Major Bobcats Announcement Coming Soon?

[panthersfan085]

Not wanting the Bobcats leave, just pointing out they can't continue at this rate and expect to still be here 10-15 years from now. You yourself said it a business, if they continue to not make a profit they be gone.

[panthersfan085]

Few days before thier last playoff game the NBA announce the approval to the N.O. move, That announcement was stab in the back i doubt anyone want go to the game especially since the fate of the team been decided, up to that point was sellout close to it.

[King Taharqa]

But honestly KT, part of the reason for the appearance of disloyalty and "lukewarm" fandom is because of how weak the brand is.

I noticed you have said in several of your posts that people asking for the Hornets brand back are supporting the Hornets as-is... Meaning, they are actually fans of New Orleans Hornets. This can't be further from the truth. I support our team because it is our hometeam, and that will never change. I support the idea of getting the Hornets brand back because I believe it will maximize our hometeam's potential success.

I love the Bobcats, but there's nothing wrong in acknowledging that I would possibly love them even more if they were the Hornets, Royals, Flight, or whatever. But, the Hornets brand has a meaning tied to this area. Any and every Charlottean or North Carolinian can take pride in what that brand represented in terms of a local identity.

Changing the name and logo doesn't tie us to Shinn or erase Bob Johnson form the history books. It's just simply a reboot for the better.

Diddy you're my boy, but if you cant accept this team as it is, how are you a fan of it? And whats this infatuation with a Hornets brand that is even worse CURRENTLY? Thats the crazy thing, its like yall can only see that brand pre-2000. You're not paying attention to the fact its worse than the Bobs! There's nothing to gain from being the Hornets. The only people who think its "special" are 20-30 year olds in the Carolinas. As stated earlier, the Hornets mean nothing to the rest of the NBA world. We want more than just support in Charlotte, we want support NATIONWIDE. But we cant get it, because our home "fans" think a franchise that is currently deep in debt and is one of the worst in the league is something to reboot to.

[King Taharqa]

That doesnt explain the lackluster playoff attendance the year before. I actually live in Charlotte. Nobody locally cared about the Hornets then. People were literally giving tickets away.

Again I ask if the Hornets were so successful and important why arent they still here? Its a failed brand and business in Charlotte. Where in Charlotte do you see a ton of Hornets images, history, etc being kept up or recognized? You don't. The city blew their home up. Shows you how "special" it is to us. Hell Ovens and Bojangles Arena are older, yet they still stand.

[thatlookseasy]

Not wanting the Bobcats leave, just pointing out they can't continue at this rate and expect to still be here 10-15 years from now. You yourself said it a business, if they continue to not make a profit they be gone.

Well you just explained why the bobcats chose to tank the season before it even began. If you look back at the Bobcats attendance for the past 5 years, its not that bad considering they were a below .500 team without any real stars. The real mistake the Bobcats made when building their team over the last 7 or 8 years is that they tried to put a competitive team on the floor, but they didnt have any good players to build around and ended up just playing themselves out of a good draft pick. If you give the team an all-star or 2 and the team starts making the playoffs consistently, the fans will come no matter what the name is.

Now you could make the argument that a name change would help their perception around town and bring in some more fans, and thats probably true. But any boost it would give you would be short-lived if the team keeps missing the playoffs and doesnt put a good team on the floor. Ideally I think you could wait a couple of years while the team is terrible, land a couple of high draft picks, then change the name to the Hornets (really only possible if New Orleans changes their name, which wont happen until somebody finally buys their team) or the Cougars once you have some promising players to put out there

[Proudiddy]

Diddy you're my boy, but if you cant accept this team as it is, how are you a fan of it? And whats this infatuation with a Hornets brand that is even worse CURRENTLY? Thats the crazy thing, its like yall can only see that brand pre-2000. You're not paying attention to the fact its worse than the Bobs! There's nothing to gain from being the Hornets. The only people who think its "special" are 20-30 year olds in the Carolinas. As stated earlier, the Hornets mean nothing to the rest of the NBA world. We want more than just support in Charlotte, we want support NATIONWIDE. But we cant get it, because our home "fans" think a franchise that is currently deep in debt and is one of the worst in the league is something to reboot to.

It's hard to explain, but I feel obligated to our hometeams. If I wasn't I'd be bandwagoning somewhere else as I'm not usually a fan of masochism, lol. I feel I have no choice in the matter, I am obligated to be a fan of our hometeams and I have no other alternative, and I support them as such. The brand, as in the name and logo, don't have an effect on my interest in the team, but I believe it does on most casual fans. If we could get 5,000 more fans in the arena a night, even with a horrible on-court product, why not?

The Hornets brand sucks now because it has no relevance to its current location. They feel no tie to it and tbh, I think it just feels dirty for people that may have liked them before that had no regional tie to them otherwise to pull for them in New Orleans. The New Orleans Hornets and the Charlotte Hornets are two totally different brands, imo. They represent two totally different things. Two totally different entities. The Hornets would work in Charlotte, because that's where the name belongs. Even though we got the Bobcats, the Hornets name should've never been allowed to leave Charlotte. Just as Seattle did, a deal should've been made to keep the name.

I've read New Orleans fans even saying as much. I've seen them mention how they'd look up in their arena and see Bobby Phils jersey hanging up in the rafters and feel detached.

Part of why I am for a re-branding is because I feel it is vital for our long term viability as a franchise in Charlotte. From the jump the fans didn't seem the be a part of the process. I've drove almost 3 hours one way to go to games (although I hope to move down there a few years down the road once I'm done with grad/law school). I've spent money on jerseys and concessions. I've done it all... And what reward have I gotten? I still can't even get the games on TV in my area and am forced to watch choppy streams that are minutes behind... This is why the franchise has struggled because it has alienated even the most loyal fans, such as myself.

Yet still I cheer. And I will continue to. But, if I see an opportunity for our franchise to improve and become marketable to both local casual fans and international fans alike, then I'm all for it. I'll be here regardless.

[King Taharqa]

Id also add the infatuation with the Hornets was short lived the first time. After Zo got traded the Hornets were never as big locally as they were then. Their attendance and popularity declined every year after that. And it wasnt like they werent a playoff team, fans just began losing interest.

[John Morgan]

Careful, Diddy...you're making wayyyyy too much sense to avoid a lambasting ;)

[King Taharqa]

Diddy a marquee player will help this franchise more than becoming a re-hashed watered ddown Hornets. Since they got their namr back, how have the Cleveland Browns fared? How bout the REAL Browns, the Ravens? Which has been better? A copy of a wack franchise wont make you great.

[panthersfan085]

It took just five years for the Hornets to break .500; meanwhile, the Charlotte Coliseum was packed just about every night. From the team's second season through 1996-97, the Hornets were at 99 percent capacity or greater every year. Charlotte even had a 364-game sellout streak. Attendance has been pretty bad for the Bobcats, even in the team's debut season.

[King Taharqa]

The Hornets also set records the following years with the lowest attendance figures in NBA history. A record the Bobs have never come close to. It says a lot the Charlotte Hornets crowning achievement are "attendance records" set before the Panthers came to town. No titles or conference finals to speak of. They did make it to the 2nd round twice in 14 seasons. Hornets nostalgists are married to mediocrity like Panther fans used to be.

[MadHatter]

The Hornets also set records the following years with the lowest attendance figures in NBA history. A record the Bobs have never come close to. It says a lot the Charlotte Hornets crowning achievement are "attendance records" set before the Panthers came to town. No titles or conference finals to speak of. They did make it to the 2nd round twice in 14 seasons. Hornets nostalgists are married to mediocrity like Panther fans used to be.

The attendance that year was a statement by the citizens of Charlotte that we wanted George Shinn out of town....not the Hornets. Shinn was a pathetic owner.

Maybe we can do the same thing next year and get Jordan to leave as well. He has proven to be a complete joke as an owner.

For me, whether the team is named the Hornets or the Bobcats....it makes ZERO difference.

All I care about is putting a competive team on the floor....something that Jordan has failed completely at.

[panthersfan085]

The attendance didn't really start to fall till round the 1998 season when Shinn had admitted to having affairs, including with one of the team's cheerleaders. The trial was a huge embarrassment for not only Shinn, but Charlotte. 998-99, attendance fell below 20,000 for 1st in Hornets history, which was still one the best. In 2002, attendance was last in NBA largely because Shinn was activity looking to move and would be last season in Charlotte.

Shinn gave up on Charlotte, thats why Hornets not here now. I give lot respect to Bob Johnson for selling Bobcats and trying move them too, something wish Shinn would had done.

[Proudiddy]

Diddy a marquee player will help this franchise more than becoming a re-hashed watered ddown Hornets. Since they got their namr back, how have the Cleveland Browns fared? How bout the REAL Browns, the Ravens? Which has been better? A copy of a wack franchise wont make you great.

I no doubt agree about a marquee player, but IMO, not getting one to this point has also been due to mismanagement that has plagued the franchise so far. Other franchises have missed as well, but the infamous Felton/May draft picks over a trade up for Paul for instance. Morrison over Roy. The list goes on...

Winning is the greatest deodorant. You bring up some great points, but I honestly believe re-branding is a worthwhile investment, especially now that we've blown it up and are moving forward with young promising guys like Kemba and Smack. MJ wouldn't have looked into it before had it not been worth looking into, I just don't think he was ready to go further in the red after spending what he did to get the franchise as it was already losing money. I get that, but even he mentioned the attendance records the Hornets set and how this market was a legit pro basketball market.

So, I'm guessing if the Hornets happened to move to Seattle and became the Sonics again, MJ would look into re-branding to the Hornets on his own.

I think re-branding while we're climbing out of the basement is a great time to capitalize on it and get the most out of it. If we remain the Bobcats, that's fine too, I just think it would be worthy of looking into and considering if it benefits our team.