Charlotte Hornets May Not Bring Back the Original Team Colors

As expected, the Charlotte Bobcats announced that they will be known as the Hornets once again beginning in 2014-15. According to owner Michael Jordan, however, the name change doesn’t guarantee that the team’s popular original purple and teal colors will also be making a comeback. Per the AP: “Jordan said his organization is giving the fans what they want. ‘We spoke to our season ticket holders and fans, and overwhelmingly you guys wanted the Hornets name back,’ Jordan said. ‘And we went out and brought the name back.’ […] Pete Guelli, Charlotte’s executive vice president and chief sales marketing officer, estimated the cost of changing the name to the Hornets at about $4 million. He added, however, that the decision wasn’t based on money and that ‘nothing was going to keep us from going down this road because this is what the fans wanted.’ Jordan knows that it will take more than just changing the name of the front of the jersey to turn his struggling franchise around — it will take talent. The Bobcats are 28-120 over the past two seasons, the worst record in the league. ‘Ultimately we still have to play the game at a high level, which is what the Hornets did for a long period of time,’ Jordan said. ‘Changing the name does not guarantee that we’re going to be a playoff-contending team. We still have a lot of work to do to build that. I’m not walking away from that. It is what it is.’ He said it’s too early in the process to know if the team will keep the Hornets’ teal and purple colors. The NBA’s Hornets resided in Charlotte from 1988-2002 before then-owner George Shinn moved the team to New Orleans following a financial dispute with city officials over replacing the Charlotte Coliseum. Shinn wanted a new arena with additional luxury suites. The New Orleans Hornets, now owned by Tom Benson, recently changed their name to the Pelicans. Charlotte was awarded an expansion team in 2003 and then-owner Bob Johnson named the team the Bobcats. The venture was a financial disaster for Johnson, who lost millions before selling majority ownership to Jordan in 2010. Even with Jordan at the helm, the Bobcats have never come close to matching the popularity of the Hornets, a team which sold out 364 straight home games, a streak that stretched nearly nine full seasons.”