The Charlotte Bobcats, which will be renamed as the Hornets next season, have unveiled its new logo; a reincarnation of the old 90's look but redesigned to make it look more contemporary.
ESPN.com reports that the new logo features a more shapely hornet with focused eyes and a long and sharp stinger. It was unveiled on Saturday night by Bobcats majority owner Michael Jordan at halftime of the team's game against the Jazz.
"When we were doing our research, we looked closely into a hornet's DNA," team president and chief operating officer Fred Whitfield told ESPN.com. "We came back with swarming, attacking and protective."
This is the latest in the rebranding efforts of the Charlotte franchise, which announced a name change last year after the New Orleans club ditched the name Hornets in favor of the Pelicans. According to team executive vice president and chief marketing officer Pete Guelli, the name change has already paid major dividends, citing the team's 90 percent season ticket renewal rate coming off a 21-win season last season, with the equivalent of another 2,000 season tickets sold in the offseason. He also said he attributes the name change to scoring two new national sponsors, Mercedes-Benz and McDonald's.
Initial surveys conducted by the team also showed that 80 percent of fans in Charlotte wanted their team to be called the Hornets.
Team merchandise featuring the new logo will start on January 18 while the uniforms will be revealed in the summer. According to team officials they will bring back their old mascot Hugo.
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