Purple still reigns at Milwaukee Bucks headquarters, but it's a temporary condition.

Changing a logo in the National Basketball Association means starting from scratch. Think about it. Uniforms, stationary, fixtures, wallpaper, carpeting. If there's even a hint of purple to be found... rip it up, tear it up, toss it out, down it comes!

But, when it comes to the Bucks practice facility floor, a simple facelift will do the trick.

Enter Greg Koller, a local gym floor guru. Koller is the president of ProStar, Inc. a Milwaukee-based company he founded from the ground floor back in 1979. Koller was called in a decade ago when the Bucks did a major overhaul in St. Francis. He installed and marked up the floor back then, and these past few weeks, Greg and his crew of six are tweaking the court with new and exciting pallets of color chosen by the Bucks.

Purple, be gone! Red, instead!

"I guess it's like a new set of clothes, you buy a new suit every once in a while, and it's time to step up a little bit," Koller said while gazing out at the soon-to-be completed court. "I like the original colors, and I like the red, too. I like that red is kind of a power color, has a joyful effect to it. I think the Bucks are ready for a change, I'm in favor of it."

What's in store for the Bucks new floor? I was privy to a sneak preview, but you'll have to wait for the unveiling by the Bucks in the coming weeks. The practice surface will mirror the Bradley Center floor, which doesn't get its new look until Koller and company finish the practice court first.

"We make sure all the kinks are worked out here, that everybody's happy, then we'll move on to the Bradley Center," explained Koller. "This is like our practice for the big floor."

Koller says he and his crew will attack the Bradley Center court on August 22nd. There are a few more additions, plus extra nooks and crannies to deal with downtown, but nothing major. No worries for this bunch. Koller has been designing and painting floors throughout the Midwest at every level.

"We've done all the work at Marquette, and The Al (McGuire Center), MSOE, Madison, a number of colleges throughout the state," said Koller. "We go all the way from YMCA boys and girls clubs, to grade schools, middle schools, high schools, D-1, 2 and 3.
But this is the ultimate, doing an NBA floor, the top of the pyramid."

Hoops fans have seen the newest Bucks color scheme, so for now, picture in your mind the green, red and silver mixture splashed on the court. One update that is new, and in vogue with courts of late, is a two-tone look.

"We use riding sanders that strip right down to the bare maple," Koller says. "We'll use a stain to get darker shades of maple outside the three point arc, and keep the white maple color on the inside of the three point line."

Koller and his crew total about three weeks of labor per floor. It's a timeline that begins with the initial first day of sanding the old paint and stain right down to the original maple floorboards, and concludes with a fresh coat of paint in the lanes and lines specked out by the NBA.

While we were chatting, Koller made a quick call to a league rep -- just to make sure they didn't add any new markings for the coming season. Everything Koller does has to be approved by the NBA.

"We have nothing to do with design," he said. "The Bucks, in conjunction with the NBA, they select the colors, they select the design, then they give us a number to match the paint for red green and silver."

Call him, the Picasso of sport courts. And what details does the "artist" concern himself with most?

"Two things: make sure the logo looks sharp; and, make sure the owner, GM and coaches are happy!" he said.

12 comments about this article. Post a comment / write a review.

Recent Talkbacks ...

Posted by OMCreader on Aug. 1, 2006 at 12:19 p.m. (report)

Ryan said: Love the Bucks coverage. I am a season ticket holder. If any of you are looking for tickets call my rep Steve Frank at 227-0841. He is a great guy and always goes the extra mile to help me out.

Posted by OMCreader on Aug. 1, 2006 at 12:43 a.m. (report)

john said: what is it christmas time? I don't understand they don't even look right. I start to wonder if their not trying to bring back their old uniform just like the brewers brought back their old logal for sunday games, but they at least had an excuse for it, because people love theirs, but the bucks old colors look ugly.

Posted by OMCreader on July 28, 2006 at 6:19 a.m. (report)

Anthony said: I cant wait for the season to start. I love the Bucks. I think the new look and more roll players that the bucks have now will make this season fun.

Posted by OMCreader on July 25, 2006 at 10:24 a.m. (report)

eaglescout said: yes, i am gainfully employed. i don't know, mytime, maybe it takes you half an hour to knock out a 5 sentence post. takes me only about 30 seconds. really just a fraction of my break time. and i suspect Brainerd was fired for TRYING to be funny.

Posted by OMCreader on July 24, 2006 at 4:57 p.m. (report)

mytime said: Eagle Scout...are you unemployed that you have this much time to devote to replying to onmilwaukee.com? The guy was fired from his job for being funny...how would you feel? Give the guy a break! I would give you one if the same applied.