Washington Post October 21st 2006

 The Washington Wizards unveiled their new Adidas-designed alternate uniforms on Thursday to decidedly mixed reviews. (Despite how they were worn in the "fashion show," during games the new gold jerseys will be tucked in. Under NBA rules, players who attempt to enter a game with their shirts untucked can be assessed a technical foul.)

Here's a smattering of opinions on the new look:

Pulitzer Prize-winning fashion critic Robin Givhan: Uniforms are always a design challenge because the amount of creativity is severely limited. But I think Adidas did a good job with the Wizards' new uniform by using a strong color that is thankfully neither red nor blue. The gold serves up a little razzle-dazzle without making the players look like they're representing Las Vegas. And it was smart not to include a lot of busy stripes and swirls. Those kinds of excessive details are unnecessary when so many of the players have already accessorized themselves with tattoos so elaborate they'd leave Michelangelo in awe.

Wizards forward Caron Butler: I mean, it's a nice look. Obviously you can wear this jersey on the road or at home. It's a real nice look; got to get the shoes custom-made, though. It's tough to match the shoes, but you can go with the all-black look, anything black and gold will do. It's a real nice look, though. . . . It's different, it's unique. I think the black and gold symbolizes a lot. It's good colors, it takes you back to ancient times, like the knights, you know. It's a real nice look for us. . . . I like the stars, you know what I'm saying. Well there's three stars right here; maybe the Big Three or something, you know what I'm saying. It's a nice look for us. . . . I would have to go with the gold jersey, because it's new, you can match it up with a lot of things, black jeans, black shoes, obviously it's a good look. So yeah, I'd definitely go with the gold jersey.

Wizards fan and former shoe salesman Marc Moaland: To be honest, I like the red, white and blue jerseys they used to have, but if they did go black and gold I think they could have done something a little different, maybe a deeper or richer gold. I guess it's okay. To me it looks like Wake Forest. The stars [are] tight, the design is nice. The only thing wrong I see is the gold, maybe make it a darker or richer color. . . . [But the uniform] needs to be all the same color. That just looks more professional, more team-oriented. This looks like a practice uniform. . . . Maybe if they had gold down the side [of the shorts] or something, it would make it blend in more, but all black is terrible. Whoever made the uniform, he or she should know better than that.

Wizards beat writer Ivan Carter: The uniforms look pretty good from up close -- as long as the jersey is tucked in and the player is wearing black shoes. The two-tone gold-and-black combination stands out among most NBA uniforms but does hearken back to the days when teams were named the Chicago Stags, Fort Wayne Pistons and Syracuse Nationals. They're old school. Besides, as Gilbert Arenas said, anything looks better than the current road uniforms.