Top ten NBA jerseys of all time

As the NBA finals head back to LA with the Lakers looking to re-group after Boston showed that even one of the best all time offensive displays can be overcome by a team effort. Kobe was unreal and if you have ever shot a basketball in your life you had to realize you were watching a historical performance as he scored 23 straight for LA and 19 in ten minutes of the third quarter. The points were impressive but the more impressive feat was the types of shots he was hitting against good Celtic defense. He had Dale Ellis range on his jump shot and was willing in wrong foot fade-aways and runners like it was a video game. Ultimately a balanced Celtic approach on offense and the inability of any other Laker to contribute (the Artest signing looks like a mistake the size of the deal Columbia gave to Alicia Silverstone after Clueless) has the Celts one game away from another NBA title. Can KG, Pierce, and the Celts bench mob bring their A games to LA and can the other Laker 11 put something together at home? Interesting questions heading into Game 6 along with can the NBA change this to a best of 13 for pure entertainment value? During a series like this it is a good time to list my top ten NBA jerseys of all time. For my money NBA jerseys are the best of all the major sports due to the ability to identify the players and the style infusion after the ABA merger. Honorable mention goes out to the jerseys of the Nique led 80's Hawks and the original dinosaur logo of the Toronto Raptors who just missed the cut.
#10) San Diego Clippers (1978-1984): The powdered blue is truly a Diego trait, but the red trim really makes these pop. In their inaugural year the Clipps finished over .500 for the only time in their Diego existence. In 79' they gave up most of the teams core for Bill Walton who was never able to regain his top form due to crippling injuries. The clubs downward spiral excellerated when the team was sold to Donald Sterling in 1981 and he changed the colors and moved them to LA. He continues the franchise's spiral by refusing to sell even though this roster with any other owner would complement Lebron perfectly.

#9) Oklahoma City Thunder (2008 to present): A great decision by the franchise in 08' with the decision to go with the UCLA like retro home white jerseys with block lettering. It is all very classy for the best young team in basketball and puts Oklahoma City on the pro sports map. They claim they had Durant ahead of Oden on their draft board and with jersey decision I can believe the Durant decision as well.

#8) Orlando Magic (90's): The pinstripes are a popular look but they never looked better on an NBA team than on this expansion team turned quick contender. One of the most important lottery wins in 92' brought them Shaq and an immediate turnaround. Unbelievably they won the lottery the next year as well and made an odd decision to trade Webber for Hardaway. Bringing two of the Blue Chips stars together got them a trip to the Finals, but like Nick Nolte they collapsed and Magic fans still have to kick themselves when thinking of the possibilities of Shaq with a perimeter skilled rebounding power forward like Webber.

#7) New York Knicks: They have kept the jerseys fairly consistent and recently that is about all they have had going for them. We could spend 2,000 words on their basketball decisions but that is for another day. The blue, orange and white color combination is often imitated but never duplicated and it helps that is was worn by Clyde Frazier and Charles Oakley. Those two along with Burt Reynolds make up three of the coolest guys on the planet. Burt Reynolds once kissed a baby's right arm and that baby was Stephen Strasburg.

#6) Seattle Supersonics (Late 80's early 90's): The green and gold is a truly underrated color combination as shown by this team. They got back to their late 70's success when they drafted Kemp in 89' and Payton in 90'. They made a consisitent one two punch in a highly competitive Western conference highlighted by a 64 win year in 96' and got the unfortunate luck of having to play the 72 win Bulls. Seattle's bad breaks continued as they lost their franchise to OK City and are now stuck with the Mariners and Pete Carroll. This great jersey and the mention in Ice Cube's "It Was a Good Day" are the lasting memories of this squad.

#5) New Jersey Nets (ABA 1967 to 1976): The first thing that should be on new owner Mikhail Prokhorov's list of things to do while he and Avery Johnson are shooting the "Twins" remake is to go back to this classic jersey. It would allow this team and their fans a chance to associate with the legend of Dr. J even if they had to sell him when they joined the NBA to pay the invasion rights fee to the Knicks.

#4) Washington Bullets (1970's): Red, white, and blue should be mandatory colors for all teams residing in the nation's capital and none beat this jersey. It looked good on Wes Unseld and I am sure John Wall would love a chance to wear this jersey. Unless they are going to wear capes, the nickname change to Wizards doesn't outdate these beauties. It might even bring back some of the good karma from the days when a 44-38 Washington team got hot in the playoffs and won the title.

#3) Denver Nuggets (1983-1993): The Atari like city-scape with the Rocky Mountains as a background is truly one of the best jerseys ever made. This jersey was introduced while Asteroids and Centipede were dominating the gaming circuit and the Nuggets were setting a record for points scored in a game with Alex English. The present day Nuggets like those teams have never committed to defense and in honor of that tradition the Rainbow jerseys need to be unleashed. Carmelo could never leave a team rolling with this look.

#2) Utah Jazz (1979-1996): The most mind boggling nickname to follow a team from an old city, but two of the best jerseys. The Jazz was a perfect nickname for the Pistol Pete led New Orleans team, but Jazz in Utah is about as likely as Polar Bears in Hawaii. The angry Mormons would be a better nickname, but the purple and green with the music note jerseys can not be given up and should be the only jerseys used for this team.

#1) San Francisco Warriors (1962-1971): This franchise has spanned from Philadelphia to Oakland but this jersey from this time period can not be matched by any sports franchise. "The City" was cool then and continues to dominate now, but the best feature has to be the street car with the number on the back instead of names. They immediately become sought after when recent editions of the Warriors broke them out and not only are they eye catching but wearing one of these leads to a history lesson of the NBA and questions about why Dwight Howard doesn't borrow Rick Barry's free throw shooting technique. This team also played in the Cow Palace in San Jose where Keith Moon once passed out from horse tranquilizers and a fan jumped in to finish the set.