Hornets Co-Owner Felix Sabates Comments on NBA Moving 2017 All-Star Game
After the NBA announced it is moving the 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte due to North Carolina's controversial transgender laws, Charlotte Hornets co-owner Felix Sabates did not hold back in criticizing the league for its decision.
Sabates sent an email response about the decision to take the midseason event away from Charlotte, according to Nick Ochsner of WBTV:
"I am very disappointed in this decision by the commissioner, it hurts our team and ownership group that has suffered very deep financial loses (sic) over the years. ...
... Shame on those responsible for such a short sighted decision to take the NBA All Star away from Charlotte I always thought this was country that ALL peoples not just a few can determine our future.
Our Mayor opened a can of worms, who knows why? Our city council is the one to blame for our losing the NBA All Star game, none of this would have happened if not for a very few minority forcing our supposed city leaders into creating a problem that never really existed, there will always be another election, they better pray a very few can get them re-elected. What is wrong with a person using a bathroom provided for the sex the (sic) were born with, if you want to change your gender so be it, we are a free county, but don't force 8 years old children to be exposed to having to share bathroom facilities with people that don't share the organs they were Bourne (sic) with, this is plain wrong, this could cause irreparable damages to a children's that don't understand why they have to see what God did not mean for them to witness, we have some very confused business as well as political humans that frankly have made this a political issue rather then (sic) moral issues, SHAME ON THEM.
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The email sent by Sabates was in response to Hornets President and COO Fred Whitfield's letter about the league's decision to move the All-Star Game.
“While we are disappointed by this decision, we understand the challenges around having All-Star Weekend in Charlotte this season and we are grateful that the league has provided an opportunity for us to host the event in the next available season in 2019," Whitfield wrote in his letter.
In the NBA's statement about moving the game, it said the league and the Hornets "have been working diligently to foster constructive dialogue and try to effect positive change."
The league also emphasized that the city of Charlotte and the Hornets "sought to provide an inclusive environment and that the Hornets will continue to ensure that all patrons—including members of the LGBT community—feel welcome while attending games and events in their arena," per ESPN.com.
There was no easy solution for the NBA in this instance.
Logistically, moving an All-Star Game just seven months from the date it is scheduled to be played is a nightmare, because it requires more than just finding a new arena. There are three full days of events, not to mention finding hotels with availability to house NBA players and executives.
That doesn't even include the potential backlash the NBA would face, even if it has come out publicly against the controversial bill signed by North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory in March.
But the NBA has a franchise that plays in North Carolina every year. It's a slippery slope with no simple answers, but the league made a decision it felt was necessary, no matter how much Sabates disagrees with it.
