- Russell Westbrook showed the NBA how grey uniforms could lead to bad turnovers on Sunday.
- Westbrook and the Wizards were wearing grey jerseys on Sunday, similar to the referee uniform color.
- Westbrook threw the ball out of bounds mistakenly thinking the referee was his teammate.
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Russell Westbrook showed the NBA just how confusing grey uniforms can be for players.
The Washington Wizards star point guard and his teammates donned their grey road jerseys for their first playoff game against the Philadelphia 76ers at the Wells Fargo Center on Sunday.
The problem was that the Wizards' grey jerseys are the same color as the referees' collard shirts. The similar color scheme caused Westbrook to commit a costly turnover when he mistook one of the sideline referees for a Wizards teammate, prompting him to throw the ball out of bounds.
-Wes Brown (@W_Brown21) May 23, 2021
The Premier League and other soccer leagues in Europe have managed to avoid this problem with a simple solution. Their referees change their uniform color based on the color of the team's jerseys they are officiating on any given match day.
Washington's grey uniforms were introduced as the team's City Edition uniforms this year and were influenced by the fan-favorite Stars and Stripes jersey from the 2016-17 season. The uniform was initially branded as silver rather than grey. However, Westbrook's mistake is evidence that the jerseys were much closer to the grey shades of NBA referee uniforms than silver.
The Wizards lost 125-118 to Philadelphia in Game 1, as the pass to the referee made a slight difference in the game's outcome but certainly didn't cost Washington a chance to win.
Westbrook had a double-double with 16 points and 14 assists, but the turnover was a dark spot on his performance.