In celebration of its 30th season this year, the Women’s National Basketball Association and the three surviving franchises from its inaugural season are throwing it back to 1997 for select games.
The WNBA announced its Court Origins program on Friday, April 24, which includes a retro-inspired basketball and jerseys for the Los Angeles Sparks, the New York Liberty and the Phoenix Mercury that replicate their looks from the league’s first season.
The Court Origins Wilson EVO NXT basketball is the same model the WNBA uses today and still features alternating panels, but the lighter panels are more of a vintage white or cream color. Retro league logos appear on two of the panels, while the WNBA’s 30th season logo with the modern player silhouette sits on another panel.
The retro Court Origins ball (left) and a modern WNBA game ball (right). Photos courtesy Wilson
The Sparks’ jersey is mostly yellow, with purple side panels that extend up to the shoulder and white panels over each shoulder. A retro Sparks wordmark with a teal-accented palm tree runs across the chest, with an offset purple number underneath.
Courtesy @WNBA / Twitter and Los Angeles Sparks
The Liberty’s jersey is mostly black, with seafoam green side panels outlined in orange and silver over the shoulders. The team’s original wordmark, with a torch replacing the I in “LIBERTY,” is arched across the chest.
Courtesy @WNBA / Twitter and New York Liberty / Facebook
The Mercury, meanwhile, will sport a red jersey with purple side panels and yellow over the shoulders. A slanted wordmark sits on the chest, with a white number outlined in purple underneath. They’ll also have a special court with their original logo and the name of every Mercury player in franchise history written in the keys.
Courtesy @WNBA / Twitter and Phoenix Mercury
Courtesy Phoenix Mercury
The Court Origins schedule that accompanied the WNBA’s announcement of the program includes four regular season games featuring the three original franchises, as well as the Las Vegas Aces, who can directly trace their lineage back to another team from 1997, the Utah Starzz.
New York vs. Los Angeles – June 21New York vs. Phoenix – August 1Las Vegas vs. New York – August 9Los Angeles vs. Las Vegas – September 22
Each team, however, is free to wear their Court Origins uniform in other games throughout the season. The Liberty, for example, will wear them in their home opener on May 8 and in other key matchups and theme nights.