For a brief second, I thought your post said that the Lions were going to wear throwback teal uniforms. I've never been a huge Lions fan and I have memory-holed a lot of Lions history, but I could not think of a single instance where the Lions wore teal. And then I opened the actual post and realized my error.
Putting my confusion aside, I am not a huge fan of this change. While the teal Pistons uniforms stir some late-90s nostalgia, it's not particularly good nostalgia.
If these are throwbacks, I'm old.
A tear rolled down my face when I saw that they were now considered throwback.
I mean, it was 25 years ago.
Not trying to call you a liar, but I did my research on the old interwebs and think you are just a little tad wrong about this one neighbor. The era of the teal jersey was sometime in the 1990s. But how long ago the 1990s was is up for debate. Some people think that it was 32 years ago from today, others say something like 31 years 6 months and 23 days. You seem to think it was 25 years ago. This is all so wrong is laughable. Ha!
I happen to disagree with all of those assertions and estimations. Based on my records and calculations, reference with the Mayan calendar, the 1990s were actually only about 7-12 years ago, tops. You're welcome to disagree about this all you want, but the facts speak for themselves here neighbor.
This has to be an homage to the Flint Tropics.
I'm old enough to remember when these were universally hated. Beaten to the teal craze by the Charlotte Hornets and San Jose Sharks. With that being said, they certainly look great as a throwback.
Kind of funny to see a person on Twitter suggest the Lions bring back their Matt Millen era black alternates.
Teal was the color for every new team design (or redesign) in the late 90s. You mentioned the Charlotte Hornets and the San Jose Sharks. In the NFL, Carolina Panthers and the Jacksonville Jaguars went all-in on teal, while baseball contributed to the plague with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. I am sure I am missing (or deliberately forgot) more.
Florida Marlins.
I just remembered the Seattle Mariners.
Despite how much fun we would all have, I'm going to preempt my impulse to recall and list individual teams. This blog post lists (and ranks) almost every teal team logo and design of the Y2K-adjacent era.
Pistons #1!
Teal/turquoise, purple and black - that was the holy trinity of colors for uniform designers in the 1990s. Pretty much every new uniform featured some combination of these.
purple and black
Yep... one team not mentioned yet is the Colorado Rockies.
I HATE the teal. Why would you throw back to a period of time when you sucked and had no fashion sense. I've been excited about the Pistons since the draft, but this throws a wet blanket on it.
I wouldn't call 45 and 54 win seasons terrible...
I was with you until you said this dampens your excitement for the team. If a jersey that they're going to wear in 12% of games this season is going to ruin it, I don't know how excited you truly were.
If the management chooses to go with teal you have to question their judgment in general.
NBA has 82 games. Record in the teal years (96-2001):
54, 37, 29, 42, and 32
54 is pretty good, but you have to figure they dropped off due to embarrassment.
Even that year, the Pistons lost in the first round of the playoffs. They never won a playoff series in teal.
If the management chooses to go with teal you have to question their judgment in general.
You are correct. It has been well established that teams with color combinations consisting of real colors, like red, green, blue, or yellow win games 99% of the time. Teams with feminine colors like teal or purple don't ever really win games, because it is a proven fact that those colors reduce testosterone. Athletes with low testosterone just can't compete, so this is why. Any real GM should know this.
They were ugly when they first came out and they are still ugly.
It takes a significant amount of chutzpah to think you can improve on the single greatest troika of colors in history
Not sure why you would go with teal for a throwback instead of these:
This is just what they should be wearing most games.
greatest uniform in NBA history
Exactly. This is the only look that should really be acceptable. Fuck change or anything different than the norm. Red, white and blue jerseys, and really short shorts ONLY.
These are hideous. When I first saw this headline elsewhere I figured it would be for the 1989-ish season which would be great. Dislike these so much.
I personally think they're cool. However, it's difficult as these are a symbol of the mediocrity years in the Collins/Gentry era. Glad they're just throwbacks.
Wedged between two epic Pistons teams no less.
Putting back on the teal = reinstalling the halo on the Big House.
one can dream
They really were bad uniforms but also matched a lot of what was in "cool" during that time. Not a bad idea to bring them out a bit but I really like the more classic red-blue-and-white uniforms.
Why is nobody bothering to mention that the Pistons were TERRIBLE when they wore these uniforms? Not a single playoff series win.
The fanbase is nostalgic for this?
Is it a big deal? No. Is it a good idea? No. They were ugly then, they are ugly now, and they weren't even good back then.
I hate when teams fool with their colors in an effort to look "cool". See the Lions going black or gray. Have confidence in your identity without feeling you need to jump on the latest trendy style.
I feel like Basketball uniforms are getting worse
WD is that you?
Pistons Twitter loves that they brought these back, but all I can figure is that Pistons Twitter is a bunch of people who were kids in the teal era and that nostalgia is a hell of a drug.
Only thing worse than the color is the Immulating Cyber Horse. Color me not a fan of this look.
If they made the flaming horse and S’s extending into exhaust the actual Pistons logo and then used this design with the regular Pistons color way, these would be one of the best jerseys in NBA history.
I'm with you. I absolutely loved the horse logo with the flaming mane. Not a fan of the teal colorway.
In traditional colors: https://www.sportslogos.net/logos/view/445/Detroit_Pistons/2002/Alternate_Logo
I was disappointed when they got rid of the horse and replaced with just a barely stylized "dp". Awful.
Hated teal then, still hate it now.
if only i could "throwback" my weight, hair, joints, blood pressure, etc. to this era
also, these unis were grotesque and the font was horrible
I hated these when they came out but for some reason they seem to have aged relatively well. Not finding them to be as offensive as I thought they were "back in they day."
On another note, is 30 years enough time for something to be considered a "throwback?"
It’s not even 30 years. They wore them from 1996-2001.
I kind of agree that they don't seem as bad now. In the moment, the Pistons were so late to the teal party that it felt kind of pathetic. They were only a few years removed from the Bad Boys and it felt like they were just trying too hard. They they got shitty at basketball and it was all downhill.
Then they switched back to red white and blue and immediately started winning.
I was in my teens when those came out and everyone thought they were hideous. The fact they reversed their decision within like 5 years shows that these were universally considered a big mistake.
I don't think this is 'nostalgia' in the typical sense really because hardly anyone who was around in the late 90s liked them. This is going for 14-18 year olds today who have absolutely no memory of the time those were used in (because they weren't alive yet), but think over the top 'zany' hyper-active designs from the past are cool.
It's unfortunately a reality that zoomers are a generation of goofballs.
I'm 36. I liked the teal. Everyone has different tastes.
A perfect alternate jersey. Not great for primary color scheme but I will be buying one because they are just beautiful and unique and nostalgic for me.
Yeah. I hate this. These uniforms were a brief trend-chasing divergence from the Piston's brand. Let's not revive mistakes of the past.
Of all the Detroit teams, I'm the most excited about the Pistons.
In a year or two, they could have the best backcourt in the NBA. Bey is turning out to be a really good small guard/small forward option. Duren looks like he has all the makings of a beast.
The Tigers are stuck in complete muck and for whatever reason, the franchise has a love affair with Avila. Lions look like they have some energy and things are coming together nicely for the Wings; however, I think the Pistons are going to be the first of the 4 to win some form of a title.