Raptors unveil awesome new black and gold 2021 City Edition jersey

The Toronto Raptors have really leaned into their partnership with Drake when it comes to designing alternate uniforms, as they seem to have a new black and gold set of threats every season. The Raptors City Edition jersey for 2021 was no exception though it appears Toronto may have created their best effort to date.

The NBA appeared to lean on a “Mixtape” theme when creating their new jerseys for their 75th Anniversary season, as several new uniforms appear to meld elements from different eras of their respective team’s histories. Toronto might be one of the youngest teams in the league, but they still managed to balance old-school and new-school perfectly.

The Raptors needed to find a way to blend their newer, more subdued jerseys with the 90s-influenced look that sported an unmistakable font and giant dinosaur on the front. Toronto’s collection of designers deserve an A+ for their effort this season, as this franchise might have the coolest mixtape jersey in the league.

The Raptors’ City Edition jersey featured the old-school font and jagged pinstripes, all while bringing back the dinosaur and putting it front and center. If you look closely, you’ll see that the dino is wearing the same “North” jersey that Toronto had on when they clinched the franchise’s first-ever championship.

Details like that earn you the highest marks possible.

The 2021 Toronto Raptors City Edition jersey is awesome.

This is a much better effort from the gold uni they unveiled last year in Tampa. On top of the fact they lost all six games in which they wore it, the only innovation was the claw marks on the shorts, and it seemed like the franchise was running out of ideas for gold jerseys.

They have since corrected whatever errors they made in the past, as they took all of the best elements from the 90s jerseys and still made it look fresh and new. The old “TR” on the pants along with the new raptor claw basketball logo and maple leaf perfectly blend these 2 eras in franchise history.

The Raptors have long been one of the most fashionable teams in the league, and this new look is clearly better than what they unveiled last season. Perhaps I’m a sucker for the dinosaur on the front of the jersey, but this is a home run.

While looking good is certainly a bonus, we’re not on a runway in Milan. We’re in the NBA. Let’s just hope these jerseys bring more winning mojo to the team than the last gold and black uniforms did.