Atlanta Hawks strip club promotion called out by Catholic NBA player: ‘Protect and esteem women’

The NBA has described a strip club as an “iconic cultural institution.”

Along with musical performances, a podcast, and chicken wings, the Atlanta Hawks have announced a “Magic City Monday” on March 16 against the Orlando Magic.

‘Allowing this night to go forward without protest would reflect poorly on us as an NBA community.’

In the official announcement, promoted by the NBA itself, the league declined to note that Magic City — the establishment being celebrated — is actually a strip club, nor did it even describe it in a tamer fashion, like an exotic dancing club, for example.

Instead, the venue was celebrated as having a “pivotal role in hip-hop and Black culture.”

“This collaboration and theme night is very meaningful to me after all the work that we did to put together ‘Magic City: An American Fantasy,'” said Jami Gertz, principal owner of the Hawks. “The iconic Atlanta institution has made such an incredible impact on our city and its unique culture.”

Melissa Proctor, Hawks executive vice president, avoided stating the true nature of the club also, instead mentioning “the food … the music and the exclusive merchandise.”

The bizarre promotion drew reaction from San Antonio Spurs center Luke Kornet, who pointed to the obvious omission of Magic City being “Atlanta’s premier strip club.”

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In a written post to his page on Medium earlier this week, Kornet — a devout Catholic, according to the New York Times — asked the NBA to cancel the promotion and to respect and protect women instead.

“The NBA should desire to protect and esteem women, many of whom work diligently every day to make this the best basketball league in the world. We should promote an atmosphere that is protective and respectful of the daughters, wives, sisters, mothers, and partners that we know and love.”

The 30-year-old went on: “Allowing this night to go forward without protest would reflect poorly on us as an NBA community, specifically in being complicit in the potential objectification and mistreatment of women in our society.”

Along with stating that he and other players were surprised by the themed night, Kornet said the league should hold a “higher standard” for what it promotes.

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Photo By Raymond Boyd/Getty Images

“The celebration of a strip club is not conduct aligned” with what the NBA purports to be, Kornet added.

Sharing Kornet’s sentiment was Golden State Warriors veteran Al Horford.

“Well said Luke,” Horford wrote on X, sharing a copy of Kornet’s statements. Horford played for the Hawks from 2007 to 2016.

Despite the brazen celebration of the club, this appears to be the only instance that the NBA or one of its teams has promoted a business of this nature.

The Hawks and NBA did not respond to a request for comment from Blaze News.

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