MEMPHIS, January 26, 2012 — The Grizzlies, along with the NBA and adidas, will celebrate the 45th anniversary of the American Basketball Association’s (ABA) founding with a series of games during NBA Hardwood Classics Month. They will wear uniforms to commemorate the Mid-South’s tenure in the ABA when they were known as the Memphis Tams (acronym standing for Tennessee, Arkansas and Mississippi).
The Grizzlies will tip-off the NBA’s Hardwood Classics’ series as they debut the Tams green and gold uniforms tonight on national television when they face the L.A. Clippers, wearing the L.A. Stars uniforms in Los Angeles, at 9:30 p.m. on TNT. The Grizzlies will then unveil these uniforms at home Sunday, February 12 at 8:30 p.m. against the Utah Jazz at FedExForum, when they will give away Memphis Tams Tam o’ Shanter hats to the first 5,000 fans in attendance. Memphis will also don their throwback uniforms four other times: on the road Feb. 15 at New Jersey Nets; and at home in Memphis, Feb. 18 vs. Golden State Warriors, Feb. 29 vs. Dallas Mavericks and March 16 vs. Toronto Raptors.
Memphis Tams jerseys will be available for purchase starting tonight online at grizzliesstore.com and tomorrow morning at 10 a.m. at the Grizzlies Team Store at FedExForum. Fans are encouraged to check grizzliesstore.com in the coming weeks for more Tams merchandise.
Eight other teams—the Charlotte Bobcats, Denver Nuggets, Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Clippers, Miami Heat, Minnesota Timberwolves, New Jersey Nets and San Antonio Spurs—will recognize the anniversary by wearing commemorative uniforms and hosting special in-arena events.
The uniforms, made in conjunction with adidas, the league’s official outfitter, will feature designs from the team’s storied past or as originally worn by the former ABA franchises in their geographic region—Charlotte Bobcats (Carolina Cougars), Los Angeles Clippers (Los Angeles Stars), Memphis Grizzlies (Memphis Tams), Miami Heat (Miami Floridians), Minnesota Timberwolves (Minnesota Muskies), New Jersey Nets (New York Nets) and San Antonio Spurs (Texas Chaparrals).
NBA Hardwood Classics Month will run through the month of March and will feature 38 games with six televised nationally on ABC, ESPN, TNT and NBA TV. All jerseys will be available on NBAStore.com on Feb. 2.