In Charlotte, Tom Sorensen writes of the Bobcats rebranding as the Hornets today, "Tuesday is a good day for our city and the basketball team." But it will "never be 1988 or the early ‘90s in Charlotte again." Fans are "not nearly as naïve as we were, and a team can be new only once." Still, the "beauty of the name change is that it originated not on high but below." It was "grassroots," as fans "pushed because they believed, and that belief became a movement" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 5/20).
WHEN THE STARS ALIGN: In Dallas, Mike Heika wrote the Stars "are relevant again, and this is a good feeling." It has been "a long climb" for Stars Owner Tom Gaglardi, who purchased the team in November '11. The Stars "changed their look, changed their personality and changed their reputation in the NHL in pretty much 12 months." Team President & CEO Jim Lites said, "The perception is completely changed, and I think that's both locally and nationally." Gaglardi: "If you look on the ice, off the ice, it's just all coming together. ... We have a long way to go, but we made some huge steps this year" (DALLAS MORNING NEWS, 5/18).
HAVING A GREEN THUMB: In Philadelphia, John George noted the Eagles "will not be issuing paper season tickets this season, and instead are turning to e-tickets." Eagles Dir of Ticket Office Operations Laini DeLawter said that as of yesterday, fans are able "to print tickets at home, download them on to their smart phones that can be scanned at the gate or transfer them to friends and family electronically." Season-ticket holders who "don't have access to a computer, printer or smart phone can go [to] the Eagles offices at Lincoln Financial Field to get their tickets" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 5/17).
GARDEN PARTY: ESPNW's Kate Fagan noted the WNBA Liberty on Saturday "finally returned" to Madison Square Garden after three seasons at Prudential Center, which "will hopefully also return the Liberty to its perch as a flagship WNBA franchise and the league's anchor on the East Coast." The team averaged 11,069 fans per game in its last season at MSG, but those numbers “dipped significantly lower" at Prudential Center (ESPNW.com, 5/17).
