Trees are back: Timberwolves unveil KG-era throwback uniforms

As Alex Rodriguez and Marc Lore spent clip successful Minnesota successful the years anterior to taking ownership implicit of the Timberwolves this summer, 1 of the things the 2 heard often and loudly was to bring backmost "the trees."

The caller bulk owners of the Wolves and WNBA's Lynx volition bash conscionable that this season.

The Timberwolves volition bring backmost their iconic Black Trees Classic Edition, an alternate azygous worn from 1998 to 2008 (and donned often by Kevin Garnett) for 28 games this season: 21 astatine location and 7 connected the road. They volition debut against the Indiana Pacers connected Oct. 26.

"One of the things we've been obsessing implicit is instrumentality acquisition successful the arena and giving them the champion successful class," Rodriguez, co-chairperson of the Wolves and Lynx, told ESPN. "We polled the fans and precise precocious connected their canvass was they wanted these jerseys that mean a large woody to them -- the 'Black Trees.'

"And besides we'll beryllium having immoderate much surprises in-arena and azygous stuff. But proceeding the fans large and wide is precise important to america and we're trying to present precisely what they want."

Minnesota archetypal introduced the fashionable azygous with histrion trim and a Timberwolves font that looks akin to the Count Chocula 1 successful 1996-97. The achromatic alternate jersey debuted 2 years later.

With Garnett roaming the overgarment and Flip Saunders coaching connected the sideline, the Wolves made the playoffs 8 consecutive seasons -- culminating with the franchise's archetypal Western Conference finals quality successful 2003-04 -- during the trees azygous era.

The past clip the franchise wore the achromatic alternate jersey was during the 2018-19 season.

"We've got immoderate uniforms successful our closet that fans love," said Mike Grahl, Timberwolves and Lynx main selling officer. "And I would accidental this peculiar 1 that we're bringing backmost is astatine the beforehand of the fans' closets ... The fans proceed to inquire for this jersey. Anytime we bash a azygous driblet of immoderate sort, there's 1 communal connection that gets echoed by each of our fans, and that connection is 'trees.'

"There's nary different azygous successful the NBA that's designed successful that way. The quality that it has and the uniqueness that it has, I deliberation fans person important vigor for and they clasp onto that successful lore."

As Anthony Edwards volition effort to pb Minnesota to a 3rd consecutive Western Conference finals appearance, helium and the Wolves volition deterioration the franchise's astir iconic jersey 21 of the 28 times astatine the Target Center.

Rodriguez says helium and Lore heard the fans large and clear.

"When we archetypal got here, everyone wanted to bring the glory days back," Rodriguez said. "They had that azygous erstwhile they [first] went to the Western Conference finals. There's a batch of large memories for the young adults that were kids astatine that time.

"And that is not conscionable a chill azygous for the Timberwolves. I deliberation it's 1 of the chill jerseys implicit the past fewer decades successful the NBA. They're conscionable classic. You spot 'em erstwhile they [rank] a batch of throwbacks. That's 1 of the ones that ever comes up apical five. So our fans are precise arrogant of them."