Rockets Will Wear Special Chinese Sleeved Alt Jersey This Season

After the Warriors and Magic both unveiled brand new sleeved alternate jerseys for the upcoming season, a third team decided to join in on the fun, and that team is the Houston Rockets. However, their jersey will definitely be one of the more unique offerings in the league this season, one that their Chinese fans will definitely appreciate.

The team has had a strong connection to China ever since Yao Ming’s rise to prominence as the team’s starting center. They’ve tried their best to keep that connection, and with this new alternate jersey, it appears that the link is still a clear and close one. The Rockets-centric website clutchfans.com has blessed the internet with this image of Dwight Howard wearing a red sleeved jersey with Mandarin characters where the Rockets wordmark would normally be.

houston-rockets-chinese-jersey — Obvious h/t to clutchfans.net

From the clutchfans report:

It is not true that the Rockets will get a brand new official alternate jersey this season, but they will unveil a new jersey just the same. The Rockets will wear a Chinese jersey this season to celebrate Lunar New Year, a source confirmed.
The team will wear the jersey for three straight home games, starting with the February 21st contest against Kyle Lowry and the Toronto Raptors.

The alternate jersey that they were referring to was a rumored “Clutch City” Pride alternate and maybe a couple more alts as well. Apparently that will be coming for next season and the season after that, but for now, Rockets fans will get to enjoy seeing their team take to the court wearing Mandarin on their chest! With the Warriors claiming that their sleeved jersey is the first “Slate-“colored jersey in the NBA and now the Rockets doing this, it’s clear that teams in the NBA (or at least adidas) are really trying to push the envelope now.

So, what do you think? Aside from the Mandarin, it’s one of the more tame sleeved jersey designs? Would you pick up a jersey or no?