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The NBA has cancelled the Hawks’ planned promotion with Atlanta strip club Magic City.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver released a statement Monday, explaining the league’s decision to cancel “Magic City Monday.”
“When we became aware of the Atlanta Hawks’ scheduled promotion, we reached out to Hawks leadership to better understand their plans and rationale,” Silver said in the 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. I believe canceling this promotion is the right decision for the broader NBA community.”
The news comes a week after the Hawks told Front Office Sports they had no plans to reconsider the promotion, which was scheduled for the team’s game against the Magic on March 16.
The Hawks separately released a statement Monday.
“While we are very disappointed in the NBA’s decision to cancel our Magic City Night promotion, we fully respect its decision,” the team said. “As a franchise, we remain committed to celebrating the best of Atlanta – with authenticity – in ways that continue to unite and bring us all together.”
Multiple NBA players spoke out against the promotion prior to its cancellation, including Spurs center Luke Kornet and Warriors center Al Horford. Kornet wrote a letter on his Medium account, pleading for the promotion to be cancelled and arguing it was against the league’s values.
As part of the promotion, the Hawks partnered with the strip club to create a “limited-edition Peachtree-themed hoodie” which read “Magic City” across the chest and had the Hawks logo on the right sleeve. The team confirmed that all pre-orders will be “honored and delivered as previously scheduled.” In addition, rapper T.I. will still perform at halftime.
The club did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
