A new feature I'd like to introduce is the documentation of court designs for NBA teams that are no longer in existence (either because the franchise moved to a different city or went completely defunct). Today's inaugural ex-team is the Buffalo Braves (1970-1978), who later became the Clippers (first in San Diego, then in Los Angeles). The Braves played at the Memorial Auditorium (better known as "The Aud"), which was demolished only within the past year, even though the NHL Sabres had moved to a new arena in 1996.
The Braves' basketball court is depicted on the Buffalo Sports Museum website (pages 3 and 4). Buffalo does not have an official athletic shrine. Rather the "Museum" is a personal memorabilia collection -- a labor of love, really -- by lifelong Buffalo sports fan John Boutet.
As can be seen on the linked webpages, the Aud's court for the Braves was pretty basic, with solid blue keys and a midcourt logo on a solid circular white background.
Monday, September 7, 2009
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
International Courts (FIBA U19 Men's)
Summer is the time for international basketball competitions, as each country's own leagues (the NBA and college ball in the U.S.) are out of season. One recently held event was the FIBA U19 (under 19 years old) Men's World Championship in Auckland, New Zealand. Below are some freeze-frame screen-captures from videos I found on YouTube (you can click on the photo montage to enlarge it).
The biggest difference from U.S. courts is the trapezoidal key, which is much wider at the baseline than at the free-throw line. Its purpose, presumably, is to reduce the role of big players, either in setting up offensively beside the key during the normal flow of play or when lining up as a defensive rebounder closest to the basket on free-throw attempts.
The circle at the top of the free-throw lane also has a distinctive look, compared to U.S. courts, with a logo painted in. It's difficult to see where the free-throw line is exactly, but there's probably a fine line that the players can follow.
The biggest difference from U.S. courts is the trapezoidal key, which is much wider at the baseline than at the free-throw line. Its purpose, presumably, is to reduce the role of big players, either in setting up offensively beside the key during the normal flow of play or when lining up as a defensive rebounder closest to the basket on free-throw attempts.
The circle at the top of the free-throw lane also has a distinctive look, compared to U.S. courts, with a logo painted in. It's difficult to see where the free-throw line is exactly, but there's probably a fine line that the players can follow.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Shared WNBA-NBA Courts (Part 2)
Last time, we looked at cities where the WNBA and NBA teams play in the same arenas and have virtually identical court designs. Today, we'll look at cases where arenas have different floor designs -- to one extent or another -- for their WNBA and NBA tenants.
The first two we'll see (looking horizontally for the same city) are Phoenix and Washington. You can click on all the court photos to enlarge them.
Phoenix's U.S. Airways Center (shown on top) has my favorite system for the designs of the women's (Mercury) and men's (Suns) courts. The courts are pretty similar, except for the free-throw side-alleys of the key, which are purple for the Mercury and orange for the Suns. To me, it's a nice way of saying that this is the basic Phoenix court, but we want to distinguish the motifs for the two teams.
Washington, too, has a pretty similar court for its women's (Mystics) and men's (Wizards) teams. The blue color is dominant for both, but the variation in the painting scheme of the key lets each team have its own floor design.
The four remaining cities have more radically different designs for their respective women's and men's teams. In each case, there are solid-color keys that are different for the men and women. In order, the four cities we see in the following photos are Los Angeles, Atlanta, Indianapolis, and New York.
Starting with L.A., the women's team (Sparks) and men's team (Lakers) both have purple and gold as their dominant colors (a third team, the Clippers, play in the Staples Center, but the Lakers and Sparks go back together longer, to when they both played in the Forum). As can be seen, the keys for the Sparks are gold, whereas those for the Lakers are purple.
In Atlanta, the women's (Dream) and men's (Hawks) teams both have red and blue (of different shades) among their team colors. As with L.A., one of the major colors is used for the women's keys (red) and the other for the men's (blue).
Next the Indiana Fever (women's) and Pacers (men) both have blue and gold among their team colors, with the Fever also incorporating red. As with the two previous examples, each team has a different color for its keys -- the Fever's in gold, and the Pacers' in blue.
Finally, we have New York City's Madison Square Garden, home to the WNBA's Liberty and NBA's Knicks. Both teams have blue and orange as their basic team colors. The Knicks' keys are orange, but here, the Liberty's court designers got a little creative, combining light blue and royal blue in the keys.
To conclude this two-part entry, I would say that I dislike when an arena's two tenants have court designs that are either too similar or too different. Thus, I selected Phoenix as my favorite. Share your thoughts in the Comments area!
The first two we'll see (looking horizontally for the same city) are Phoenix and Washington. You can click on all the court photos to enlarge them.
Phoenix's U.S. Airways Center (shown on top) has my favorite system for the designs of the women's (Mercury) and men's (Suns) courts. The courts are pretty similar, except for the free-throw side-alleys of the key, which are purple for the Mercury and orange for the Suns. To me, it's a nice way of saying that this is the basic Phoenix court, but we want to distinguish the motifs for the two teams.
Washington, too, has a pretty similar court for its women's (Mystics) and men's (Wizards) teams. The blue color is dominant for both, but the variation in the painting scheme of the key lets each team have its own floor design.
The four remaining cities have more radically different designs for their respective women's and men's teams. In each case, there are solid-color keys that are different for the men and women. In order, the four cities we see in the following photos are Los Angeles, Atlanta, Indianapolis, and New York.
Starting with L.A., the women's team (Sparks) and men's team (Lakers) both have purple and gold as their dominant colors (a third team, the Clippers, play in the Staples Center, but the Lakers and Sparks go back together longer, to when they both played in the Forum). As can be seen, the keys for the Sparks are gold, whereas those for the Lakers are purple.
In Atlanta, the women's (Dream) and men's (Hawks) teams both have red and blue (of different shades) among their team colors. As with L.A., one of the major colors is used for the women's keys (red) and the other for the men's (blue).
Next the Indiana Fever (women's) and Pacers (men) both have blue and gold among their team colors, with the Fever also incorporating red. As with the two previous examples, each team has a different color for its keys -- the Fever's in gold, and the Pacers' in blue.
Finally, we have New York City's Madison Square Garden, home to the WNBA's Liberty and NBA's Knicks. Both teams have blue and orange as their basic team colors. The Knicks' keys are orange, but here, the Liberty's court designers got a little creative, combining light blue and royal blue in the keys.
To conclude this two-part entry, I would say that I dislike when an arena's two tenants have court designs that are either too similar or too different. Thus, I selected Phoenix as my favorite. Share your thoughts in the Comments area!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Shared WNBA-NBA Courts (Part 1)
The most prominent form of basketball at this time of year in the U.S. is the WNBA. Ten of the 13 WNBA teams play in the same arenas as the NBA teams in their respective home cities (the three exceptions are in Connecticut and Seattle, which don't have NBA teams, and in Chicago, where the WNBA's Sky plays at UIC Pavilion instead of the United Center).
Of the 10 situations where a WNBA team shares an arena with an NBA team, I find it of interest to look at how similar or different the floor designs are for the two teams. Each within-city pair has the same (or similar) team colors, so the potential is there for the WNBA and NBA floors to be extremely similar in many cities. As shown below, there appear to be four cities in which the WNBA and NBA floors are virtually identical, except for the center logo (and the three-point line). You can click on the photo montage to enlarge it.
From top to bottom:
*The floor at Detroit's Palace of Auburn Hills is the same, except for whether the Shock (WNBA) or Pistons (NBA) logo is at center court.
*The floor at San Antonio's AT&T Center is the same, except for whether the Silver Stars (WNBA) or Spurs (NBA) logo is at center court.
*The floor at Sacramento's Arco Arena is the same, except for whether the Kings (NBA) or Monarchs (WNBA) logo appears at midcourt.
*The floor at Minneapolis's Target Center is the same, except for whether the Lynx (WNBA) or Timberwolves (NBA) logo appears at midcourt.
One qualification to the claims made about the arenas listed above is that the photos and video screen-captures I was able to obtain on the web may not be from the most recent seasons. Thus, buildings that had near-identical WNBA and NBA floors at one time may no longer have such similar layouts.
In doing research for this posting, I was surprised to learn that one of the most historically successful WNBA franchises, the Houston Comets, had suspended operations for 2009. For what it's worth, the Toyota Center's hardwood for Comet games looks like it was very similar to the Rockets' court.
In upcoming postings, we'll look at arenas where the home city's WNBA and NBA teams have different court designs.
Of the 10 situations where a WNBA team shares an arena with an NBA team, I find it of interest to look at how similar or different the floor designs are for the two teams. Each within-city pair has the same (or similar) team colors, so the potential is there for the WNBA and NBA floors to be extremely similar in many cities. As shown below, there appear to be four cities in which the WNBA and NBA floors are virtually identical, except for the center logo (and the three-point line). You can click on the photo montage to enlarge it.
From top to bottom:
*The floor at Detroit's Palace of Auburn Hills is the same, except for whether the Shock (WNBA) or Pistons (NBA) logo is at center court.
*The floor at San Antonio's AT&T Center is the same, except for whether the Silver Stars (WNBA) or Spurs (NBA) logo is at center court.
*The floor at Sacramento's Arco Arena is the same, except for whether the Kings (NBA) or Monarchs (WNBA) logo appears at midcourt.
*The floor at Minneapolis's Target Center is the same, except for whether the Lynx (WNBA) or Timberwolves (NBA) logo appears at midcourt.
One qualification to the claims made about the arenas listed above is that the photos and video screen-captures I was able to obtain on the web may not be from the most recent seasons. Thus, buildings that had near-identical WNBA and NBA floors at one time may no longer have such similar layouts.
In doing research for this posting, I was surprised to learn that one of the most historically successful WNBA franchises, the Houston Comets, had suspended operations for 2009. For what it's worth, the Toyota Center's hardwood for Comet games looks like it was very similar to the Rockets' court.
In upcoming postings, we'll look at arenas where the home city's WNBA and NBA teams have different court designs.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Special Court Design for NBA Finals
Now that the NBA finals match-up between the L.A. Lakers and Orlando Magic (set to begin next Thursday) is set, let's take a look at special floor designs for the finals. As seen in the montage below (which you may click to enlarge), the design for the last few years has been to have some type of large center-court image depicting the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy.
Will the league do something different this year or continue with the trophy?
(Sources: here, here, and here; for videos, I froze the frame and then took screen captures.)
Will the league do something different this year or continue with the trophy?
(Sources: here, here, and here; for videos, I froze the frame and then took screen captures.)
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Finally Some Creativity -- Women's Final Four
I like the floor for the NCAA women's Final Four from St. Louis, with a huge arch superimposed over the entire court. Compared to the boring uniformity of the NCAA men's courts (as discussed in the threads below), the women's court reflects some imagination. With the opening semifinal between Louisville and Oklahoma having ended, I was able to get a screenshot from the archived video on ESPN360.com.
UPDATE: Here are the two courts asked for in the first comment, the "grapefruit" and "guitar" courts (sources: here and here).
UPDATE: Here are the two courts asked for in the first comment, the "grapefruit" and "guitar" courts (sources: here and here).
Monday, March 30, 2009
Down Memory Lane at the Final Four
In this week leading up to the men's (and women's) Final Four extravaganza, I thought it would be fun to review previous courts designed specially for the Final Four. The NCAA has a number of two-minute highlight videos up on YouTube from previous Final Fours, each of which provides information on how to purchase the full-length version. I took screenshots of freeze-frames of selected NCAA men's championship games, for the purpose of studying the patterns of floor designs. You can find these highlight videos by going to YouTube and typing in key terms for a given year's final, such as: 1985 Villanova Georgetown.
The earliest case I could find of a major location-specific logo gracing center court was at the 1986 Final Four in Dallas, Texas. It is shown in the montage below (upper-left), which you can click on to enlarge.
In 1983, the University of New Mexico appears to have used its regular floor to host the Final Four, with the slight exception of a small circular NCAA logo in the middle of the center circle (upper- and center-right of montage). For the 50th Final Four in 1988, held in Kansas City, a special "50" logo was used (lower right). Finally, the lower left shows the 2001 floor, whose only distinction in my mind is its ugliness.
The last three years are shown below, giving us a pretty good idea of what this weekend's court is going to look like...
The earliest case I could find of a major location-specific logo gracing center court was at the 1986 Final Four in Dallas, Texas. It is shown in the montage below (upper-left), which you can click on to enlarge.
In 1983, the University of New Mexico appears to have used its regular floor to host the Final Four, with the slight exception of a small circular NCAA logo in the middle of the center circle (upper- and center-right of montage). For the 50th Final Four in 1988, held in Kansas City, a special "50" logo was used (lower right). Finally, the lower left shows the 2001 floor, whose only distinction in my mind is its ugliness.
The last three years are shown below, giving us a pretty good idea of what this weekend's court is going to look like...
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