbully says:
Fawk You Russ…I used to think you were pretty knowlegable about Basketball..but after that comment about the Raps moving to Vegas..I now know you are an idiot that should stick to writing about soccer…You don’t know anything if you think the Raps will EVER relocate … BTW How come you cocksuckaz at The Slam Dome hate on the Raps…I know we buy half the fawking magazines you produce…We do have a Legit team this year and when we crack the playoffs and win the championships.. WE don’t wants no articles from you punks…saty in the south …You Dick Riders
Sep.20 at 10:07 pm
Dj says:
angry raptor fans….might VC jilting them still have left a bad aftertaste? or maybe it was TMac leaving because of the frigid artic weather? Ahh the bitterness…. and its not like bad unis dont exist today. Check out GSW and their whole….lightning shtick.
Sep.20 at 10:49 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Wow…that was deep, Btown. Try using your actual name next time. Also, way to take one throwaway line and blow it WAY out of proportion. I don’t know if the Raptors will ever move. But it’s obviously tough to maintain a Canadian team in an American league. Tax issues are obviously predominant, especially for guys making so much money. Relocating to a foreign country—even one right across the border that is English-speaking—is also a lot to ask. Toronto’s had an easier time attracting foreign players than they have signing any premier free agents. Their best players so far have been draft picks, most of whom (Carter, McGrady, Camby, Stoudamire) moved on one way or another. Maybe Chris Bosh’s re-signing will help make Toronto a more inviting destination, though. Only time will tell.
Sep.20 at 10:52 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Oh yeah, and virtually every uniform “redesign” from the late ’80s to the mid ’90s was a change for the worse. The Warriors unis are horrific. And all those wide-shouldered jerseys, yuck.
Sep.21 at 8:06 am
rpcjr says:
man i’m still mad the Warriors switched from the Run-TMC unis. they need new ones pronto. will Atlanta ever have a good one? and what’s up with Charlottes alternative Knick look-a-likes? YUCK!
Sep.21 at 10:21 am
Brad Warne says:
I am from Toronto, and guess what, I am not a bitter, envious know-nothing Raptors fan. The Raps are a pretty sad franchise, there’s no doubt. I truly believe that a lot of what is wrong with the organization is the fact that it is in Canada. The fans know shit about basketball, so the team can do whatever it wants, and the fans eat it up. Oh yeah, trade Vince for Eric Williams, that’ll make us better! Vince is a pussy! Yeah, Chris Bosh, he’s the man–better than Garnett! Heh and while we’re at it, let’s stock the team with europeans! Championship here we come!!
Sep.21 at 1:33 pm
noah doucette says:
ppl in TO like to bitch about hvin it so bad but im up here in NS where we dont even have a freakin CFL team.
Sep.21 at 4:55 pm
Btownbully says:
Brad ain’t from the Toronto…Toronto fans are all immigrants that love Local Pro teams.. go to any game any sport different cultures everywhere.. these immgrants grew up playing sports so the rules are no problem we’ve just been cursed by drafting good players that get to shine then leave..everyone knows VC had to leave but he could have left in better fashion..i bet you for the rest of his life and even Tmac that they left for the wrong reasons
Sep.21 at 5:16 pm
Justin says:
Good first step - next, change the name. Jurassic Park is a long time ago. Go old school like we were in the ’50’s - Huskies.
Sep.22 at 11:38 am
Mr. Slick says:
I’m from the T-Dot, and am tired of all the Raps-hating going on from people who know very little about Toronto, Canada, or the actual Raptors franchise. No, it’s not always 40 degrees below zero here. And implying we’re just a trade or two from moving to Vegas is insulting. Every NBA city has it’s loyal fan base, you can’t say that Raptor fans know nothing about the sport. As was mentioned, the Raps are consistently in the top 10 in attendance. The Hawks are consistently at the bottom, but would the NBA ever consider moving out of the ATL? I doubt it. I dare one of you ass-clowns to actually come to the ACC and start talkin that smack. Also, if anyone’s moving to Vegas, it’s the Bobcats…remember, Michael likes to make a wager or two every now and then.
Sep.27 at 6:46 pm
Baker says:
This guy should move to Vegas and do it with a male hooker. Raptors 2006 champs
Sep.28 at 9:44 pm
Top Shotta says:
Listen Russ, your a punk and a low brow journalist who doesn’t know the first thing about basketball or Toronto. Toronto has some of the best attendance in the NBA, win lose or draw we rep our team… Like most American’s you speak too much and I don’t appreciate reading bad things about my city. Keep your mouth shut or I will slap you like I did Vince.. bitch!
Oct.3 at 10:46 pm
JB21 says:
I’m from T.O too and I love Slam and the Rapts. I think that Lang and Sam have my back when I say T.O and Canada love their Raptors. I’m willing to bet that Lang and Sam get e-mails and comments from a high % of Raptor Fans and/or Canadians.
Oct.4 at 10:23 pm
Carson says:
Whoever wrote this get a life. I have come to expect this crap from SLAM. Wait till the Raptors come tearing into the playoffs this year. Who cares what they jersey’s look like?
Nov.30 at 6:17 pm
Hightz says:
LMFAO….That was a good one Russ, about moving my boys to Vegas and all, you really got alot of my Canadian Brethrens angry, but deep inside I know slam go some love for Toronto you just like rattling our cage once in a while. I’v been reading Slam since My Boy J.Starks was on the cover and slam always gives cheep shots to the raps once in a while, its apart of being the only foreign team in the league.
I am a Huge Raptor fan living in the west end of T.O., and i gotta say i hate the name RAPTORs, I hated the Colour purple i almost cryed when i found out 12yrs ago, but what are you going to do….when i was standing by the visitors bench on the 22nd and i was watching LeBron warm up, it dosnt really matter what the f#%K their wareing this is the best game in the world and my home town has a team in the NBA. say what you want…Toronto will get theirs and you better belive it ! now i have to jump on my dog sled to avoid traffic(those polar bears are killer) and go home to my igloo so that i can feed my Seal. Pease..!!!