The issue of jersey color doesn’t go past black and white in Miami. Maybe because the NBA’s Heat cooled off in the NBA Finals last year, the team decided to remove the red from their alternate jersey, debuting a simple black-and-white version this week.
With plans to use the jersey about a dozen times in the 66-game season, the white-only trim on an all-black background and with black lettering won’t steal the show from red (the team’s traditional dominant color), but it will cool off, or simply darken, their look this winter.
In the realm of basketball uniforms, you can’t get much darker than the new Adidas creation. With a black background, even the “Miami” across the front, the players’ names on the back and the numerals on both sides come out black. Only some thin white trim set them apart.
The new all-black look replaces an already fairly black alternate jersey for the Heat, which included white lettering and red trim.
Debuting a third jersey isn’t confined to just Miami. The Utah Jazz have already unveiled a largely green alternate jersey and purple has taken a backseat in Sacramento where the Kings now offer a black alternate.
The Dallas Mavericks have also tossed out a new black-based alternate. Of course, it isn’t as dark as Miami’s jersey. At least Miami can beat Dallas at something, right?