The much-anticipated “Vince Carter Windmill Dunk”-inspired City Edition was unveiled by the Toronto Raptors earlier today. It is definitely one of the cooler uniforms that fall into the “City Edition” category, although this one doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with the City of Toronto. But hey, when you’re introducing a new uniform every single year, sometimes you gotta go outside the box.
Once the Raptors CE uniforms were leaked, fans were immediately drawn to the design, which is a mash-up of the Raptors dinosaur logo and Vince Carter’s incredible dunk from the 2000 All Star game dunk contest.
With the “premise” out of the way, let’s look at the hype video:
Greatness Inspired Greatness🦖
30th Anniversary City Edition Jerseys Now Available pic.twitter.com/PxtY7KTHKC
— Toronto Raptors (@Raptors) November 14, 2024
“This 30th anniversary is a season to celebrate the people and moments who have made this franchise who we are,” Raptors president and vice chairman Masai Ujiri said in a news release. “Is there a better example of that feeling than the image of Vince’s unbelievable dunk? It reminds us that we can inspire. It allows us to dream of flying. It is proudly Toronto. And this uniform is unique in the league — just like the team and fans who will proudly wear it.”
The team didn’t provide many photos but it’s a pretty straight forward uniform. The jersey and shorts are black, with the jersey featuring purple striping near the neck and arm openings. The graphic of the dunking dino will grace the front of the jersey, and there are some subtle zig-zag stripes running vertically down the jersey (the team refers to them as “tone-on-tone” claw scratch pinstripes, a nod to the Raptors’ 1995 look). The uniform number, which is white with a gold outline, sits above and to the right of the logo.
The rear of the jersey features player NOB in white arched lettering, and numbers are white with a gold outline.
Both front and rear numbers feature perforations.
The dunking dino is sublimated into the fabric:
I’ve mentioned before that the CE program, which has been in existence for almost 10 seasons now, will have some hits and misses with designs — most are misses — and none of them are really more than glorified merchandise dumps. But every so often a really nice one will come along. The Raptors new CE definitely fits that bill, and the melding of one of the most famous dunks in history mashed up with the team’s dinosaur logo, is pretty great. I’m not sure how it fits into the “City” aspect (the 2000 All Star Game was played in Oakland, the Warriors then home), unless you can make the stretch that Vince Carter is a part of Toronto and the Raptors.
🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/F1K7HofVWY
— rapTOrs (@the6ixdick) November 14, 2024
Still, I can’t help but love this design.
The team will debut the uniforms November 21 against the Minnesota Timberwolves and will wear them five times in the season. There will also be a special City Edition court which will be used when the CE uniforms are worn.
Your thoughts?
The front number and “pinstripes” are SOOOOOOO bad. They should’ve made the dino larger, and put the player’s number on the little jersey that it’s wearing. Sure that takes away from the Vince Carter tribute of it a little bit, but I doubt there are any Raptors fans that wouldn’t still recognize it for the obvious tribute that it is.
I have been a conscious Raptors fan since ~2004 and think these uniforms don’t follow the usual prescription for a good uniform but that they are so cool it doesn’t matter. The Vince Carter legacy is complicated and the Raptors are bad, both of which make it ok that they can go with a dunking dinosaur. The subtle stripes are good too, it would look like a practice jersey without them.
W
While I think the idea of city edition uniforms is stupid and should not exist, these are awesome!
Best of the bunch, by far. I don’t know how the other CE unis sell online, but I have a feeling this one will be a #1 seller for a while.
This is a pretty good special/alternate design, and I think it’s one of the better examples of what the program wants to be from a conceptual standpoint. If you didn’t know about the dunk, the logo would probably look strange, though.
Not wild about the front numbers, but that’s okay.
I like the use of gold in this one, and I think they could have used just a little bit more. This is also a good example of how/when to use black as a main color. These should fit into their wardrobe nicely.
I foresee the Grady Dick version of this jersey replacing the purple Vince Carter throwback as the elite frat guy jersey
You’re probably very right with this comment.
Yes, very yes. Keep this logo forever and dispatch the claw ball.
No matter how complicated Vince legacy in Toronto is, as someone from Toronto, Vince is the reason the Raptors become so big.
If you want to understand stand how big Vince is to the Raptors and basketball has a while in Canada look up the documentary “The Carter Effect”.
No a huge fan of the jersey but that logo is an instant classic. Very rarely do MSLE get some thing right (ie Maple Leafs black jersey) but this is a in for them
This is perfect.
As an aside – the court that goes with this is just as awesome
link
The logo itself is fun and goofy and delightful and (as someone who rarely buys merch for teams I don’t actively support) I want it on a shirt or hat or patch or something. But the jersey is kinda meh/disjointed. Evens out, I guess.