The jersey that changed the NBA. | Sideline Archive
The history of the Charlotte Hornets hasn’t always been pretty. They haven’t always been the best team in the NBA, but they HAVE always been the best looking. With stylish teal and purple jerseys with dramatic pinstripes – the Hornets swarmed across America in the early 1990s. But how?
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⏰ Timecodes ⏰
0:00 Intro
2:54 Welcome to Charlotte, NC
3:46 George Shinn, Hornets Owner.
5:11 Designer Uniforms
7:30 Convincing the players…
8:10 Alexander Julian
8:57 The Birth of Buzz
10:04 Merchandise Boom
11:00 The Teal Influence
13:08 A Fashion Legacy
#nba #nbajerseys #charlottehornets #starterjacket #vintagestyle
About:
In this video we deep dive into the history of the Charlotte Hornets franchise and their beautiful pinstripe and teal jerseys. From designer Alexander Julian and owner George Shinn, all the way to Mugsy Bogues and Dell Curry – these NBA jerseys swept the nation. But how did Starter alter their famous Starter jackets to capitalise on the teal craze? And how do the Charlotte Hornets jerseys feature in the league today? Let’s find out!
39 Comments
Grew up in Boston and I had that same exact Starter jacket in the early 90s lol. Yeah, Charlotte's jerseys were sick af.
While you mention him in passing, I believe Larry Johnson playing for Charlotte was very important in the rise in popularity of Hornets gear. He was an immensely popular college player who won a national title for UNLV, which was the coolest team at the time and seen almost like antiheroes (think college basketball's version of the Raiders). Johnson also had a series of popular shoe commercials where he would dress up like an old lady and school people on the court.
I think all us young people were aware of Charlotte's unique uniforms, but it was Larry Johnson in 1991-92 who made the gear cool and a must-have.
Rockets great Bill Worrell 🚀 8:57
Growing up in the Carolinas when the hornets were still new, I was used to seeing their merch everywhere. It wasn't until I traveled more that I saw how popular that merch was, and I never knew why 😂
Never saw a Hornets starter pullover. But I lived in the Bay Area at the time so it was all Sharks. Had my self a Teal Sharks starter pullover.
Thank you for a great video that took me down memory lane!👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾🙏🏾🎊
I'd probably give Larry Johnson all the credit. But what do I know. Just lived it.
That jacket is so iconic 😏🔥
I love this thank you for talking about the throwback hornet's
I remember when this was a thing, I just didn’t know it was the thing lol. I had a teal Mourning, purple Larry and the Starter jacket lol
So glad you mentioned nascar I'm from Milwaukee Wisconsin USA born 1990 I never cared for basketball yet love nascar and I'll never forget hornets winter jackets were all I seen during the 90s and now I know why thank your for this video such a deep dive trip you really hit the nail on the head with this video
For some reason even I from central Europe have a Hornets beanie from the 90s that I still use :D.
I didn't even like sports as a kid but I loved this team's aesthetics
I LOVE LOVE LOVE your content. Please make more videos. This takes me back to my childhood and all the great memories of the 80s and 90s. Nothing will ever be like the 90s. Sports, music, movies, fashion, tv, etc. We had the best of everything in the 90s. It was all brand new with no copying or remaking. Nope! We had the OG. I am a huge fan of 90s basketball and the uniforms. I currently own the authentic Mitchell & Ness Charlotte Hornets teal away jersey (Alonzo Mourning) and purple alternate away jersey (Larry Johnson), teal Vancouver Grizzles away jersey (Shareef Abdur-Rahim), and teal 1996 All-Star jersey (Michael Jordan). The Hornets uniforms set the inner city on fire regarding urban fashion. To note even Michael Jordan adopted the Hornets colors on his Grape Jordan 5s which Will Smith wore on the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. That shoe and color-way is one of the most sought after and anticipated retro releases every time it drops. Just to help add to the nostalgic history of the colors and the impact it had on the times.
The success of their brand was so huge I grew up in Germany and I had friends who had Hornets T-shirts and Hoodies. It was a phenomenon.
Surprised you didn't mention "Grandmama Johnson" on Family Matters. NC born and raised but was a Bulls fan as a kid. Hornets were my 2nd favorite. I remember being so excited when Larry popped up there. A Charlotte player being on a Chicago based show just seemed so cool!
What are.pleats
Some of my favorite jerseys of all time
My uncle took me to that Bulls/Hornets game. I didnt get to see the Hornets much back then but I'm glad that was one of em. Half my wardrobe was Hornets gear, the other half Redskins gear.
Teal is the most 90s color. Also see the San Jose Sharks
I remember being a kid in the early 90s. I was really digging that Hornets color, and yes its true, a lot of kids were rocking the merchandise. And the popularity of the Hornets grew even bigger when the had Larry Johnson, Muggsy Bogues, and Alonzo Mourning playing together. I was a huge Larry JOhnson fan that time.
Heheh, i had the jacket. The hornets were as big as the bulls in europe
Yo! This is crazy. I owned that jacket as a kid. All the way on the west coast and a Lakers fan. I also had a Raiders starter jacket, lol.
Ngl I've always thought the hornets had one of the ugliest uniforms in pro sports. Maybe it's just because they've always been so bad that I've associated that color scheme with sucking.
Even 7-12 year old Lewis Hamilton was rocking it in a 90s Blue Peter episode lool
Hornets gear was everywhere when I was a kid in Virginia. Plus they had local guys Zo and J.R. Reid.
I was a teenager in Charlotte when the Hornets were born. i remember the general response here to the uniforms was at least slightly negative, but people were too excited to have a team to really mind. Like with a lot of things new and innovative, folks don't always like them at first glance but warm up eventually to them.
The Hornets should bring back the hugo logo like how the Hawks brought back an updated pacman / Hawk logo
How long did that payment of monthly bbq pork run for? lifetime contract?
Not just the NBA sports period..San Jose Sharks Florida Marlins Jacksonville Jaguars Carolina Panthers Anaheim Ducks..
👏👏👏👏👏
I grew up in Charlotte during the bobcats so I missed the fun Hornets I just know sadness lmao
14 year old me fell in love with that jersey and became obsessed with the Hornets. Had both the hat and jacket LJ is sporting at 10:01, and wore them both, together, constantly. Weird I know, but even weirder since I lived in Toronto. At the time, if it wasn't Bulls, Lakers, or Celtics merch, you couldn't buy it in Toronto, so needless to say it attracted a lot of attention. And the best part for an awkward teenage boy, it seemed like every girl I met wanted to try on the hat. I hadn't thought about that for a very long time, but those were definitely happy days of my youth. Thank you for the video mate, it was a really unexpected, but wonderful surprise.
Not that it really matters but a correction to the information about NASCAR in this video. There were 7 NASCAR races in North Carolina during the 1988 season not 2 races. 3 at Charlotte, 2 at North Wilkesboro, and 2 at Rockingham.
Folks always ask why I, a diehard Detroiter am also a Hornets fan and it’s because of the branding. I was 9 when they came into the league and I’ve been a fan since. I am now a marketing and branding guy and use theirs as a reference point often.
The teal trend also made it's way into Australian sports. When South Australian team Port Adelaide entered the AFL in 1997, their black & white uniform conflicted with an existing team, so teal became a part of their team brand. I knew teal was kind of a 90's thing, but I never connected the dots to Charlotte.
This video forgot the seals existed, even when bringing up the sharks
the only thing the Hornets/Bobcats have contributed to basketball
Everyone in the 90s knew someone with that jacket, esp if you lived in Charlotte