Nuggets Embed Pick-Axes and Mountain Range

Via Uni-Watch and Matt Rachmiel, the Denver Nuggets will use wood/shellac shading to embed pick-axes and a mountain range into their new court. Here's a look.

Funky Outdoor Court

Via Uni-Watch, a fashion-designer has created a multi-color, collage-type outdoor basketball court in Paris.

History of Phoenix Suns' Courts

Via Matt Rachmiel, Uni-Watch links to an article that shows not only the Phoenix Suns' new court design, but also a history of floor designs for the Suns franchise. Here's the link.

Athlon 2015-16 Preview Magazine Features "Courts Gone Wild"

With the upcoming college-basketball season roughly two months away, the annual preview magazines are hitting the newsstands. One publisher, Athlon Sports, has a feature in its magazine entitled "Courts Gone Wild." The article is accompanied by photographs of several of the game's gaudiest courts. Two that I wasn't aware of are Manhattan's nearly all-green floor and Oakland's (Michigan) "blacktop" court featuring a growling grizzly in the center. Oakland's court is somewhat reminiscent of Northern Illinois's and Central Florida's.

A theme running through the article is how vivid court designs that are unique to a particular university can serve as 94- X 50-foot advertisements for a school -- yet another way to monetize the game of college basketball. Oregon's court, which the article describes as the view one would have waking up in a sleeping bag in the forest, is probably the best example. Commercial advertisements may also become more common on court surfaces, as large decals that aren't slippery to the players have been developed.

UPDATE (9/9/15): Here's another college floor, from Arkansas-Monticello, that would have been at home with the other "wild" courts (via Matt Rachmiel and Uni-Watch).