There has been a lot of news over the past few weeks about the Atlanta Hawks hosting a Magic City Night promotion.
For those of you who don’t know, Magic City is a legendary gentlemen’s club in the heart of Atlanta. Once upon a time, Lou Williams broke the quarantine of the NBA bubble and secured some of their famous wings. Do you think it’s a little strange that a professional basketball team would celebrate a strip club? Maybe a little. But the Hawks explained that the night was a tribute to a staple of Atlanta culture, which sounded fair enough.
The Hawks announced a promotion for the game last month featuring the Magic City’s famous lemon pepper wings and live music from Atlanta native T.I. However, the announcement sparked backlash, including from San Antonio Spurs player Luke Kornet. He spoke about the anti-women tone of this event.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver intervened on Monday and canceled the event.
“When I became aware of the Atlanta Hawks’ promotion plans, I reached out to Hawks management to better understand their plans and rationale,” Silver said in a statement. “While we appreciate the team’s perspective and their desire to move forward, we have heard significant concerns from a variety of league stakeholders, including fans, partners and employees. I believe canceling this promotion is the right decision for the broader NBA community.
The game was scheduled for Monday against the Orlando Magic. Now, the concourse at State Farm Arena can feel empty even on Monday evenings.
But doesn’t silver have bigger fish to fry?
As the sweepstakes for Kansas star Darryn Peterson and BYU’s AJ Dybantsa heat up, it feels like half the NBA is intentionally trying to lose the game. Every other week, Silver leaks a report that the NBA will be modifying the NBA Draft Lottery to prevent teams from tanking.
But that hasn’t stopped anyone yet.
In the East, the eighth-seeded Philadelphia 76ers have only four games over .500. Out West, the Sacramento Kings had a league-worst 50 losses on the season. In total, 12 teams are below .500.
The NBA playoffs take place next month, but there’s little buzz about them. The Detroit Pistons have been one of the stories of the season so far. Although they are the No. 1 seed in the East, they are quickly fading away with four consecutive losses. Victory Wembanyama’s San Antonio Spurs are just three games behind the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder with less than 20 games remaining.
The storyline is there, but the excitement surrounding it all doesn’t seem to be there.
So get rid of Magic City Night. What do you have to prove? Is the NBA willing to take a stand for women? As one
This is an issue that felt overhyped from the moment it was announced. Steal lemon pepper wings and TI’s performance? That’s really punishing Hawks fans who have had enough as a 9 seed in the East.
Silver has bigger problems this offseason. But one day, he could boast that he had put an end to the evil and cruel magic of the night in the city.
