What a joke organization.
Hornets apologize after pretending to give child PS5 and taking it away off camera
Jack Baer
jack baer
Staff writer
Tue, Dec 17, 2024, 5:09 PM CST?2 min read
1.7k
The Charlotte Hornets organization was apparently visited by three ghosts last night.
A day after receiving criticism for a skit in which a child was "given" a PlayStation 5 then had it taken away, the Hornets apologized and announced in a statement they were making things right. The child will receive the PS5, as well as a VIP experience at a future game.
The Hornets' full statement:
During last night's game there was an on-court skit that missed the mark. The skit included bad decision making and poor communication. Simply put, we turned the ball over and we apologize. We have reached out to the family and are committed to not only making it right but to exceeding expectations. We will be providing the fan with the PS5 that he should have taken home last night along with a VIP experience to a future game. Our goal is and will remain to elevate the guest experience for every person that enters Spectrum Center, and to show our fans how much we appreciate their relentless support.
The skit that "missed the mark" occurred in a break in play during the second quarter of Charlotte's game against the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday. The child was brought onto the court with Hugo, the Hornets' mascot, dressed as Santa Claus. After a letter to Santa requesting a PS5 was read out loud, a cheerleader came out with a bag containing the video game console.
The young fan was visibly overjoyed as he received the pricy gift. However, according to an online acquaintance, he was less happy when the cameras turned off and a Hornets staffer took it away, replacing it with a jersey.
The cheerleader and other people around were reportedly also confused when the PS5 was confiscated. The child's uncle was apparently informed he wouldn't get to keep the gift, but not the child himself.
Even in the most charitable of lenses, an NBA organization doing a skit in which it pretends to be generous to children is a bizarre look. The team was sold last year for approximately $3 billion, and its in-house entertainment department just had to pretend it had a spare $450-$500 (less if it got a Black Friday deal).
This was all very avoidable, but the child will at least get what he wanted. Meanwhile, the Hornets went on to lose 121-108 to the short-handed Sixers. Their record sits at 7-19.
What in the actual ...? Whoever approved that "skit" should be fired. Anybody involved who knew the kid wouldn't get to keep the PS5 should be fired.
They just bought themselves hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars in bad will, over a $500 PS5.
Just for a little more insight according to a few comments I saw from people who were at the game, the skit was they brought 3 kids out reading letters they wrote to Santa.
Kid 1 asked for a jersey and got it. Kid 2 asked for a PS5 and got it. Kid 3's dad had to move to Philly and the kid didn't want to have to become a Sixers fan so Kid 3 got a new dad.
So clearly a skit, and it also seems like a safe assumption that Kid 1 and Kid 2 didn't really write the letters they read either.
But if you're not using plants, 100% confusing for the kids. Even if the kid knew it was a skit going in (parent was apparently told but not the kid) any kid in that situation would think they get to keep the PS5 (a very reasonable giveaway for a team). Even if the kid was a plant, or fully aware going in, and even though clearly a skit (no one thinks Kid 3 really got a new dad), just a cheap tactic to make the thousands of fans in attendance think a fan just got a PS5. Scummy move.
