HOUSTON – The Houston Rockets are set to debut a new look tomorrow, and it’s shaping up to be the franchise’s biggest brand overhaul in more than two decades.
On Wednesday morning, the Rockets posted a promotional video across their social media channels teasing the upcoming jersey reveal.
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The video, set in the fictional “Rudy T’s Diner,” featured numerous references to Rockets history and hints about the team’s unrevealed new look.
Ketchup and mustard are back on the menu! 🔴🟡
— Houston Rockets (@HoustonRockets) June 3, 2026
Reservations open June 4. pic.twitter.com/DhCkLQLeIV
The promo also included cameos from Rockets legends Hakeem Olajuwon, Rudy Tomjanovich, and Calvin Murphy, along with Houston celebrities Slim Thug and Mo Amer.
The biggest clue fans have received so far is confirmation that gold will be incorporated into the new uniforms and possibly the team’s logo.
If so, it would mark the first time gold has appeared on a primary Rockets uniform since the 1994-95 season.
Rockets Uniform History
San Diego Green-and-Gold Era (1967-71)
Before the franchise arrived in Houston, the San Diego Rockets wore green as their primary color and gold as a secondary accent. Their uniforms featured green and white jerseys with gold numbering and striping.
While the team made minor adjustments to the numbers and piping during its six seasons in San Diego, the overall look remained largely unchanged.
Houston Arrival: Red Replaces Green (1971-75)
When the Rockets relocated to Houston, the overall uniform design stayed mostly intact, but the color scheme underwent a dramatic change.
The team replaced green with red, creating a look that featured red and white jerseys accented with gold numbering and striping.
The Championship Era (1975-95)
This is where the Rockets established one of the most recognizable looks in franchise history.
In 1975, the team reduced the use of gold, opting instead for white lettering and numbering with subtle gold piping along the seams. They also introduced their iconic red-and-gold logo on the shorts.
These uniforms became synonymous with Rockets greatness.
When fans think of Hakeem Olajuwon, Clyde Drexler, and the franchise’s back-to-back NBA championships, these are often the jerseys that come to mind.
A Bold Departure (1995-2002)
Following their second consecutive championship, the Rockets completely reinvented their visual identity.
Gold was eliminated entirely, and the team shifted from its traditional red-heavy look to navy blue uniforms with vertical pinstripes.
The Rockets also unveiled a dramatic new logo featuring a red basketball wrapped by a light-blue rocket and a large “ROCKETS” wordmark.
Rather than the traditional centered team name and number, the logo was placed prominently on the chest, with a beveled jersey number positioned near the right shoulder.
At the time, the redesign was polarizing among fans. However, the team’s pinstripe throwback uniforms introduced in recent years were met with widespread praise, suggesting opinions on the era may have softened over time.
The Modern Era (2003-19)
If there was any indication the pinstripe era failed to resonate long-term, it was how quickly the Rockets moved on.
The franchise abandoned the navy-blue color scheme, pinstripes, and unconventional numbering system in favor of a cleaner, more traditional look.
A new logo was introduced, featuring the now-familiar “R” designed to resemble both a rocket and a basketball hoop.
Red and white once again became the primary colors, while gray was introduced as a secondary accent.
Although the team made minor tweaks to striping and trim over the years, the core design remained consistent for more than a decade and a half. This era featured stars such as Yao Ming, Tracy McGrady, and James Harden.
Like many NBA franchises, the Rockets also experimented with alternate uniforms during this period.
Gold accents returned for the first time since the Olajuwon era on several alternate designs between 2009 and 2014.
The team also introduced black and gray alternates and several uniforms featuring Chinese characters, paying tribute to Houston’s popularity in China following Yao Ming’s arrival.
The Current Look (2019-Present)
Compared to previous overhauls, the Rockets’ most recent rebrand was relatively modest.
The team retained its traditional red and white primary uniforms but replaced gray accents with black. The lettering was also redesigned, moving away from the thinner font style used during the previous era in favor of a larger, bolder look.
The Rockets also embraced more creative alternate uniforms.
Several featured “H-Town” across the chest, marking one of the first times the team prominently incorporated Houston’s popular nickname into its on-court identity.
In recent years, the franchise has continued to experiment with throwbacks and alternate concepts, including an Oilers-inspired blue uniform in 2020, a return of the beloved pinstripe design in 2022, and the introduction of the “Dunkstronaut” logo in 2023 — an astronaut soaring through the air for a slam dunk.
What’s Next?
With gold officially returning to the Rockets’ color palette and a full redesign expected, tomorrow’s reveal could mark the beginning of a new visual era for the franchise.
Whether the new look draws inspiration from the championship years, the franchise’s San Diego roots, or something entirely new, Rockets fans won’t have to wait much longer to find out.