Looks like some good things are going on in New Orleans.
Impressive ranking this week.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/powerr...n=2008&week=13
|
|
|
|
|
Looks like some good things are going on in New Orleans.
Impressive ranking this week.
http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/powerr...n=2008&week=13
Ironically, they are really struggling to put people in the stands. I don't think New Orleans can support a NBA franchise, especially now.
George Shinn; need I say more?Originally Posted by boxerdog
Possibly, but they sure are looking great right now.
Not ironic I don't think. It's just going to take some time for people down there to warm up to them after the team was gone for a couple of years and was not very good for the most part when it first moved there.
I think it takes some time for people to embrace something as uniquely "theirs", especially a place with as much history as New Orleans. The Hornets were largely viewed as "that team that used to be in Charlotte", then "that team that will probably stay in Ok. City". It was another place's players, another places name and colors. I think it's starting to stick, though. They now have a local minority owner (Chouest) and have concentrated a fair amount of energy trying to remarket themselves as a New Orleans team, adding the yellow to the color scheme to get closer to Mardi Gras colors a couple of years ago and now adding the "Fleur de Bee" logo to the jerseys and court decor.
No question that New Orleans is not an easy market to succeed in, but there's a fanbase there to be had if they will just have the team. The median income in the city now is higher than many other NBA cities, it's just a matter of them opening up their minds and embracing a new tradition. I think this winning will help them turn that corner.
The median income may be up, but the population is down--way down!
Sure, but a lot of the people who have left have never been the type that would support a proffessional sports franchis to begin with, at least not financially in terms of tickets sold.
There are plenty of middle class citizens in New Orleans and on the northshore who are more than capable of supporting this team, but just haven't gotten into it yet. The whole Charter Cable situation where games aren't even shown on the Northshore as part of a contract dispute doesn't help to market the team to potentially one of its biggest areas of support.
People are catching on, though. Over 15,600 in the arena last night for a weeknight game is a step in the right direction.
It certainly doesn't hurt when they are one of the best teams in the league.
But check the population of the Northshore!
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote