I must admit: the New Orleans Pelicans are growing on me. Not the team itself, really, and not even the birds themselves. But I must admit the whole idea of changing the team's mascot from the Hornets to the Pelicans might not be all bad.
Here is why.
At first I chuckled at the notion that the new owner decided to switch things up because 1) he owns the rights to the Pelicans nickname, and 2) he wanted to change the team colors because his wife likes navy blue, red and gold. But then I thought about it some more.
Louisiana is The Pelican State. There are a lot of pelicans there. They are birds of prey to be feared and have reportedly made a remarkable comeback since the days of the Gulf oil disaster in 2010. And honestly, the Hornets are a callback to the days when the franchise was in Charlotte. Okay for Charlotte. Not okay for New Orleans.
Growing up a Utah Jazz fan in Utah, I never understood why they were called the Jazz. It doesn't take a social science expert to notice there aren't a lot of jazz musicians in Salt Lake City. It took me until I was about 12-years-old before I learned the Utah franchise came first from New Orleans, the home of jazz music.
When the NBA returned to New Orleans, I – yes, me the Utah Jazz fan – hoped they would take the Jazz name back so Utah could get a more applicable nickname. I don't know, maybe the Utah Seagulls?
That's a topic for another day.
In any case, I applaud the new owner of the New Orleans Hornets for having the courage to go through a necessary identity crisis to build a new beginning in a town with an interesting basketball history.
Now if only the Miller family would give up the Jazz trademark…
JPF
