Menu
Franchises

Pelicans Execs Say Rebranding Was Essential To Building Relevance In Local Markets

While a change in nickname and colors for the Pelicans "may be secondary to the actual performance of the product on the court, it’s also a carefully crafted plan to separate the team's past from its present," according to Ted Lewis of the Baton Rouge ADVOCATE. Such makeovers "are rare in major professional sports, especially when the team has been in a location for a decade." But New Orleans-based Peter Mayer Advertising President Mark Mayer said, "From my perspective, the rebranding of the team away from the Hornets was absolutely essential. Everybody knew the team that was brought in from Charlotte wasn't 'our' team and the name wasn't particularly relevant to the local audience." Pelicans President Dennis Lauscha said, "We wanted to get something that was important locally, and we kept coming back to 'Pelicans,' because it is our state bird and is a barometer for the environmental health of the Gulf South after the oil spill." While Pelicans management is "certainly trying to sell the nickname, only 'New Orleans' graces the jersey, making the team one of only three in the league whose uniforms use exclusively the city name." ESPN.com’s Paul Lukas said that it was “'very odd' that 'Pelicans' isn’t on the jerseys, plus the lettering on the front is smaller than that of the names on the back." However, Chicago-based Gameplan Creative Founder & CEO Tom O’Grady "praised the 'clean' look of the Pelicans uniforms." O'Grady also said that the team "was doing the right thing in not getting 'too cute,' with its logo and auxiliary units" (Baton Rouge ADVOCATE, 10/30).

NOT EVERYBODY IS A FAN: The Pelicans nickname certainly will not conjure up the same controversy as the Redskins name, but one national NBA analyst may be staging his own personal boycott. During a preview of the NBA season on TNT's pregame show last night, conversation turned to the Pelicans, causing Charles Barkley to say, "That team from New Orleans. I refuse to say that silly nickname. I'm not saying that name!" ("NBA Tip-Off," TNT, 10/29).

SBJ Morning Buzzcast: March 25, 2024

NFL meeting preview; MLB's opening week ad effort and remembering Peter Angelos.

Big Get Jay Wright, March Madness is upon us and ESPN locks up CFP

On this week’s pod, our Big Get is CBS Sports college basketball analyst Jay Wright. The NCAA Championship-winning coach shares his insight with SBJ’s Austin Karp on key hoops issues and why being well dressed is an important part of his success. Also on the show, Poynter Institute senior writer Tom Jones shares who he has up and who is down in sports media. Later, SBJ’s Ben Portnoy talks the latest on ESPN’s CFP extension and who CBS, TNT Sports and ESPN need to make deep runs in the men’s and women's NCAA basketball tournaments.

SBJ I Factor: Nana-Yaw Asamoah

SBJ I Factor features an interview with AMB Sports and Entertainment Chief Commercial Office Nana-Yaw Asamoah. Asamoah, who moved over to AMBSE last year after 14 years at the NFL, talks with SBJ’s Ben Fischer about how his role model parents and older sisters pushed him to shrive, how the power of lifelong learning fuels successful people, and why AMBSE was an opportunity he could not pass up. Asamoah is 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazine’s awards.

Shareable URL copied to clipboard!

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Issues/2013/10/30/Franchises/Pelicans.aspx

Sorry, something went wrong with the copy but here is the link for you.

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Issues/2013/10/30/Franchises/Pelicans.aspx

CLOSE