The Birmingham Squadron was the NBA G League affiliate of the New Orleans Pelicans, based in Birmingham, Alabama, from the 2021-22 season through the 2025-26 season. The team’s name, logo, and colors were revealed on July 26, 2021, when the franchise relocated from Erie, Pennsylvania, where it had played as the BayHawks.[1][2]
The brand identity was created by RARE Design, which was approached by the ownership of the New Orleans Pelicans in 2021 to develop the G League team’s brand.[3] The agency incorporated elements from both Birmingham and New Orleans, including the city flag, industrial gears, aviation, and the city nickname, throughout the identity system.[3]
Design and History
The name “Squadron” was chosen for its dual meaning: it is the collective noun for a group of pelicans, tying to the parent club, and it references Alabama’s history in military aviation, including the Tuskegee Airmen of the 99th Pursuit Squadron.[2][4]
The primary logo was designed to capture both meanings of squadron. It includes wings as well as an outline of a machine gear, and it borrows the star used in the official flag of the city of Birmingham, with the top of the star meant to symbolize the spear from the Vulcan statue.[1] The star and gear are taken from the city flag, with the gear symbolizing the Iron City, and the top of the star and two bottom points hint at the Vulcan’s spear.[5]
The Squadron’s branding colors were the same as the Pelicans.[2] The team’s official colors were red, gold, and navy blue.[6]
In March 2026, the New Orleans Pelicans announced that the affiliate would relocate to Kenner, Louisiana, and rebrand as the Laketown Squadron for the 2026-27 season, ending the Birmingham Squadron identity.[7][8]
Meaning and Symbolism
The primary mark incorporates the city’s flag and includes a nod to the Pelicans.[3] The star-shaped logo with a toothed gear at the center refers to the Flag of Birmingham, and it combines a pair of wings with a spear-point, explicitly recalling the one held aloft by the Vulcan statue.[9]
The Squadron logo was inspired both by the New Orleans Pelicans and the Tuskegee Airmen, who were based out of Alabama. The primary logo shows a pair of gold wings and a gear behind a red and white basketball showing a crescent on a blue and gold star.[10]
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