New Hornets C Dwight Howard will be "part of ticket sales campaigns this off-season," along with recent NBA Draft picks Gs Malik Monk and Dwayne Bacon, according to Erik Spanberg of the CHARLOTTE BUSINESS JOURNAL. Hornets Exec VP and Chief Sales & Marketing Officer Pete Guelli said that the team will be "working with Howard later this summer on more extensive promotions, including season-ticket renewals." Prior to trading for Howard last week and adding Monk in the Draft, the Hornets "anticipated being flat in season tickets heading into next season." The team sold 11,000 season tickets in '16-17, with another 1,000 "full-season equivalents through mini-plans." Guelli said fan response to the Howard trade has been "incredible" and "overwhelming." Spanberg noted Howard "demonstrated a knack for charming reporters and fans during his introductory news conference" yesterday, praising Panthers QB Cam Newton as a "fellow admirer of Superman and promising 'to give this city every ounce of blood, sweat and tears' to help the Hornets return to the playoffs" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 6/27).
THROW IT BACK: In Charlotte, Rick Bonnell notes the Hornets declined comment yesterday on images on the Internet portraying the team's "original jerseys with a Jordan Brand logo." Since the franchise "acquired the original Hornets name" in '14, fans have "wondered when the original uniforms might come in as an alternate." The Hornets have "three versions of their current uniform; white at home, purple on the road and teal as an alternate" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 6/27).
