<P> A contest was held to choose a new name and the choices were narrowed to the Dragons , Express , Stallions , Sea Dogs , and the Wizards . On May 15 , 1997 , the Bullets officially became the Wizards . The new name generated some controversy because `` Wizard '' is a rank in the Ku Klux Klan , and Washington has a large African American population . A new logo was unveiled and the team colors were changed from the traditional red , white and blue to a lighter shade of blue , black and bronze , the same colors as the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League ( NHL ) , also owned by Pollin . That same year the Wizards moved to the then MCI Center , now called Capital One Arena , which is home to the Capitals , the Washington Mystics of the Women 's National Basketball Association and the Georgetown Hoyas men 's college basketball team . </P>
<P> A contest was held to choose a new name and the choices were narrowed to the Dragons , Express , Stallions , Sea Dogs , and the Wizards . On May 15 , 1997 , the Bullets officially became the Wizards . The new name generated some controversy because `` Wizard '' is a rank in the Ku Klux Klan , and Washington has a large African American population . A new logo was unveiled and the team colors were changed from the traditional red , white and blue to a lighter shade of blue , black and bronze , the same colors as the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League ( NHL ) , also owned by Pollin . That same year the Wizards moved to the then MCI Center , now called Capital One Arena , which is home to the Capitals , the Washington Mystics of the Women 's National Basketball Association and the Georgetown Hoyas men 's college basketball team . </P>
where did the washington wizards name come from
where did the washington wizards name come from
A contest
A contest