NBA Pulls 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte

UPDATE: It’s official—the NBA has moved 2017 All-Star Weekend out of Charlotte.

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The NBA is reportedly putting the kibosh on Charlotte being the host of the 2017 All-Star Game due to North Carolina’s anti-LGBT legislation.

New Orleans is said to be the likely destination for the League’s midseason showcase next year.

The NBA has expressed concerns with the state’s controversial laws, and faced pressure to take action from fans and corporate partners.

Per Yahoo:

For now, there are still other cities trying to lure the All-Star Game, sources said. […] A formal announcement on the NBA’s withdrawal out of Charlotte is expected as soon as this week, league sources said Thursday.

 

NBA commissioner Adam Silver had threatened to move All-Star Weekend out of Charlotte unless a discriminatory North Carolina law aimed at the state’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community was changed – and time to do so has run out because of the logistics and planning the NBA needs to run its marquee midseason event, league sources said. […] The issue is centered on North Carolina’s House Bill 2, a law that mandates transgender people use public restrooms corresponding to the sex listed on their birth certificates. The law also omits LGBT people from North Carolina’s anti-discrimination protections, forbids local governments from widening LGBT protections and excludes all forms of workplace discrimination lawsuits from North Carolina state courts.

 

The NBA had discussed moving the All-Star Game to the new T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, sources said, but scheduling conflicts at the facility became part of the reason the idea never advanced past high-level league conversations during the Las Vegas summer league this month, sources said.