San Antonio Spurs center Luke Kornet has called on the Atlanta Hawks to abandon their collaboration with a famous strip club.
Magic City is an Atlanta institution and been mentioned in a string of hip-hop records, and has hosted rappers such as Drake, Lil Yachty, Migos, Jack Harlow and Future. It is also popular with athletes: past visitors have included Michael Jordan, and MLS’s Atlanta United celebrated their title at the club in 2018. Magic City gained widespread attention in 2020 when the Los Angeles Clippers’ Lou Williams visited the club after leaving the NBA’s quarantine bubble during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Hawks recently announced a theme night with Magic City for their game against Orlando Magic on 16 March. The night will feature a performance from Atlanta native TI, while fans will be able to buy Magic City’s famous wings and branded hoodies.
However Kornet, a devout Catholic, said he disapproves of the night, writing in a Medium post that it “would reflect poorly on us as an NBA community, specifically in being complicit in the potential objectification and mistreatment of women in our society.”
In a press release, the Hawks said Magic City is an “iconic cultural institution,” and praised “its pivotal role in hip-hop and Black culture.”
However, Kornet noted that the press release made no mention of the fact that Magic City “is, as the business itself boasts, ‘Atlanta’s premier strip club.’”
Kornet added that he believed the night was inappropriate for many NBA fans.
“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,” he wrote. “The celebration of a strip club is not conduct aligned with that vision.”
