Charlotte Hornets?

[JPDesign]

Not quite the same. The Sonics, in name, never left. The identity stayed with the city. There also won't be a new team with a new identity that is changing to become the Sonics.

Identity, yes. Players, front office, records, etc...all gone.

As for the second point, if the King's deal had been approved, that's exactly what would've happened.

[TaylorMade]

I can't believe we're having this intense of a debate over a poorly worded tweet.

[chakfu]

As far as the Hornets go, the name is awesome and so is their old identity. The Pelicans has been using that name, and then they took it and threw it in the garbage. I guess they weren't proud to be the Hornets. So why should we be debating over something that the team doesn't even want?

Pelicans identity is good; Hornets identity is good but felt like it belonged in Charlotte; Bobcats identity was weak...so we wind up with another Washington Senators / Winnipeg Jets situation. It could be worse.

[IceCap]

Sure, but that's not what was said.

And again what did the original Hornets do on the court to earn this wealth of nostalgia? Last I checked they could never make it out of the second round. Not exactly a legacy worth resurrecting. Especially not when the original team is still active.

Were you rooting for the Jets to be named something else, because the Coyotes are still active, and despite Winnipeg's 30-year history under that moniker?

I was pulling for either Moose or Falcons when it became clear it was the Thrashers, not the Coyotes, who were moving. The new Jets have gone out of their way to say they aren't the original Jets though. With everyone saying the Bobcats are going back to the Hornets I'm not convinced they won't be some sort of Orwellian rewriting of history that we avoided with the Jets 2.0.

As for the Sonics, hasn't the "send the Sonics' name and history back to Seattle" deadline passed?

[TaylorMade]

As for the Sonics, hasn't the "send the Sonics' name and history back to Seattle" deadline passed?

Yes. But I'm pretty sure some Microsoft cash could make it happen. Chris Hansen's MOU with the city of Seattle actually says that the team MUST be called the Supersonics.

[habsfan1]

As for the Sonics, hasn't the "send the Sonics' name and history back to Seattle" deadline passed?

Yes. But I'm pretty sure some Microsoft cash could make it happen. Chris Hansen's MOU with the city of Seattle actually says that the team MUST be called the Supersonics.

Yeah. That, and I don't see how a future Sonics franchise would accept seeing their '79 World Title remain in the hands of the OKC Thunder, who didn't even exist until the late 2000's.

[uk-owns-iu]

I don't expect a full retro makeover for the franchise but I have to wonder just how stupid you have to be to bring back the name and not the purple and teal. Yes, you can kind of fake them out with a not too distant light blue, but nothing on the "Buzz City" website says Charlotte Hornets to me.

[rams80]

As for the Sonics, hasn't the "send the Sonics' name and history back to Seattle" deadline passed?

Yes. But I'm pretty sure some Microsoft cash could make it happen. Chris Hansen's MOU with the city of Seattle actually says that the team MUST be called the Supersonics.

Yeah. That, and I don't see how a future Sonics franchise would accept seeing their '79 World Title remain in the hands of the OKC Thunder, who didn't even exist until the late 2000's.

If Baltimore can live with the original Super Bowl V Lombardi Trophy being a Rosenbloom family heirloom, Seattle can live without that franchise claiming that title.

[rams80]

Sure, but that's not what was said.

And again what did the original Hornets do on the court to earn this wealth of nostalgia? Last I checked they could never make it out of the second round. Not exactly a legacy worth resurrecting. Especially not when the original team is still active.

They were a mark of legitimacy for Charlotte as a sports town. While it was perhaps inevitable that Charlotte would be a town where big-time pro sports would appear, it wasn't until the Hornets that it was a reality. I can see why people would connect to that.

Well, there was also the World Football League team and the ABA team, although Charlotte evidently didn't care about the Cougars because they were headquartered in Greensboro and WE BE CRAZY PAROCHIAL DOWN IN NORTH CAROLINA!

[Xist2inspire]

I know the Hornets were primarily Teal & Purple, but I seem to remember them having a bit of Blue in their jerseys during their original run in Charlotte. If MJ's set on using the Carolina Blue, just replace the old Blue they used with that.

[AAO]

This has to be the best Hornets' concept I've seen yet. By a CCSLCer, Jordan Sain. Just swap out the teal with carolina blue. http://dribbble.com/jordansain

Would like to see them go this route. To merely refresh the old NOLA/ old Cha. Hornets logo would be a disappointing regression and entirely too much recycling. It wasn't that great of a logo to begin with.

[Mac the Knife]

Sure, but that's not what was said.

And again what did the original Hornets do on the court to earn this wealth of nostalgia? Last I checked they could never make it out of the second round. Not exactly a legacy worth resurrecting. Especially not when the original team is still active.

They were a mark of legitimacy for Charlotte as a sports town. While it was perhaps inevitable that Charlotte would be a town where big-time pro sports would appear, it wasn't until the Hornets that it was a reality. I can see why people would connect to that.

Well, there was also the World Football League team and the ABA team, although Charlotte evidently didn't care about the Cougars because they were headquartered in Greensboro and WE BE CRAZY PAROCHIAL DOWN IN NORTH CAROLINA!

Actually, yeah... the farther you get away from Charlotte, generally the more hostile the sentiment toward it. I've lived here 20 years and never quite understood it, but it's there.

And to answer the question - the Hornets were, among other things, Charlotte's first 'major league' sports franchise. Winner or loser, there's a nostalgia attached to that. Sadly by the time the original team left, its owner had so poisoned relations with the fan base that they didn't care. The new franchise has never caught on for one reason - they lose on the court. A lot. Charlotte's basketball fan base never left; they just won't back a loser, and that's what they saw in the Bobcats organization and name.

The more nostalgic (and clueless) among them think that Michael Jordan and his regime will bring winning basketball back to Charlotte, and inexplicably that bringing back the Hornets moniker will be a piece in that. That somehow rebranding the team back to the Hornets will ignite competitive fires. Sadly, what they don't realize is that while on the court Jordan may have done miraculous things, as a basketball executive the man's proven himself utterly hopeless... that Bobcats or Hornets, the team's going to continue to suck.

[phutmasterflex]

Sure, but that's not what was said.

And again what did the original Hornets do on the court to earn this wealth of nostalgia? Last I checked they could never make it out of the second round. Not exactly a legacy worth resurrecting. Especially not when the original team is still active.

They were a mark of legitimacy for Charlotte as a sports town. While it was perhaps inevitable that Charlotte would be a town where big-time pro sports would appear, it wasn't until the Hornets that it was a reality. I can see why people would connect to that.

Which is all well and good, but this is the first time I've heard that argument. The driving forces for this Hornets nostalgia seems to be a fondness for teal and purple and Starter jackets.

I think you have to have grown up in area with team to understand what the Hornets mean to that community

Sorry, I'm not buying the Cleveland-esque "you just have to be from here to understand" argument.

Too bad, because that is a factor into it.

[tigerslionspistonshabs]

I think this will be highly beneficial to the franchise. It will be the boost that they've needed since 2004. It seems that no one can fully embrace the Bobcats. I know it's the same team, and all that's changing is the name and colors, etc. but it does go a long way. Back in 2001, when the Pistons rebranded back the red white and blue from that disgusting 90s teal set, it changed the entire atmosphere (if that's the right word) of the team. Hopefully some pieces will start coming into place for them soon.

[Island_Style]

Sure, but that's not what was said.

And again what did the original Hornets do on the court to earn this wealth of nostalgia? Last I checked they could never make it out of the second round. Not exactly a legacy worth resurrecting. Especially not when the original team is still active.

They were a mark of legitimacy for Charlotte as a sports town. While it was perhaps inevitable that Charlotte would be a town where big-time pro sports would appear, it wasn't until the Hornets that it was a reality. I can see why people would connect to that.

Which is all well and good, but this is the first time I've heard that argument. The driving forces for this Hornets nostalgia seems to be a fondness for teal and purple and Starter jackets.

I think you have to have grown up in area with team to understand what the Hornets mean to that community

Sorry, I'm not buying the Cleveland-esque "you just have to be from here to understand" argument.

Too bad, because that is a factor into it.

Yeah, why wouldn't you buy it? It's obvious, isn't it? Everyone in Charlotte is defending it. All defending it to a guy in Canada. It's like a Florida boy trying to tell Eskimos that they don't know about whale blubber and ice like he does.

[BigBubba]

As for the Sonics, hasn't the "send the Sonics' name and history back to Seattle" deadline passed?

Yes. But I'm pretty sure some Microsoft cash could make it happen. Chris Hansen's MOU with the city of Seattle actually says that the team MUST be called the Supersonics.

Yeah. That, and I don't see how a future Sonics franchise would accept seeing their '79 World Title remain in the hands of the OKC Thunder, who didn't even exist until the late 2000's.

First off, it's not "their" title. Second, the Thunder existed well before the late 2000s. Sure, it wasn't in their current form, but the organizations existed regardless.

[Lights Out]

Sure, but that's not what was said.

And again what did the original Hornets do on the court to earn this wealth of nostalgia? Last I checked they could never make it out of the second round. Not exactly a legacy worth resurrecting. Especially not when the original team is still active.

The original Charlotte Hornets were one of the most popular and highest-attended teams in the league until George Shinn ruined his reputation and sullied the franchise. Even after that debacle, the connotations of the Charlotte Hornets name are STILL more positive than those that come with the Bobcats name. I'm pretty sure throwback Hornets merchandise has always sold more than Bobcats merchandise, too.

It's just the right business decision to go back to the Hornets name even though the product on the court was more-or-less a mediocre treadmill team.

[IceCap]

Sure, but that's not what was said.

And again what did the original Hornets do on the court to earn this wealth of nostalgia? Last I checked they could never make it out of the second round. Not exactly a legacy worth resurrecting. Especially not when the original team is still active.

They were a mark of legitimacy for Charlotte as a sports town. While it was perhaps inevitable that Charlotte would be a town where big-time pro sports would appear, it wasn't until the Hornets that it was a reality. I can see why people would connect to that.

Which is all well and good, but this is the first time I've heard that argument. The driving forces for this Hornets nostalgia seems to be a fondness for teal and purple and Starter jackets.

I think you have to have grown up in area with team to understand what the Hornets mean to that community

Sorry, I'm not buying the Cleveland-esque "you just have to be from here to understand" argument.

Too bad, because that is a factor into it.

Yeah, why wouldn't you buy it? It's obvious, isn't it? Everyone in Charlotte is defending it. All defending it to a guy in Canada. It's like a Florida boy trying to tell Eskimos that they don't know about whale blubber and ice like he does.

Simple. The idea that "you don't understand it, you have to be from here to get it" in regards to loyalty to a sports team is moronic. Your fanbase (a general "your") isn't special, your fanbase doesn't have a special relationship with its team (or its brand) that no other fanbase does. It's nonsense, just like the notion that fans "own" the team.

As for the Hornets? The Bobcats failed to win the hearts and minds of Charolette because they sucked and were run by morons. Changing the name to Hornets won't change those facts. A nostalgic-fuelled bump for a year or two in intrest is all you're going to get before fans start to clue in that the Hornets are just the hapless Bobcats and abandon them all over again.

Sure, but that's not what was said.

And again what did the original Hornets do on the court to earn this wealth of nostalgia? Last I checked they could never make it out of the second round. Not exactly a legacy worth resurrecting. Especially not when the original team is still active.

The original Charlotte Hornets were one of the most popular and highest-attended teams in the league until George Shinn ruined his reputation and sullied the franchise. Even after that debacle, the connotations of the Charlotte Hornets name are STILL more positive than those that come with the Bobcats name. I'm pretty sure throwback Hornets merchandise has always sold more than Bobcats merchandise, too.

All super. Too bad the Bobcats never were the Hornets of old. Pretending they are is just going to be a massive group-think powered lie.

[phutmasterflex]

^ Somebody's upset. You can't generalize and believe that all people have to feel a certain way about things. Different people from different places feel differently about things. Fueled by nostalgia? Of course. But to assume fans don't have a special connection, memory, feeling to a certain name, color, brand isn't fair. It's not like they're hoping this instantly changes this team back to what the old Hornets used to be. Nobody is arguing that.

[Lights Out]

Hell, the increase in ticket/merch sales could go a long way towards improving the product on the court and making them NOT be the same old sucky Bobcats anymore.