Los Angeles Lakers Logo PNG
One of the most known basketball teams in the US, the Los Angeles Lakers boast 16 victories in NBA championships. It is a professional team participating in the league’s Western Conference Pacific Division. Their home games are played at Staples Center. In 2015 Forbes named the LA Lakers the 2nd most valuable brand in the NBA.
Meaning and history
The team was created in 1947 by Ben Berger and Morris Chalfen out of what remained from the Detroit Gems. The Los Angeles Lakers logo has undergone quite a few alterations throughout the brand’s history.
What is Lakers?
Lakers is the short name of the Los Angeles Lakers, the legendary professional basketball club, based in California. The team was established in 1947 and has been taking the leading position in the NBA line-up throughout the years. Lakers have Crypto Com Arena as its home base and Darvin Ham as the head coach.
1947 — 1960
The first version of the emblem was created in 1947, when the team was based in Minneapolis and was called Minneapolis Lakers. The earliest Lakers emblem featured a white map of its home state, Minnesota, on a brown and black outline basketball. A yellow star was placed near the place on the map where Minneapolis is located. Also, there was a wordmark “MPLS.” with a star at the beginning and at the end.
1960 — 1967
In 1960, when the team moved from Minneapolis to Los Angeles, the need for a new logo arose. By the next year an all-new emblem was created. It comprised the words “Lakers” and “Los Angeles” written in red purple over a gold basketball. This was the first time when the characteristic streaks appeared in the logo.
1967 — 1976
The emblem, used by the Lakers from 1967 to 1976 featured a green image of the basketball with an italicized purple inscription written over it. It was the prototype of the logo which by today has become iconic and recognizable all over the globe, though the color palette and lines of the elements needed deep modifications.
1976 — 2001
In 1976/77 the Lakers symbol was given a facelift. The ball acquired a black outline, which made the design clearer. Also, the hues were slightly modified. The gold of the basketball moved closer to yellow, while the red purple was replaced by a light purple lilac.
2001 — Today
The wordmark “Los Angeles Lakers” in dark purple is the visual center of the emblem. It is placed on top of a gold basketball. For the outline, designers chose the black color. In comparison with the previous version, colors are stronger, making the emblem stand out. However, the shape of the wordmark and the basketball is exactly the same.
Font
The wordmark has peculiar stretched lines symbolizing the speed of the players. This visual element was first used in 1960, in the earliest version of the LA emblem.
Colors
The current logo comprises all the three team’s colors: purple, gold and white. There’s also a touch of black adding to the visual harmony. The Lakers opted for this color scheme, which is also used in their uniform, in the late 60’s. There were only minor alterations of the hues since then.
LAKERS PURPLE
PANTONE: PMS 526 C
HEX COLOR: #552583;
RGB: (85, 37, 130)
CMYK: (79, 100, 0, 12)
GOLD
PANTONE: PMS 123 C
HEX COLOR: #FDB927;
RGB: (253, 185, 39)
CMYK: (0, 30, 94, 0)
BLACK
PANTONE: PMS PROCESS BLACK C
HEX COLOR: #000000;
RGB: (6, 25, 34)
CMYK: (30, 0, 0, 100)
What is the LA Lakers logo?
The Los Angeles Lakers logo is composed of a dark yellow image of a ball, overlapped by stylized slanted lettering in a classy custom serif font. The purple inscription is set in two levels with clean distinctive contours decorated by thin and short horizontal strokes, coming out of them and adding a sense of speed and motion.
Why are the Lakers logo purple and gold?
The color palette of the LA Lakers’ visual identity is composed of purple and gold, which is a bright and powerful combination, making up a unique look of the badge, and distinguishing the club from its competitors. This palette was adopted by the Lakers at the beginning of the 1960s, and it was inspired by the sunset landscapes of Los Angeles.
What are the Los Angeles Lakers’ colors?
The official colors of the Los Angeles Lakers club are gold, purple and black, the deep, intense and powerful shades, which symbolize strength, determination, timelessness, and style. The club has been loyal to its palette for decades, as the official tricolor was adopted in 1960.
What shade of yellow is used in the LA Lakers logo?
The yellow, used in the LA Lakers’ visual identity, is intense and calm, close to a gold-sand hue, which looks very confident and evokes a sense of strength and energy. On the Pantone grid, the Lakers Yellow is PMS 123 C, as for the Hex grade, the shade has a number #FDB927.
