What if the Clippers did this re-brand in 1993?

A lot of things have gone wrong for the Clippers over the course of the history of the franchise. Things could have gone really bad in 1993, had the Clippers opted to change their look to this ...

According to SportsLogos.net, the Los Angeles Clippers came to NBA Creative Services in 1991, looking for a redesign. Tom O’Grady led the charge, along with his team of creatives at the NBA. Here’s what he had to say about making the design.

We felt the nautical theme the San Diego Clippers after moving from Buffalo really was less appropriate in LA. The surf and beach culture along Pacific Coast Highway 1 and that lifestyle inspired us to use a wave; a morphing of the Oakley and Cooper Tires logo…and the color palette of sea foam green, creamsicle orange, black and silver came together as a strong color palette for an LA team.

According to O’Grady, Clippers owner Donald Sterling signed off on the logo, saying it was a “Strong GO!” They got legal clearances, and the logo was put into production. As time passed, production on the uniforms was underway. Then, O’Grady got a call from Rick Welts, the NBA Properties President, saying Sterling wanted to back out of the change.

So, when it’s all said and done, Sterling is the reason this look never came into fruition. According to the article, there doesn’t appear to be any existing photos of the manufactured uniform prototypes. However, these samples were made to try and recreate what would have been.

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