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Not all logos are made equal. The NBA is home to some of the most iconic logos in sports…but it also showcases some putrid logos. Over the years, some franchises have discarded some truly awful logos in favor of improved looks — while others have dropped the ball and ditched iconic logos for generic looks. Which group does your team belong to?
Oklahoma City Thunder
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It was tough enough to see the Seattle SuperSonics relocate to Oklahoma City in 2008, but the move became even worse when the Oklahoma City Thunder unveiled their logo. Seattle’s logo from 1975 to 1995 was fantastic, and its replacement will forever be linked with the Gary Payton-led squad that reached the NBA Finals. The Thunder have maintained the same primary logo for their entire stint in Oklahoma City.
Houston Rockets
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Depending on which decade you grew up in, you may connect the Rockets with one of three logos — the classic red and yellow look (1972-1995) that the team owned when it won back-to-back titles, the cartoon rocket logo (1995-2003), or the 2003-2019 version that Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady made popular. The current logo is boring, to say the least. Houston knocked it out of the park for 30 years, but its logo has gotten worse over time.
New Orleans Pelicans
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Seeing the Hornets in New Orleans — and Oklahoma City for a while following Hurricane Katrina — never felt right. With Chris Paul in town, the team played well and thus kept one of the most iconic logos in the NBA fresh in everyone’s mind. The franchise’s decision to allow Charlotte to reclaim the Hornets was a wise move — and we are a fan of the Pelicans moniker. The logo is rather decent, but we’d like a bit of flair added to it.
Brooklyn Nets
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Simple is not always better. Following the 2011 season, the Nets moved into their new home in Brooklyn. Unfortunately, the franchise left a better logo/look behind in New Jersey. The Nets opted to ditch the logo that the Jason Kidd-led Nets sported en route to back-to-back trips to the Finals in the 2000s. New Jersey’s blue/white/silver/red look was out, and in its place, a simple black and white look was revealed. The new logo is simply boring. The franchise maintained its color scheme for more than 40 years before switching to black and white.
Cleveland Cavaliers
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Before we get into Cleveland’s logo history, let’s say that the franchise should bring back its awesome blue and orange color scheme from the 1980s/90s. Cleveland abandoned its popular look when LeBron James joined the team in 2003. Since that time, the franchise has changed its logo three times. The first two logos of the new era weren’t special, but they were certainly better than the new primary logo. Removing the sword from the shield was a mistake — leaving the Cavs look like another generic brand.
Orlando Magic
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Orlando’s first two logos captured the essence of its team name. While some may consider those two logos to be a bit corny, we couldn’t disagree more. The Shaq era logo was awesome, and the follow-up wasn’t too far off from that high standard. The current logo? It needs to be scrapped.
Detroit Pistons
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At one time, the Detroit Pistons were the talk of the NBA. The “Bad Boys” era Pistons were incredible on the court — both with their play and their look. Detroit’s logo was nearly identical to its current logo — a blue ring surrounds a red basketball with ‘Detroit Pistons’ in white. The drastic switch to the logo that the team rocked with from 1996 to 2005 wasn’t a hit with everyone, but we miss the flames and teal.
Sacramento Kings
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This is a franchise that has a vast history. Before landing in Sacramento, the franchise spent time in Rochester, Cincinnati and Kansas City. The Cincinnati logo reminds us of a certain baseball logo…but that exploration is for another day. For those who were NBA fans during the late 1990s and into the early 2000s, the Chris Webber era logo may be considered the best of the bunch. The current look is solid, but nothing can top the previous logo.
San Antonio Spurs
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Over the past 25 years, the Spurs have the NBA’s best winning percentage and have won five NBA titles. As a result, their classic ‘silver spur’ logo has become one of the league’s most recognizable logos. It is easy to understand why the look has stuck. The ‘spur’ is unmistakable. When included in the wordmark, the logo works perfectly as the ‘U’ in ‘Spurs’. However, that doesn’t mean it is a great logo. The splash of color on San Antonio’s logo from 1989 to 2002 is sorely missed. The team has played with the color scheme recently, but it should go even further with it.
Washington Wizards
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Does anyone miss the wizard? How about the black, blue and gold that the Michael Jordan-era Wizards donned? The Wizards probably made the right move by replacing the ‘wizard’ logo and bold color scheme in 2015. Washington’s current color palette is a big improvement, and we are rather fond of the primary logo. It’s a rather simple yet effective look. The Washington Monument is proudly featured in the middle of the logo, and a star sits above the Monument and atop the basketball.
Miami Heat
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In recent years, the Miami Heat have introduced some truly wild alternate logos, uniforms, and court designs. The franchise has fully embraced the NBA’s new approach to expanding each team’s uniform catalog — resulting in some great, and some terrible looks. However, the team’s primary logo has remained the same since 1999. A flaming basketball goes through a white hoop…sounds like something out of NBA Jam. Miami’s logo is very recognizable and we can’t imagine the franchise moving away from it anytime soon. With that being said, we prefer the team’s OG ‘flaming ball’ logo — featuring a more natural flame color and black hoop.
Charlotte Hornets
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The Hornets and Orlando Magic have a few things in common — they share a division, they have never won an NBA title, and at one time sported better logos. During their first stint in Charlotte, the Hornets featured a now-iconic logo — a flying, cartoon hornet dribbling a basketball. When the franchise was able to abandon the ‘Bobcats’ moniker and return to its roots, it opted to revamp the ‘Hornet’ logo. The new hornet is more intimidating than its predecessor. The insect has sharp wings, an angry face, and a lethal stinger. While we are fans of the new look, it doesn’t quite live up to the OG hornet.
Indiana Pacers
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From 1967-1990, the Pacers’ logo was below average. The logo was still shaped as a ‘P’ during that stretch, but it also featured a hand gripping a basketball — a basketball that more closely resembled a tennis ball. Indiana shifted to a more modern look following the ’90 season and it hasn’t looked back. The current ‘P’ logo is much more dynamic. The ball no longer looks like a tennis ball. Additionally, the lines coming off the ball make it appear as if the ball is in motion. This is a very solid logo.
New York Knicks
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If you haven’t seen it already, say hello to “Father Knickerbocker” — New York’s original logo featured in the top left of the image above. If it gives you nightmares, we apologize. Since 1992, the Knicks have sported a logo much like the one they boast today. A grey triangle sits behind a basketball and the prominent, raised ‘KNICKS’ text. The logo is undoubtedly one of the league’s most recognized. Unfortunately, it is beginning to feel a bit dated.
Atlanta Hawks
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The Hawks have gone through a handful of primary logos over the years, but they have (hopefully) settled on a winner. The first two logos in the image above give college vibes — not necessarily a bad thing, but not the best look. The 1990s-era red hawk with its wings extended and talons gripping a basketball was powerful. The ‘Pac-Hawk’ is a great logo that should stick around for years to come. The Hawks seemingly change their uniforms every month, let’s hope they leave the logo alone.
Dallas Mavericks
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The Mavericks have featured two primary logos (and two minimally altered versions) in their 40+ years in the league. For 20 years, Dallas was represented by a green basketball with a blue ‘M’ and white cowboy hat. Since 2001, the Mavs have boasted their current logo — a shield with a horse head, a half moon, a blue ball, and ‘MAVERICKS’ script. When simplified, we are big fans of the logo. The team often utilizes just the ball and horse head. If Mark Cuban opts to bring green back into the logo permanently, the Mavs logo would look a lot better.
Minnesota Timberwolves
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Since entering the league in 1989, the Minnesota Timberwolves have had four primary logos. The Kevin Garnett-era logo is iconic — lurking behind a row of trees is an angry, snarling wolf. In 2017, the franchise decided to move on from that logo and debuted the howling wolf seen in the bottom right. Above the wolf, you can find the North Star. The logo is clean and works very well. However, the previous logos reign supreme.
Memphis Grizzlies
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In the 1990s, a handful of teams went all-in on their animal logos. One of those teams was the then-Vancouver Grizzlies. When Vancouver joined the league, its logo was a massive, roaring grizzly bear. Just a few years after relocating to Memphis, however, the logo transitioned into a much more stoic bear. Now just a bear head, the logo features two shades of blue and a hint of yellow — the grizzly’s eyes. Despite the stoic nature of the bear, it retains its intimidation factor. The logo works, but we wouldn’t mind a return to the Vancouver logo.
Utah Jazz
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The purple, blue, and copper mountain range logo from the late 1990s is a thing of the past. Over the past 15 or so years, the Utah Jazz gradually ditched the logo and colors that John Stockton and Karl Malone made famous. In 2022 — following the departure of former franchise stalwarts Rudy Gobert and Donovan Mitchell — the Jazz unveiled new branding. The musical note — which came back in 2016 — is now monotone after years of sporting hues of blue and yellow. The basketball/musical note works much better for New Orleans than Utah, but it’s much better than what they’ve had in the past.
Toronto Raptors
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This is a strong look. Toronto wanted to feature a more serious look compared to its original logo, and it managed to do so while still tapping into its dinosaur theme. Toronto’s new logo is rather simple — a red ball features three claw marks along the seams of the ball. Despite the effectiveness of the logo, we believe the Raptors dropped the ball. Who doesn’t miss the ‘dribbling raptor’? Bring it back, bring it back, bring it back!
LA Clippers
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Apologies to Buffalo and San Diego — we will be focusing on LA’s logos since moving to Los Angeles. The Clippers have always lived in the Lakers’ shadow. While the Lakers have won a league-best 17 NBA titles, the Clippers have never won the Western Conference. Additionally, the Clippers have played second-fiddle (third if you include the Los Angeles Kings) to the Lakers at Staples Center since 1999. In fact, even LA’s old logo — used from 1984-2015 — was a ripoff of the Lakers’ iconic look. When the team announced it would refresh its look in 2015, the Clippers finally had a chance to establish their own unique brand. And what did they do? They created the abomination you are looking at on the right side of the image. LA revealed a new look logo and jerseys for the 2025 season in February.
Milwaukee Bucks
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Milwaukee has had some truly mediocre logos throughout its history. From 1968-1993, the franchise’s logo looked like something out of a Christmastime cartoon. Starting in 1993, the Bucks adopted a new logo featuring a more realistic buck. That purple/green look was revamped in 2006 — as red replaced purple. Mercifully, the franchise scrapped that logo in 2015. Milwaukee’s current logo is awesome. The green and cream color scheme is a vast improvement. The buck is menacing, and the hidden details in the logo are impressive — the antlers form a basketball and an ‘M’ is visible in the buck’s neck.
Boston Celtics
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Dating back to 1968, Boston’s logo has featured a leprechaun spinning a basketball. There are arguably two logos in all of basketball that are as recognizable as Boston’s leprechaun (named Lucky). From 1974-1996, Lucky was rendered in white and green. Since then, Lucky has been improved by the addition of black, gold, and brown to the logo. Looking back at Boston’s first four logos strains the eyes a bit — especially the second and third primary logos.
Philadelphia 76ers
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Philadelphia has featured a top-notch logo for much of its time in the NBA. Some variations of the ‘red 7 and blue 6′ have been utilized in all but one primary logo. From 1997-2009, the franchise donned a logo that Allen Iverson made famous — the gold/black/red ’76ers’ wordmark with a comet-like ball flying underneath. While it worked at the time (for some people), that logo should have never stayed in use for as long as it did. The current ’76ers’ logo is great. Special shoutout to the 13 Revolutionary Stars above the ‘7’.
Denver Nuggets
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After nearly 30 years, the Nuggets said goodbye to their horrible logo and revealed a new look. Since 2018, Denver has featured the gem that we see pictured in the bottom right of the image. Two gold pickaxes are accompanied by a mountain peak and a basketball. The objects perfectly fill the space, and the splash of red in the surrounding circle is sublime. Let’s hope that the team never returns to the ‘snowcapped mountain peak’ logo that Dikembe Mutombo and Carmelo Anthony were forced to embrace. With that being said, shoutout to the leaping miner.
Phoenix Suns
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How can you not like this set of logos? The streaking sun looks good on uniforms (the Charles Barkley era remains the best), the court, and retail items. Determining the color scheme couldn’t have been difficult, but the franchise nailed its decision. With the return of the ‘streaking sun’ jerseys in 2023, it seems like the team has opted to appease their fans by going all-in on their current look. And, we think that’s for the best.
Golden State Warriors
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If we choose to ignore the Warriors’ cartoonish logo from 1997-2010 (donned by the ‘We Believe’ Warriors), the franchise has had one of the league’s best looks since 1969. The current logo is a gem. A span of the Bay Area Bridge, in yellow, appears on a blue circle. ‘Golden State’ is above the circle and ‘WARRIORS’ sits below. The logo is incredibly simple yet elegant. And when you add in the jersey numbers, it gets even better.
Portland Trail Blazers
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Portland’s ‘pinwheel’ logo is iconic. Portland’s awesome logo is a graphic interpretation of two five-on-five basketball teams lined up against each other. The original logo, from 1970-1990, featured five black lines, five red lines, and was tilted to the left. The pinwheel was shifted to its current position in 1991, and the color white replaced the five black lines beginning in 2002. We love the style of this logo and how unique it is to the sport. Bravo, Portland.
Los Angeles Lakers
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The Lakers are one of the most iconic franchises in the world. In addition to winning 17 NBA titles, a handful of the league’s greatest players have donned the purple and gold. The Lakers first moved to Los Angeles in 1960, and their initial logo upon arriving in town has remained relatively unchanged since the mid-60s. The gold ball, the purple, streaking ‘Lakers’ across the middle — is perfection. From the Showtime Lakers to the Kobe/Shaq dynasty, the Lakers’ logo has remained at the top of the league.
Chicago Bulls
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Even if Michael Jordan never played for the Bulls, this logo would be viewed as an elite logo. Of course, Jordan’s historic run in Chicago has contributed to this logo becoming iconic. The logo has remained unchanged since Chicago entered the league in 1966. The design is nearly perfect. The charging bull’s face is intense — and was the perfect look to accompany the dynastic Bulls of the 1990s. Red and white has never looked so good.
