Looking Back at NBA Throwback Teams

 

In honor of the popular social media tradition #ThrowbackThursday, today, we take a look at some older NBA teams who no longer exist due to re-branding or relocation.

Seattle Super Sonics

The Sonics are last on the list because they are one of the most impact franchise relocations of all time, given that they won the NBA finals in 1979. Most franchises re-locate due to poor attendance and fan support. But the Sonics move was related to the lack of a new arena and also an owner who bought the team with the sole purpose of moving them to his home town of Oklahoma City. The Sonics lasted from 1967-2008. They won one championship and lost two others. The Sonics have the most successful history of any team on this list.  

Throwback meter – 10 – People still yearn from Seattle to get an expansion team and many expect that one day the Sonics will return, which will make their gear even more valuable. Also, because they were so successful, there is a lot of stuff to go around, especially since Kevin Durant played his rookie season in Seattle. That’s always been a popular jersey.

Vancouver Grizzlies

 

The Grizzlies lasted six seasons in Vancouver, Canada. In that time they played a total of 460 games and won just 101 of them. Their cumulative average record is 17-60 (not exactly 82 because lottery shortened 1999 impacts the math). Five of those six seasons ended with the Grizzlies finishing last in their division and their best season was their last in Canada, when they won 23 games in 2001.

Following that season, and an absolutely disastrous run, the franchise was sold and moved to Memphis. Other relocation options at the time included St. Louis, Nashville, Las Vegas, New Orleans, and Louisville (amongst others). The Grizzlies have had a really impressive run in Memphis.From 2010-2017, the Grizzlies made the playoffs all 7 years including a run to the western conference finals. They are currently one of 7 franchises to never play in an NBA finals.  

Throwback apparel meter: 8.5 – The only memory remaining of the Grizzlies is the highly acclaimed throwback jersey. One of these days I will buy the Mike Bibby teal jersey.

Charlotte Bobcats

In 2002 the Charlotte Hornets relocated to New Orleans, and kept the Hornets name (until later). In 2004 the NBA, realizing the mistake they made, brought an expansion team to the city.  Inaugural owner Bob Johnson named the team after himself – the Bobcats. The Bobcats name lasted 10 years (2004-2014) and the team saw the playoffs just twice, getting swept both times. Their average record over this time was 29-51.

In 2015, with new owner Michael Jordan now running things, the team re-branded back to the Hornets. As mentioned, the New Orleans franchise kept the Hornets name until 2015 when they became known as the Pelicans, in honor of Louisiana’s state bird. This allowed Charlotte to reclaim the Hornets name, branding, and history. Very little references to the Bobcats remains, given their lack of success during that time period.  

Throwback meter – 4 – As someone who recently purchased a Raymond Felton Bobcats jersey, it’s 50/50 on it’s appeal. Some people find it fascinating, others find it pointless.

Washington Bullets

The Bullets inclusion on this list is strictly personal. Before the Washington Wizards existed beginning in 1997, the Washington DC franchise was known as the Bullets. Obviously, the negative connotation led to the name change but their time ranged from 1974-1997 and included 13 total playoff appearances, including a 1-2 NBA finals record (won the 1978 championship over the Sonics – whose next on this list). In ’75 they lost to the Warriors (go figure) and ’79 lost to the Sonics. From 1984-1997 they lost all 6 playoff series they played in.

The reason the Bullets make the list though is because I had the pleasure of being their ball boy back in 1994 and I met 7’7 center Gheorghe Muresan. Great memories.  

Throwback meter – 0. No one wants to own a shirt that says Bullets (does anyone want to own one that says Wizards though?)

Other teams that deserve recognition:

• Before the Sonics became the Thunder, the Hornets, after being displaced by Hurricane Katrina, spent a year in Oklahoma City for the 2005-06 season, before returning to New Orleans full-time. This temporary move opened the door for OKC as a relocation option
• The NBA’s version of the New Jersey Nets existed from 1997-2012, before moving to Brooklyn. The Nets had a great two year run, where they made back-to-back NBA finals appearances in 2002 and 2003, but other than that spent much of their time in NJ in the shadow of the Knicks.
• The Clippers played in San Diego from 1978-1984. The Buffalo Braves, moved to San Diego and became the Clippers. Poor play, disinterested ownership and awful fan support (4500 average attendance final year) led to the team being sold and moved to Los Angeles.
• The Cincinnati Royals are a personal favorite of mine. They existed from 1957-1972 and are best known for the fact that legendary Oscar Robertson played for them. Other than that, there run was rather uneventful and is simply a footnote in the Sacramento Kings lineage. The Royals would move to Kansas City (renamed the Kings) before finding a permanent home in Sacramento in 1985.