Sometime Soon for the Bobcats/Hornets?

Who knows when the NBA team in Charlotte will be allowed to go back to their original "Hornets" moniker. Adam Silver, the Commissioner-in-waiting, said maybe 18 months, so by '14-'15?

I once wrote a little bit about the Hornets name and legacy, how the name came to be (the late 1700s) and how all teams there tended to be named the same thing...sometimes names have historical importance to a region, like Orioles, Brewers, Rockies, and Marlins in, respectively, Baltimore, Milwaukee, Denver, and Miami. For a refresher here's a link to the first part, and here's a link to the second part.

Not that I really root for the Hornets/Bobcats, but I'm looking forward to that type of order being replaced to those team names. I suppose this switch means more to me than any Jazz/Pelicans or Lakers/Timberwolves rift.

Finally Official from the Dolphins

The Miami Dolphins finally make their first new logo in, eh, forever official. I like it:

Considering images had been leaking out for months, I would hope enthusiasm won't wane. It retains the colors and essence of the Flipper-esque original, but with more dynamism and natural realism.

Missed Something in San Jose

When I saw some photos from the Sharks of San Jose beating the LA Kings in their recent home game for Game 3, I was surprised. I was pretty sure the game was being played in San Jose, but the home team was wearing black. A different picture showed off that it was in fact the Sharks wearing black instead of that teal, and their shark chest logo had been updated. A little research showed that happened a few years back, and I never noticed. Dang...

Here's the original Sharks logo:

And here's their updated logo:

The 3-D effect is enhanced as is the shark-tooth effect with the inverted triangle in the back. Seems more mid-aughts more than mid-nineties, which it is, of course.

Weird Stuff from the Minors

Here are some weird and sometimes cool things from the baseball's minor leagues. The minors are far too colorful to be given a complete rundown of all the weirdness here, but you get the idea...

First, for a promotional deal, the Toledo Mud-Hens are going Chewie for a night. They're donning Chewbacca jerseys for that game:

Eh, this is too easy, but whooping cranes are always worthy of mascot/logo status:

And, what can be said of "Mr. Celery"? I've lost the data on this team in the months since I found this logo, so, maybe I'll update it later. But still...Mr. Celery?

WNBA Updates Their Brand's Image

The WNBA have issued their new league logo:

I like it. But that may be a product of it not being particularly lame. It makes me think of Pat Summitt and the Lady Vols. But it's said that that look is based on the color scheme of the ball, the "oatmeal and orange" look. They player is as yet unnamed, leading to a guessing game as to who she is.

Here's a graphic explaining where the logo comes from:

Um, thanks for that. There's definitely worse problems and issues sports leagues have to deal with than introducing new logos on the verge of new and exciting eras in their sports. Namely in the case of the WNBA, what effect will Brittany Griner have on the profile of the sport and their league. If anyone can raise the needle of popularity of pro lady ball, it'll be Griner.

Brewers YOU-niform Winner Uses Barrelman

The Milwaukee Brewers held a uniform design contest, and the winner used Beer Barrelman on the cap, which was a unique and possibly inspired design choice:

I like it. The jersey design is neat and elegant, but not really spectacular.

Here are some of the other Beer Barrelman's from the past:

This is the elder of the two, with the original color scheme: red and navy:

After the Pilots were bought by Bud Selig and moved from Seattle to Milwaukee and became the next iteration of the Brewers, they kept the blue and gold color scheme but brought back the Barrelman. This is the one the winner used:

Playing kegs, man...

WTF: Adidas Assaults College Hoop Sensibilities

I'm not the biggest fan of college hoops. I follow it, but half-heartedly reading about it in the newspaper hardly makes me an expert. But when I see this new design from Adidas in their ever escalating war with Nike and Under Armor, I can't think of anything to really say:

I mean, besides, eh, excuse me? What the hell is going on in college hoop uniforms?

I'd like to note that I'm not an old-timer or a fuddy-duddy when it comes to uniform or jersey design. I don't scream bloody murder when a team updates their look, unless that update is awful to look at. I was a fan of the updated Blue Jays and Orioles logos from 2012, as well as the faux-back Tampa Bay Rays look.

This, though, is unspeakably bad. Am I wrong? Maybe people like it...the T-shirt look I don't loathe, although the more you get to see it in action the lamer it looks. That colorful camo crap is a garish play on the bad brown digital camouflage that the Padres rock occasionally:

 

I think maybe the digital camouflage and the colorful things that resemble it, like the shorts in that first picture, are current design facets that will in the future be as condemned as the early '90s NBA looks.