The Sacramento Kings have had a solid variety of uniforms in their franchise history. Where do the new royal blue jerseys rank among them?
The Sacramento Kings unveiled their new court and uniform combination on Friday. The new threads are in celebration of the 35th anniversary of the franchise’s move to the California capital, though the Kings didn’t wear these particular uniforms until 1990.
The jerseys are royal blue and feature the same white cursive letters as the baby blue version, complete with the crown that dots the “i”. The lettering is encased in a bold red that makes the white pop. The court has the same color scheme.
The @SacramentoKings unveil their 35th anniversary companion court. The jersey uniform combo will appear 17 times this season including its November 1st debut. @CBSSacramento pic.twitter.com/1IoEEZPkp9
— Joe Musso (@MooseOnAir) October 19, 2019
Since moving to Sacramento, the Kings have had seven different sets of basic uniforms and the same amount of alternates. So do these new jerseys rank among the best in franchise history?
Most Kings fans can agree that the gold alternates are the worst uniforms that the team has ever worn. The color was a deep hue of gold, almost dijon mustard-like. They were the first alternates to feature the throwback cursive lettering, this time in purple. The jerseys lasted just two seasons after making their unfortunate debut in 2005.
The uniforms that the Kings wore from 1994 until 2002 are probably the most popular, and it’s probably because of nostalgia. These were the jerseys that Sacramento wore when they were at their entertaining peak. These are the unis that Jason Williams and Chris Webber wore, the ones that the Kings donned during their memorable 2002 playoff run.
The most controversial color combo that the Kings have worn are the baby blues. They were the first uniforms that the team wore in their new city, and were replicated two seasons ago as an oft-appearing alternate. The reception was mostly mixed, with some grumbling that the colors were too different from the ones that people knew the Kings for. Others believe that these are the best jerseys that the team has worn.
I am personally torn between the ’94-’02 road blacks and the new royal blues. I will admit that the love for the new uniforms is probably a recency bias, but they have a clean, bold look to them that puts them near the top of the list of best Kings uniforms in Sacramento history.