The Atlanta Hawks’ decision to tie a promotion to one of the city’s best-known strip clubs has split NBA fans, after a rival player warned the idea risks making the league “complicit” in the “objectification and mistreatment of women in our society.”
Magic City has long been one of Georgia’s most famous adult entertainment venues, linked over its decades in operation to Atlanta’s music scene and to visiting celebrities and athletes alike.
Now, the club is at the center of a new controversy after the Hawks announced a themed promotion connected to Magic City on March 16, ahead of their matchup with the Orlando Magic. The team described it as a way to “celebrate the city’s iconic cultural institution.”
San Antonio Spurs center Luke Kornet criticized the move, arguing that a partnership like this “would reflect poorly on us as an NBA community,” and that strip clubs contribute to the objectification and mistreatment of women.
The Hawks’ “Magic City Monday” isn’t being framed as a team outing to the club itself. Instead, the organization plans to bring elements of the venue’s story into State Farm Arena, including a live recording of the Hawks AF Podcast focused on Magic City’s place in Atlanta culture.
Magic City has been spotlighted in mainstream pop culture before, including in a Starz docuseries last year featuring figures from Georgia’s music scene such as Killer Mike and TI discussing its cultural footprint.
TI is also scheduled to perform during a Jack Daniels-funded halftime segment, making the night closer to a conversation about Magic Mike than an explicit, clothes-ripping strip show.
Even so, Kornet—who is Catholic—said in a lengthy blog post that the concept doesn’t match what the league should represent, according to People.
He said: “We desire to provide an environment where fans of all ages can safely come and enjoy the game of basketball and where we can celebrate the history and culture of communities in good conscience”
Kornet added: “The celebration of a strip club is not conduct aligned with that vision.”
Online reaction has been mixed. One Reddit user argued the partnership is consistent with other forms of promotion already common in pro sports, writing that “It should fit right in with all of the alcohol, pill and gambling ads.”
Others, however, thought it was a bizarre choice for
This is an absolutely insane promo to have, I’m not usually a pearl clutcher but that’s a lot lol
Another added: “Celebrating a freaking strip club at a 6pm basketball game seems insane and yet this is actually happening.”
And with headline-grabbing sports spectacles becoming increasingly normal—such as plans for a UFC event on the South Lawn of the White House in June—some fans suggested the boundaries of what counts as acceptable sports marketing may already be shifting.