The NBA’s new in-season tournament is finally beginning on November 3. To celebrate it the league is giving its teams some shiny new courts to play on, too.
In preparation for the action, each team is getting a new court with a new color scheme. I won’t lie to you — most of them look pretty bad. Some are solid, though! And there are a few good ones sprinkled in here and there, too.
But, regardless, it’s the thought that counts. It’ll be nice to see some variation on the court for once — especially when it comes time to differentiate in-season tournament games from the plain regular season games.
I’ve done enough rambling here, though. Let’s dive in on these new courts.
1
San Antonio Spurs
This Spurs court is so cool. The color blocking is fantastic — green and yellow as a combination has never failed us. Plus, that sun in the middle with the Tower of the Americas in the center? Chef’s kiss.
2
Phoenix Suns
This court gives me 90s vibes. I love it. It reminds me of those vintage sweatsuits I used to wear back in the day. I’m a millennial, man. Nostalgia wins every time. What can I say?
3
Boston Celtics
You’ve got to give the Celtics credit for being consistent, man. Boston almost always sticks to its patented deep green. It works well here on that tan. I hope that middle strip there is parquet flooring.
4
Golden State Warriors
This court looks as expensive as Chase Arena is. That black and gold color combo just looks good, man. The jerseys aren’t half bad either.
5
Toronto Raptors
The Drake aesthetic for the Raptors is kind of old, I must admit. But, hey, man. This court looks amazing.
6
Cleveland Cavaliers
Yes, this does look like a plain court. But if we compare it to some of the courts you’ll see later? This deserves some points for that. Plus that font is amazing.
7
Portland Trail Blazers
This is an amazing tribute to Dr. Jack Ramsay from the Trail Blazers, man. That argyle Rip City is sick. The jerseys are pretty solid, too. And that’s saying something.
8
Brooklyn Nets
The Nets know how to do the grey court well, don’t they? They’ve got plenty of experience with it. I wish they’d got a bit more creative with it here and added some color, but this definitely works.
9
Minnesota Timberwolves
That baby blue is so good, man. I’ll be honest — I had these ranked much lower than the top 10 here. But this court is clean. That logo is nice, too.
10
Utah Jazz
That purple court looks trippy, man. The Jazz should let Future shoot a music video here. Could y’all imagine him performing the entirety of Purple Reign here? Come on, Utah. Make it happen.
11
Atlanta Hawks
This Hawks court would be great if I understood where all this blue was coming from. Alas. It’s only just good. It’s one of the better courts we have, though.
12
Milwaukee Bucks
The Bucks court here is solid. I love the colorway with that neon green and blue to go with the tan color on the court. It reminds me of those weird Cream City uniforms from years ago, but in a good way, though.
13
Detroit Pistons
This is where things slowly, but surely, begin to go left with these courts. This Pistons court is solid. It’s fine. It just also looks like the court a high school basketball team would play on.
14
Chicago Bulls
Yeah, no idea where the Bulls were going with this one. Why’d they take all the color from the Bulls’ logo and splash it on the court? That’s kind of weird.
15
Memphis Grizzlies
This Grizzlies court was fine until I realized the barcode print on the baseline is supposed to say MEM over and over again. The only reason I know that is because the accompanying jersey has the same thing on it and — you guessed it — it looks just as terrible.
16
Sacramento Kings
This Kings court is not bad. It’s just not great, either. Where’s the purple, man? What’s with all this grey? I think if Sacramento got some color in this thing it could be a top 10 look.
17
Orlando Magic
It feels like somebody said “Make it Disney, but also make it western” and that’s how this court was born. No, that’s not a compliment.
18
Los Angeles Lakers
Too much yellow. Waaaaaaay too much yellow. Lakers, man. I know the purple and gold is this iconic. But, yeah, too much.
19
Dallas Mavericks
Why does the font on the court look like the opening of a movie from the 1970s? What were we doing with this? And all of this grey? Come on, Dallas. You’re better than this.
20
Miami Heat
These were cooked from the very moment we found out that the Heat were going to have Heat Culture on their jerseys. There was nothing this court could do to make that better. I’m relieved that it doesn’t look like they actually tried.
21
Los Angeles Clippers
The Clippers’ court here looks like a beer can. Sorry. It would be fine if the font here was different. It’s just so weird.
22
Philadelphia 76ers
Speaking of too much of one color, why is there so much red here with the 76ers? And why does the 76 logo fit so snugly into the trophy? I feel like Philadelphia is the only team that stuffed the logo in this way.
23
Houston Rockets
Which court came first? The Rockets court or the 76ers court? The answer to that question will determine who ranks higher here between the two. Because this is basically the same court.
24
Charlotte Hornets
I felt like I was being a little too harsh on the Hornets court here. And maybe I am. But I’ll continue to be this way until the team permanently brings back the old Hornets logo.
25
Washington Wizards
What was our goal here? These aren’t Wizards colors. The logo looks weird. There’s way too much grey here. What are we doing? This is terrible.
26
Oklahoma City Thunder
To be fair to the Thunder, the team has never had the best color scheme in the world. But that doesn’t mean that Oklahoma City gets to inundate us with these terrible blues. Nope. I won’t stand for it.
27
Denver Nuggets
Denver. Look. I get it. Your city is 5,280 feet above altitude. That’s great. I’m happy for you. But could a Nuggets logo at least be at center court? This number doesn’t mean anything to 90 percent of the people watching.
28
New York Knicks
….I don’t even know what to say, man. Send this back to wherever it came from. The New York in the middle is making me dizzy.
29
New Orleans Pelicans
Is this…a haunted basketball court? Why on Earth does this look like something that came out of a Scooby Doo episode. Raggy? Is that you?
30
Indiana Pacers
This court is hilarious. It looks like what the court would look like if the NBA did one of those Nickelodeon simulcasts and the Pacers were playing. Look, kids! It’s the Pacers! Tyrese Haliburton is airbending! Isn’t this fun?
