Promotional events for professional sports teams — especially struggling ones — are hardly a novel concept.
A largely irrelevant team that can’t get customers to show up to the game? Offer a free bobblehead giveaway.
Given that few sports franchises have been as historically irrelevant as the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks, nobody would bat an eyelash if the team decided to get truly creative to get some butts in the seats.
But the Hawks appeared to cross the line between “creative” and “creepy” when it recently announced a ballyhooed “Magic City Night” promotional event.
While that may sound fun (the team was slated to face the Orlando Magic), it’s actually a deeply inappropriate promotional event for what’s typically promoted as “family-friendly” NBA outings due to what “Magic City” is: a strip club.
Now, asESPNreported, Atlanta may describe “Magic City” as an “iconic cultural institution” — the strip club is apparently known for its lemon pepper wings — but the NBA isn’t buying it.
Now that the NBA stepped in, “Magic City Night,” which was originally slated for March 16, will not be taking place at all.
The following has been released by the NBA.pic.twitter.com/jzbUW8t73Y
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR)March 9, 2026
“When we became aware of the Atlanta Hawks’ scheduled promotion, we reached out to Hawks leadership to better understand their plans and rationale,” NBA commissioner Adam 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 broad array of league stakeholders, including fans, partners and employees.”
Source: VidNews » Feed
