I Present the New Minnesota Timberwolves Uniforms:
I participated in a conference call this morning Ted Johnson (Sr. VP of Communications and Chief Marketing Officer for the Wolves), Christopher Arena (NBA VP – Apparel, Sporting Goods & Basketball Partnerships), Robb Lee (VP of Design, Adidas), and Mike Cristaldi (Director of Public Relations for the Wolves), along with some fellow bloggers and media members.
First off: The great news is that the atrocious “so-so” looking Kevin Love “rookie photoshoot” jersey that was leaked a few weeks back is NOT our new official jersey. Those photos were inadvertently released, and the jersey was an earlier protype of these new jerseys. We can now all exhale.
I want to thank the Wolves on including me in the conference call. It was interesting to hear everything that goes behind such an arduous process. The amount of hard work, detail, and resources is pretty amazing. The creation of these jerseys is an evolutionary process that has spanned back over the past year and a half. These are only the 3rd jersey’s in the history of the Wolves, and they have elements that harken back to our earlier days. Contrary to what some may think, this process dated back to before KG was traded, and it wasn’t a total kneejerk reaction to make the fans “forget” about the trade. The changes were made partly because it is the 20th season of the TWolves franchise, and they wanted to try and reinvent and reinvigorate the brand and fanbase. In that regard, I think they did a very commendable job, as I already do like these uniforms. It looks like there will be no issues with me finally getting my new (long awaited) Ryan Gomes jersey. I’ve got all the official changes below, but as you can see the iconic treeline remains in the neck and on the sides of the tops and shorts. Another change is that the front of the home jerseys now say “Wolves” instead of “Timberwolves” and the away jerseys now say “Minnesota” on the front. Also, I just really like the color schemes and fonts. It is good to see that the font is larger than the leaked photos. The jersey’s aren’t “too busy” either, which was one of my concerns when I first heard that they were re-designing them. There are changes on the backs of the jerseys as well, however you can not see these in the photos below.
Overall, I like the jerseys alot and give everyone involved big props.
Lastly: No word yet on any alternative jerseys or what they may look like.
CORRECTION: It is a rule that when you introduce new uniforms, you cannot wear “alternative uniforms” for a year.
As per the Wolves press release, here are details on the changes:
TIMBERWOLVES NEW UNIFORM HIGHLIGHTS:
Home uniforms: (Al Jefferson Above)
• Primary color remains white
• Wordmark on front changes from “Timberwolves” to “Wolves”
• The Timberwolves trees appear on the side of the uniform under the arms and on the side of the shorts
• Wolf head logo on back of neck
• Wordmark “Minnesota” now appears on the back of the shorts
Road Uniforms: (Mike Miller Above)
• Primary color remains slate blue
• Wordmark on front changes from “Timberwolves” to “Minnesota”
• The Timberwolves trees appear on the side of the uniform under the arms and on the side of the shorts
• Wolf head logo on back of neck
• Wordmark “Wolves” now appears on the back of the shorts
P.S. The Wolves new online shop (www.shopwolves.com) should go live later today.
P.S.S. The Wolves are unveiling the uniforms today from Noon to 1PM, downtown in the lobby of the IDS Center. (a.k.a. the really huge tall ginormous black building.) Anyone is welcome to check it out!