Showtime is back.
The Los Angeles Lakers announced a redesigned look to their 2018-19 jerseys on Tuesday, marking the first overhaul of their iconic uniforms since they first moved into STAPLES Center almost 20 years ago.
Most notably, the team's primary "icon" yellow jersey gets purple numbering with a white drop shadow and purple-and-white trim around the edges, all of which were major features of the 1980s "Showtime" Lakers starring Magic Johnson.
Johnson, the hall-of-fame point guard, became the Lakers' president of basketball operations in 2017 and reportedly played a major role in signing superstar LeBron James to the Lakers on July 1.
The Lakers' white "icon" and purple "statement" jerseys have nearly identical designs with different coloring. The former has purple numbering with a yellow drop shadow and purple and yellow trim, while the latter has yellow numbering with a white drop shadow and yellow and white trim. The purple jersey also has black stripes going down its sides.
The Lakers' first look at the uniforms included several glimpses at the No. 23 jersey James will wear starting next season. A promotinal video narrated by forward Kyle Kuzma touched on the team's redesign going old school.
"Our history shaped our future, and our future reflects our history," Kuzma said in his voiceover. "Let the show begin."
James was not present to model his new jersey in person, having opened a brand new school in his hometown of Akron, Ohio Monday. Several of his teammates debuted their new looks, however, including Kuzma, Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram and Ivica Zubac.
However, James jerseys still flew off the shelves early Tuesday morning, with the Lakers' team store tweeting a picture of several customers with No. 23 "icon" style jerseys in hand.
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Lakers fan Patrick Terarutunyan said he canceled an online order so he could go to his local Dick's sporting goods and pick up a James jersey in the new style. Terarutunyan believes James is the best player in the NBA.
"The fact that he came to my favorite team... I can't wait to watch him every day on TV," Terarutunyan told NBC4.
Below is a more detailed look at the new Lakers jerseys that James and his teammates will wear next season.
