See the new Mystics jerseys for the 2021 season originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
There are new jerseys coming this season for the Mystics and the rest of the WNBA in 2021.
On Thursday, the WNBA and Nike unveiled the new line of uniforms for the upcoming season. Each team will have three different types of jerseys: the Heroine Edition and Explorer Edition (similar to the older jerseys with a home and away set), as well as the much anticipated ‘Rebel Series’ that is unique to each team.
“The basketball uniform is an important representation of the brand of WNBA players and teams, and a point of pride for fans,” WNBA Commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a statement. “In partnership with Nike, unveiling new and exciting adaptations of the WNBA uniforms is a dynamic way to build on the foundation of the league’s first 25 years.”
For the Mystics, their Heroine Edition and Explorer Edition are revamped versions of older jerseys the team used to wear. Both are similar to what the team wore in 2013 when head coach and general manager Mike Thibault first arrived with the franchise.
The new Mystics Nike Rebel Edition uniform seeks to echo the historic moments for gender, racial and LGBTQ+ equality voiced throughout the team’s history and the District’s. Celebrating women’s suffrage is a huge component of the jersey. Etched in the beige trim around the jersey is the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution which gave women the right to vote in 1920.
The trim also represents a familiar march path through D.C. that numerous advocacy groups have taken throughout Washington’s history.
Nike first partnered with the WNBA to make the league’s jerseys in 2018. This is the third rendition of the jerseys since taking over. Athlete’s numbers will return to the front of the jersey, after exclusively being on the back the past two seasons.
For more on the Mystics new jerseys, visit MysticsRise.com
“Twenty-five years ago, the WNBA was a league that none of us knew was possible,” said Sonja Henning, Nike’s VP of North America League Partnerships. “Today, we’re in an empowering moment for women’s basketball players, but also for female and non-binary athletes across all sports. I can’t wait for what the next 25 years hold.”