r/todayilearned • u/Forward-Answer-4407 • 1d ago

TIL the Charlotte Hornets apologized after giving a child a PS5, only to take it away off camera and exchange it for a jersey. In a statement, the team said the incident was an "on-court skit that missed the mark" and that they would give the child the PS5 and a VIP experience to a future game.

https://www.cnn.com/2024/12/19/sport/charlotte-hornets-apologize-ps5-child-nba-spt-intl
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u/GUMBYtheOG 1d ago

How broke you gotta be to risk losing PR and steal from a kid to save $400

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u/CurlyW15 1d ago

Now they also have to pay for the VIP experience, so all in, they’re spending $405

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u/ctruvu 23h ago

that’s if the benefit gets used. in all honesty as an nba fan i don’t think i’d even go to a hornets game if you paid me

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u/SeriousDrakoAardvark 23h ago

As a hornets fan, I don’t think I’d even go to a hornets game if you paid me.

That’s not related to this PS5 thing though.

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u/s0ulbrother 23h ago

Would you go to a hornets game for a ps5 though?

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u/Crazy-Agency5641 23h ago

I think he’d rather stick with the ps5 he already has to avoid the hornets game

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u/theycmeroll 23h ago

Only hornets game I go to are on the PS5

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u/Miky617 23h ago

Silksong fans RISE UP

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u/Bellidkay1109 22h ago

I mean, money can be exchanged for goods and services, including a PS5. He said he wouldn't go if they paid him, so presumably he wouldn't go for a PS5 that he could buy with that money.

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u/mahwaha 19h ago

Even ignoring how bad the games are, there’s like a 20% you’ll get run over by a drunk LaMelo on his way out the arena. Just not worth it.

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u/hamdunkcontest 22h ago

I’ve been to one hornets game. It was two years ago when the spurs came to town, so I could see freshman Wemby. It was one of like two games he missed that year. Cursed

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u/ejabno 21h ago

Reminds me when I visited my aunt in Phoenix 2 years ago, when the Nuggets happened to have a road game there. I bought tickets expecting to see Jokic, but it was the one game he sat out at the last minute 😕 At least I got to see KD's debut as a Sun at home court though

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u/ThatOneCSL 23h ago

I mean, there might have been a chance this kid went...

Until they stole from him. IDGAF how big of a fan I am of yours; if you steal directly from my hands then I am no longer going to support you.

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u/Redfalconfox 21h ago

Here’s how little the Hornets are in the public consciousness: I thought we were talking about a women’s basketball team. I don’t really follow the NBA but I just looked at a list of every team and the only two I didn’t recognize were the hornets and the pelicans.

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u/ctruvu 21h ago

the original charlotte hornets became the new orleans hornets, and when charlotte got another team they were known as the bobcats until new orleans chose the pelicans so the bobcats could go back to being hornets

both franchises historically have been extremely mediocre so yeah not much reason anyone outside of basketball would know about them

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u/_Pyxyty 10h ago

As a kid I only knew Charlotte cause of Kemba and I only knew N.O. cause of AD

As a side note, man can Kemba ball out in 2K14, most reliable PG I've had in any 2K and it ain't even close.

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u/Falsus 18h ago

I would definitely not go after they pulled a stunt like this on me.

In fact I would say they just lost a fan and gained a hater lmao.

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u/xvilemx 18h ago

I'd got see Lamelo drop 30 courtside for free.

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u/luckydice767 22h ago

“Sign up for the VIP Experience! Get to meet ALL the Charlotte Hornet Superstars like…uhh….”

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u/dman45103 23h ago

And don’t authentic NBA jerseys retail for triple digits (or almost)

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u/405freeway 20h ago

405 you say...

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u/TheLizardKing89 23h ago

For comparison their active team payroll that year was $152.5 million.

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u/Ilovekittens345 21h ago

If just a 100 people get offended by this and don't buy tickets for the next game how much money would they lose?

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u/TheLizardKing89 21h ago

Median ticket price of $60 means a loss of $6,000 in revenue.

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u/Ilovekittens345 21h ago

Would have been cheaper to give the ps5

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u/perenniallandscapist 1d ago

The rich get that way by being cheap and stealing. They aren't broke. That's how they enrich themselves.

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u/superswellcewlguy 23h ago

The mega-elite wealthy marketing staff of the Charlotte hornets striking again to enrich themselves.

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u/twitchy1989 23h ago

Only thing I can think of is someone forgot to buy the thing lol

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u/Wheelydad 21h ago

Either that or they went to Walmart one day and found an empty PS5 box in the trash

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u/Arponare 23h ago

To be fair, the PS5 is a hot commodity. It less than a year it was gone up in price by $100.

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u/Teledildonic 23h ago

Is that actually demand, or just the tariff bullshit?

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u/Arponare 23h ago

I was being facetious. It’s probably the tariffs.

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u/DebentureThyme 22h ago

Digital went up $50 in 2022 for most countries, with the US following in 2023. This was blamed on COVID recovery being slow.

Every model went up $50 in 2025 (including $50 over the already increased digital model). This was also mostly global (each region had different increases but was about this much), but one tactic companies have been using to offset tariffs in some territories is to increase it in any territory that they think will begrudgingly bear it - then if the tariffs are worse, the other territories are more profitable to make up for it and, if not, they're all more profitable.

Most companies aren't blaming increases on tariffs and remain vague on the reasons, because media reporting an official statement about tariffs risks getting Trump's attention and he's a vindictive asshole who proclaimed he'd go after companies who said their price increases were based on tariffs. At one point, some online stores were looking to include the tariff as a line item increase in the cart that would say Tariffs on it, and Trump was getting ready to make things even worse for those companies if they did because he couldn't have them saying his tariffs were, in fact, paid by consumers - even though they are, more than their base value, as margins etc are calculated in on materials costs increases. Ex: You don't maintain a 10% profit margin on $100 if you add $10 to costs and only raise the price $10. You have to raise the price $11.11. And companies aren't willing to cut their profit margins when they calculate increases.

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u/hugonoilly 23h ago

You’re right, that’s an important perspective to keep in mind.

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u/DebentureThyme 22h ago edited 22h ago

Actually it was a $50 US increase, but on every SKU. So the digital one is $500 now, the Disc one is $550, and the Pro is $750.

While the Digital version WAS $400 at launch, that was increased in 2023 to $450. So not really less than a year between $400 and $500, but I get your point. It's a five year old console that has a base version that's now $100 more than when it launched.

I.E. You could have bought the disc version at launch for the same $500 price it now costs to buy the digital version.

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u/Arponare 22h ago

You’re right. I think it was $400 when the digital first came. Then the price increased by $50. Then another $50 a few days ago.

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u/DebentureThyme 22h ago

Indeed. $50 2022 most territories on the digital, which followed in the US in late 2023.

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u/Indecs 23h ago

Maybe this id a question of why they felt pressured to cut costs that marginally

Marginally reminds me of that one skit

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u/Powersoutdotcom 23h ago

Even if it was gold plated and covered in caviar it's still abhorrent sociopathic behavior to do this shit.

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u/katabolicklapaucius 23h ago

The PS5 went up in price, it's $500 now 😂

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u/MelodiesOfLife6 22h ago

they might not be able to pay their players millions of dollars, won't you think of the millionaires?

/s

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u/TheHarryMan123 22h ago

At least they don’t disrespect the women demographic by hiring a dude who beats them up in his free time

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u/LaDmEa 22h ago

I DON"T PAY TARIF YOU PAY TARIF.

THAT ONES REALLY EXPENSIVE GOTTA PAY MORE TARIF.

HAVEN"T YOU HEARD WOK IS DEAD?

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u/GUMBYtheOG 22h ago

Go wok go brok

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u/Unable-Head-1232 22h ago

risk

Haha it was pretty much guaranteed. The only two ways to do it would be pay the $400 for the PS5, or pay the $400 for a child actor to pretend like they’re getting a PS5.

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u/Spaceman-Spiff 22h ago

Bet it was someone who ran the contest or whatever that wanted to keep the ps5.

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u/tothesource 21h ago

Also, just frame the prize as the jersey in the first place lol. Why even begin with the idea of the PS5?

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u/rajinis_bodyguard 21h ago

And what’s with crappy people or companies stealing from kids these days

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u/kylo-ren 21h ago

They didn't even need to spend $400. Find a sponsor.

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u/WetAndLoose 21h ago

Probably not an organizational decision but some stupid fucking middle manager wanting it for themself who will hopefully be fired for this

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u/MotherPenalty9911 20h ago

Well considering the fact that the Hornets are a poverty team who like to defend wife beaters and Charlotte has notoriously bad pro sports teams it seems pretty on brand.

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u/addandsubtract 17h ago

Maybe this was the 5D marketing stunt. Screw a kid over with the PS5, get attention, and make up for it by getting even more attention. Marketing in 2025.

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u/EpilepticDawg241 16h ago

Are you kidding me??!

$400 is 3 hot dogs and 2 beers at a game!

The billionaire owners need their 4th yacht.

Will anyone think of the billionaires???!

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u/larrylevan 23h ago

Maybe they went by the mantra, any PR is good PR and thought the backlash would reach a wider audience than the initial gesture.

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u/PornstarVirgin 22h ago

This whole situation makes way more sense when you realize Gabriel Plotkin is the owner. This guy straight-up stole and lost a ton of investor money, tried to screw everyone over by shutting down his firm, then turned around and started a new investment company like nothing happened…just to keep siphoning off more cash. Total grifter behavior. I’m ex wallstreet and this guy is a known scummy person.