NBA Teams Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with Green Uniforms: Knicks, Bulls, Celtics, and Raptors Participate
St. Patrick’s Day has arrived, featuring eight games across the NBA, and one notable change persists for another year — the absence of holiday-themed uniforms.
During the league’s uniform collaboration with Adidas, a select number of teams annually donned special green uniforms on St. Patrick’s Day. The Chicago Bulls, New York Knicks, and Boston Celtics were regular participants and initiated the trend in the mid-2000s.
However, akin to the special Christmas Day uniforms, this initiative concluded when Nike became the NBA’s uniform provider prior to the 2017-18 season and implemented the current “Edition” system for uniforms. Consequently, greater focus shifted to the annual City Edition program rather than unique holiday uniforms. The NBA and WNBA finalized a 12-year contract extension with Nike in 2024.
In light of the absence of festive uniforms this season, we reflect on notable St. Patrick’s Day jerseys from previous years.
New York Knicks
How lucky was the look? 3-3 overall record in St. Patrick’s Day uniforms
New York explored its uniform collection each St. Patrick’s Day with an all-green design featuring orange and black accents. The Knicks first showcased these uniforms against the Detroit Pistons on March 17, 2006, and it proved to be fortuitous.
With 18 points contributed off the bench by Jamal Crawford, the Knicks triumphed over the Eastern Conference-leading Pistons 105-103.
New York last sported the green uniforms during the 2011-12 season, achieving a victory against the Indiana Pacers.
Chicago Bulls
How lucky was the look? 4-6 overall record in St. Patrick’s Day uniforms
The Bulls transitioned from red to green for a look that likely required some adjustment for dedicated fans. Although the uniform was entirely green, the bull logo on the shorts and back of the jersey retained its traditional black and red colors.
Chicago first donned the uniforms against the Miami Heat in an 85-84 defeat on March 18, 2006, the day following the holiday. The Bulls continued to wear the uniforms each year until the 2016-17 season, except for the 2015-16 campaign.
Boston Celtics
How lucky was the look? 4-4 overall record in St. Patrick’s Day uniforms
Green is already the primary color for the Celtics, but they too received a stylish update ahead of St. Patrick’s Day 2006. The numbers and “Celtics” wordmark were changed to gold, complemented by similar color trim on the shorts and jersey. This uniform set underwent a minor adjustment for the 2013-14 season with a short-sleeve variant.
Like the Bulls, Boston wore the special uniforms until the 2017-18 season.
Toronto Raptors
How lucky was the look? 1-4 overall record in St. Patrick’s Day uniforms
Toronto joined the holiday tradition on St. Patrick’s Day 2008, unveiling a clean design in a road loss to the Utah Jazz. The Raptors continued to wear this look for the next four seasons.
Their sole victory occurred when Chris Bosh made the decisive jump shot with two seconds remaining against the Atlanta Hawks in 2010, his final season in Toronto.
