Cavs’ Throwback Uniforms Scheduled for Return Against Detroit

Cleveland wore navy twice in their opening round series with Toronto.

Apr 20, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard James Harden (1) celebrates after a three point basket during he second half during game two of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs against the Toronto Raptors at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Dermer-Imagn Images | David Dermer-Imagn Images

For better or worse, the Cleveland Cavaliers will be back in black for their Second-Round playoff series versus Detroit.

Cleveland, who wore their black ‘Statement Edition’ uniforms in back-to-back games (Game 6 and Game 7) against Toronto, will once again don the black threads when they tipoff against the Pistons for Game 1 on Tuesday night.

It’s a familiar look for Cleveland who wore their black uniforms more often than any other uniform (three times) across their seven-game series with Toronto. In those three games the Cavs went 1-2. That lone win, however, was the series-clinching Game 7 at home.

Cleveland wore their white ‘Association Edition’ uniforms in Game 3 (a loss) and Game 5 (a win). As of Monday, they are not slated to wear white uniforms versus Detroit. At least not in the series’ first four games.

Game 2 will mirror Game 1, in that the Wine & Gold will wear… neither wine nor gold. They’ll again be in black. Games 3 and 4, both in Cleveland, will see the Cavs return to their fan-favorite navy ‘Classic Edition’ threads. Thus far this postseason, the Cavs are 2-0 when wearing the uniforms that made their debut during the first LeBron James Cleveland stint in the mid-2000s.

Cavs’ first four uniforms are set

Considering the Cavs – Pistons series is only guaranteed four games, Cleveland has not yet announced what uniforms they’d wear in any additional games.

Curiously, the Cavaliers are yet to wear (or have scheduled) their wine ‘Icon Edition’ uniforms. The wine unis were regularly worn both at home and on the road throughout the regular season.

Much like the ‘Icon Edition’ uniforms, the Cavs’ orange ‘City Edition’ uniforms which feature ‘The LAND’ across the chest and were worn six times during the regular season (all at home), have not yet been worn during the playoffs. Similarly to the ‘Icon Edition’ threads, Cleveland has not announced any plans to go orange for upcoming games.

So why keep going black and navy? Well, Cleveland hasn’t publicly answered that question – it’s almost as if the Dean Wade or Max Strus starting decision and James Harden’s field goal percentage have been deemed more important questions – but one can surmise two things:

The Cavs won the only title in franchise history while wearing their black (albeit with sleeves) uniforms in 2016. So maybe they’re good luck.

And the navy throwbacks, well, let’s be honest, they just look incredible. Would anyone other than the equipment staff with laundry duties object to the Cavs throwing it back full time?

Of course not.

Fortunately, we won’t have to wait long to see them again.