The story of the Oklahoma City Thunder begins with theft, which is appropriate because so does the state of Oklahoma. Now if only they would steal some good jersey ideas…

Nope.

2017 & 2019 Statement Editions: These are as good as it gets for OKC. The sound wave graphic on the back panel is subtle but effective and the midline-shifted OKC wordmark brings some energy. The name-below-number arrangement on the back is novel enough to make an impression. Both make good use of OKC’s unique palette.

2023 City Edition: The all-over print of chopped-up logo elements is unlike anything I can recall in American pro sports. The rising OKC wordmark, pulled directly out of the primary logo, is a great spin on an underwhelming brand. The orange and yellow paired with deep navy are are bold alternative presentation of OKC’s colors.

2018 City Edition: Described at launch as “deeply influenced by the culture of the tribal nations in Oklahoma.” That influence created one of the best uniforms in team history. S-Tier for many but the complete disconnect from the core brand drops it a little for me.1

This trio is basically A-Tier at 75% execution.

2020 Earned Edition: The THUNDER wordmark is nice, but the lack of orange and no back panel print make for a less-than-vibrant look.

2018 Earned Edition:2 Similarly a less-interesting version of A-Tier’s 2019 Statement jersey.

2024 City Edition: Brings bright blue into the mix established by the 2023 version but relegates the print to a side panel and opts for a weaker OKLAHOMA chest wordmark.

None of these are bad but we’ve seen all of them done better.

Two distinct buckets here: core home/away and early alternates.

2008 Home & Away: Almost completely unchanged3 for 17 years, quite a feat in the modern NBA. They’re not groundbreaking designs, but thanks to a standout color palette they’ve stood the test of time.

2012 Alternate (Navy): Fondly remembered because it was the first time this boring-ass franchise tried anything. Maybe not the most compelling design but very different from established NBA style.

2014 Alternate (Orange): Far less compelling design-wise, but it established orange as a primary color and set the stage for a brighter future — literally!

With the lone exception of 2018’s A-Tier effort, OKC’s City Edition lineup was an absolute disaster from 2017-2022. The ill-advised commitment to shades of gray kind of says it all.

2017: Recreating the logo’s swooshes with cut-and-sew elements was surely no small feat. Shame it was a terrible idea.

2019: A well-intentioned tribute to the 1995 bombing memorial that is unfortunately emblematic of Nike’s “wait, what team am I watching?” uniform era.

2020: A font we’d never seen before or since and an arbitrary design pitched as a way to honor the people of Oklahoma. I would not be honored, personally.

2021: An utterly lifeless reinterpretation of the 2012 alts that mostly carry on nostalgia.

2022: 😴

Mid-2010s Adidas really tried some stuff. The NBA’s Christmas Day showcase games were a big spot for this, most notably the script uniforms of 2015 and 2016. Not really ranked, just noted.

What the fuck, Adidas.