May 22, 1968, was the day when Milwaukee’s second professional basketball team finally got a name – the Milwaukee Bucks. More than 14,000 fans participated in a contest to name the team. Records show that R.D. Trebilcox of Whitefish Bay, Wis., was one of 45 persons who suggested the name ‘Bucks.’ He sawbucks as being spirited, good jumpers, fast and agile. For his efforts in helping Milwaukee’s entry into the professional sports world gain an enduring nickname, Mr. Trebilcox won a new car.

On June 28, 2006, prior to the 2006 – 2007 season, the Bucks unveiled an updated logo and a new color scheme. “The historical Bucks forest green and the silver introduced in 1993 remain in the identity, but purple has been replaced by a deep red – more sophisticated than the classic red used in the Bucks’ color palette from 1968 through the mid-’80s,” Vice President of NBA Apparel Christopher Arena said. “The deep red is in line with the team’s history and representative of their renewed commitment to intensity and energy.”

The basic structure of Milwaukee’s primary logo that was introduced in 1993 remains in the identity, but several areas have been enhanced.

The wordmark “BUCKS” now includes a more rigid, etched font with a retaining shape that mirrors the structure of the letters.

The box that outlines the word “BUCKS” has been altered, as well. A “MILWAUKEE” wordmark, although not used in the primary logo, was created and will be used on various team materials and licensed products.

The logo was first introduced in May of 1993 when, following the 25th Anniversary season, the club announced that their franchise would be represented by a new logo with corresponding new uniforms. It depicts an aggressive, frontal view of the head and shoulders of an eight-point whitetail buck (male deer) on a triangular background atop stylized Milwaukee Bucks lettering. The color scheme featured hunter green, purple, and silver. In making the announcement of the new logo, then-NBA Creative Director Tom O’Grady said, “The Bucks logo is an image of strength and focused determination. The solid logo design, incorporating the powerful Buck, portrays a confident, cohesive team. It is one unit, an attribute of any good team. The Buck itself gazes steadily ahead as if to accept any challenge that may lie in its path. The theme of solidarity is repeated upon through the physique of the muscular buck and the heavy block lettering.”

Perhaps no single person was more instrumental in the push for new uniforms, colors, and logo than Bucks Vice President of Basketball Operations and then-Head Coach Mike Dunleavy. One of Dunleavy’s first thoughts upon signing an eight-year contract on May 12, 1992, was to upgrade the image of the club’s uniforms … to instill pride among the players and make them feel good about carrying Milwaukee’s colors in front of a national audience. Green was retained as a link to past accomplishments. Purple was introduced as a contrasting color and one that, while currently in vogue, will stand the test of time. Silver provides a perfect accent and serves to highlight the deep, rich hues found in the forest green and purple. A number of color combinations were tested before the final combination became reality. Dunleavy even scoured Milwaukee-area department stores with his three sons, to get a feel as to how the youth market reacts.

The 2006 – 2007 changes also were applied to the team’s secondary logo, which was first introduced during the 2001 Playoffs. The secondary logo is a derivative of the primary logo. It retains the existing red triangular base and eight-point silver buck antlers while adding a silver outlined green basketball that appears centered at the top of the triangular base.

A search for the team’s initial logo/color identity in 1968 was the responsibility of then-General Manager John Erickson, who commissioned Milwaukee commercial artist Matt Kastelic to develop the team’s first logo. The original logo featured a caricature of a buck wearing a sweater emblazoned with the letter ‘B’ and spinning a basketball on one hoof while sitting atop the words ‘Milwaukee Bucks.’