Sixers unveil new City Edition uniforms for 2020-21

Ben Simmons played a key role in Philadelphia developing its 2020-21 City Edition uniforms.

Philadelphia’s connection with the city’s rich history continues with its new City Edition uniform for the 2020-21 season.

The team announced Tuesday that the new uniforms will have a black primary color, which is the first black uniform for the team since the 2008-09 season. It will also tie in red, white and blue along the edges of the uniform’s top and on the waistband of the shorts. The word “Philadelphia” is printed in white with a blue drop shadow on the front of the uniform.

2020-21 City Edition

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Presented by @StubHub pic.twitter.com/nyE3gIuyZc

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) November 10, 2020

As for the ties to Philadelphia’s history, the uniform features imagery of the city’s Boathouse Row, which is above the Philadelphia wording. Boathouse Row is an iconic U.S. Historic National Landmark that runs along the Schuylkill River, just west of the Philadelphia Museum of Art.

The teams says the overall uniform design is inspired by the “one-of-a-kind Philadelphia view Boathouse Row provides at night.” Following the United States’ bicentennial, each boathouse was lined with lights in the late 1970s, which reflect each evening on the river, creating the visual mimicked on the uniform.

The seal of approval. pic.twitter.com/TfjZn5ybNO

— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) November 10, 2020

Sixers star guard Ben Simmons had a hand in designing the new City Edition uniforms. The Sixers say Simmons asked Chris Heck, the team’s president, to develop a black uniform. Heck offered Simmons a deal: win 2017-18 Kia Rookie of the Year and he’d be included in the uniform-design process. Simmons did exactly that in 2017-18 and became “an integral part of the design’s development,” the team says.

“We love telling stories through the 76ers brand, specifically of our great city and always honoring our history,” Heck said in a statement released by the team. “This year, we celebrate our city edition uniform by blending the old and the new specifically for the greatest fans in the world to enjoy.”