Rockets debut 3 new alternate jerseys to be rolled out over next two seasons

Last night, along with a touching tribute to Rockets and NBA great Moses Malone and a thrilling season preview video, Sam Dekker, Donatas Motiejunas, Dwight Howard, and the Rockets revealed three brand new uniforms to be introduced as alternate jerseys for the next two seasons. Unfortunately, the best of those won't be seen in action until the 2016-2017 season.

The Good

(credit: Houston Rockets)

I won't lie: I didn't know I wanted a black jersey until they rolled this out. For one, I'm glad to know that it doesn't have sleeves, which is a large part of why it's probably my favorite of the new three. However, I also appreciate the general simplicity of the uniform, save for the grey-checkered stripe on either side. I like the "R" being used at the end of the V-Neck collar, and the same logo making a bigger appearance on the almost completely black shorts. I like the font in which HOUSTON is written on the front. I think this is a good jersey, and I wasn't the only one. The general reception on these was pretty positive, especially amongst Rockets fans, clamoring for these to debut in the upcoming season as opposed to the next. I'd be interested to see if the Rockets general style begins to shift towards this over the next few years.

The Not That Bad

(credit: Houston Rockets)

If only the sleeves weren't there...

Look, I love this jersey. I love that it says CLUTCH CITY. I love that the font is the same that was used on the '94 and '95 championship teams' jerseys. I love that it's basically just an improved version of the underrated Ketchup and Mustard alternates we've all come to know and love. But, I just hate hate hate the sleeves. Is that going to stop me from buying one? Absolutely not, but not everyone was as enthusiastic as me.

Sportscenter anchor and noted Houston sports czar Robert Flores tweeted, "I'm not a fan. I like the ‘Clutch City' idea. Not sure why they're wearing 49ers colors." In the same vein, if harsher, HP Basketball called for the jersey to be "burned in a field with a hazmat perimeter." This echoed a lot of the reception around this jersey, but I disagree with these people and I am willing to tell them that they are wrong.

Either way, we will see these for the first time on November 14 at the Toyota Center against the Dallas Mavericks.

The Actually Ugly

(credit: Houston Rockets)

Ugh. What're we thinking here guys? We talked briefly about the leak of these jerseys in July here on TDS, but we were all so focused on how great the idea was for a Clutch City jersey that we didn't even consider this disaster.

Not only does this jersey have sleeves, but it also hardly has any red, and where there is red, you can't even really tell due to the endless ocean of blandness that is the grey with a black accent. The only attempt to not drown in this unforgiving sea is the black and white checkered racing stripe on the sides and we have somehow entered a whole new territory of worse. These belong in that hazmat perimeter if you ask me.

It didn't seem like anyone was a fan of these, but, again, they were not the focus due to the Clutch City jerseys. I expect after these get worn once or twice, people will start asking questions, and they will not see that much daylight in the future.

These will first be unleashed upon the Memphis Grizzles on November 25.

The black alternate is not yet available, but you can purchase the other two new jerseys here.