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CHARLOTTE, N.C., June 23, 2015 – The NBA announced today that Charlotte has been selected to host NBA All-Star 2017.  The 66th annual game will take place at Time Warner Cable Arena, home of the Hornets, on Sunday, Feb. 19.  The 2017 game will mark the second NBA All-Star celebration in Charlotte, which hosted the event in 1991.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver made the announcement this morning during a press conference at Time Warner Cable Arena, where he was joined by Charlotte Mayor Dan Clodfelter, North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory, Mecklenburg County Commission Chairman Trevor Fuller, Hornets President & COO Fred Whitfield, and Hornets Chairman Michael Jordan, who was the leading scorer of the 1991 NBA All-Star Game at the Charlotte Coliseum.

"As a thriving city with a proud basketball tradition and a deep passion for the game, the city of Charlotte is a terrific All-Star destination,” said Silver.  “We thank Michael Jordan, the Hornets organization and the Charlotte community for their support and congratulate them on bringing our All-Star festivities back to North Carolina." 

“It is an honor to bring NBA All-Star back to Charlotte,” Jordan said.  “I remember the excitement of playing in the 1991 All-Star Game, the first one held in my home state, and I take pride in being able to host NBA All-Star 2017 as the owner of the Hornets.  This is a great moment for our fans, our city, and our franchise.  We are excited to welcome the world to Charlotte and Time Warner Cable Arena in 2017.”

The oncourt festivities in Time Warner Cable Arena will tip off Friday, Feb. 17, with the BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge, where the league’s best rookies and sophomores compete in a U.S. versus World five-on-five format.  On Saturday, Feb. 18, State Farm All-Star Saturday Night will feature thrilling basketball competitions starring current NBA and WNBA players as well as NBA legends.  The slate of events includes Degree Shooting Stars, which showcases NBA and WNBA players, as well as legends; the Taco Bell Skills Challenge, where top guards compete head-to-head in a series of passing, shooting, and agility drills; Foot Locker Three-Point Contest; and the Slam Dunk Contest.  The weekend concludes on Sunday with the Sprint Pregame Concert followed by the NBA All-Star Game. 

“We are thrilled to be named the host of NBA All-Star 2017,” said Mayor Clodfelter.  “This is an incredible opportunity to showcase Charlotte internationally as a city that excels as host to a variety of large-scale sports, entertainment, and arts events.  We look forward to working with the Hornets and our other partners to give the ‘Queen City’ welcome to the many team representatives, visitors, and residents who will participate in the All-Star 2017 festivities.”

In partnership with the Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority (CRVA), the NBA will host several events for fans of all ages at the Charlotte Convention Center and Bojangles’ Coliseum.  These events, including the NBA All-Star Practice, Sprint NBA All-Star Celebrity Game, NBA Development League All-Star Game presented by Kumho Tire and the NBA Development League Dream Factory presented by Boost Mobile, will feature exciting non-stop basketball action, and will give fans unique, up-close access to NBA and WNBA players and legends, along with family-friendly entertainment throughout the weekend.

“Major events such as NBA All-Star are proven economic generators that benefit our community’s quality of life through the visitor spending they create,” said Charlotte Regional Visitors Authority Chief Executive Officer Tom Murray.  “We’re incredibly proud to host an event that will infuse tens of millions of dollars into our community and showcase the many reasons why Charlotte continues to be an attractive place to live, work, play, and visit.  It’s rewarding to see the collaboration of our partners and the entire hotel community come together to make this event a reality for our city.”

In addition to the arena, convention center, and coliseum events, the NBA will continue its commitment to social responsibility with a full schedule of NBA Cares events throughout the week.  Through partnerships with schools, government, and local nonprofits in and around Charlotte, the NBA will reach thousands of children and families and provide important resources to community-based programs.

NBA All-Star Game 2017 will be televised in prime time on TNT for the 15th consecutive year and mark the 32nd year that Turner Sports has provided NBA All-Star coverage.  The game will be broadcast worldwide in more than 200 countries and territories and in more than 40 languages.

NBA All-Star 2015 in New York included the highest-scoring All-Star Game in NBA history, an electrifying performance from Sprite Slam Dunk champion Zach LaVine of the Minnesota Timberwolves, and a star-studded Foot Locker Three-Point Contest won by 2014-15 Kia Most Valuable Player Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors.  NBA All-Star 2016 will take place in Toronto, the first NBA All-Star to be held outside the United States.

The 1991 All-Star Game produced a dramatic finish at the Charlotte Coliseum, where the East edged the West 116-114.  The Philadelphia 76ers’ Charles Barkley finished with 17 points and 22 rebounds to earn MVP honors, while Michael Jordan of the Chicago Bulls scored a game-high 26 points and current Hornets associate head coach Patrick Ewing added 18 points for the East while representing the New York Knicks.  A crowd of more than 23,000 witnessed the final All-Star appearances of Boston Celtics legends Kevin McHale and Robert Parish.  NBA All-Star 1991 also included Celtics rookie Dee Brown’s memorable victory in the Slam Dunk contest and Bulls guard Craig Hodges’ record-setting performance in the Foot Locker Three-Point Contest.   

Time Warner Cable Arena, which has welcomed more than 13 million guests since opening in 2005, has played host to entertainment giants such as Beyoncé, The Rolling Stones, and Taylor Swift, in addition to hosting the 2012 Democratic National Convention and the NCAA and ACC basketball tournaments.  The premier destination for sports and entertainment in the Carolinas, Time Warner Cable Arena hosts over 150 sporting events, concerts and family shows annually.

charlotte-to-host-nba-all-star-2017

Charlotte to Host NBA All-Star 2017

Galleries: Rising Stars Challenge Game | NBA Fit Clinic | All-Star Media Circuit | BBVA Rising Stars Challenge Practice

11:49 a.m. – Sprint Store Autograph Signing

Happy Valentine's Day everybody. I started the day helping out with the Special Olympics game at Madison Square Garden. It was an awesome event, and I know it was pretty special for them to be able to play at Madison Square Garden. To see the smiles on their faces was awesome. There were a lot of current and former NBA players and a couple WNBA players there playing in the game – everyone was involved in it. After that I came to the Sprint store for an autograph signing before heading out to the Players Tribune round table, which is through my agency. It’s a newspaper that was started by Derek Jeter and launches this weekend. It should be fun.

6:45 p.m. – BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge

I’m excited to get here, we just arrived and it feels like we’ve been sitting in traffic all weekend. I’m just excited to get on the court and play with a lot of my old teammates that I’ve gotten to know over the years.

It was a lot of fun to work with these kids. I know that it means a lot to them to have an NBA player come to their school and they’ve got a lot of energy. The most important thing was they had a lot of fun so hopefully I helped to brighten their day. It’s amazing that we can cover so much ground with NBA players and representatives in over 100 schools in New York city today. I think a lot of kids have been active and that’s the most important thing. It’s definitely important to start young being fit, being active and eating healthy, so I’m glad that I’m a part of this.

Yesterday was a crazy day. I checked into the hotel kind of late so I just grabbed a bite to eat and hung out with my family. I got to bed fairly early but have been up since 7:30 this morning. We’ve been right back at it this morning, so it’s going to be a busy day. The New York traffic has been rough all week but they’re taking care of us pretty well here. I’m just excited for the game tonight.

I’m almost done with the Media Circuit. I’m not really sure how long we’ve been going here – about 25 minutes or so. I’ve had to give a lot of the same answers, so I’m sure the hornets.com crew that’s been following me is getting sick of hearing the same answers. Everyone’s excited about how the Hornets have been playing here recently. I’m always glad to report on that. The weirdest question I have heard here today was when someone asked me what my spirit animal was. I’ve never heard that before so I might need some Hornets fans help coming up with an answer

The flight to New York went smooth. No issues or delays. Now I’m just down here in baggage claim waiting on my bag. My parents are flying in right behind me too, so I’m excited to see my parents and excited to be here in New York to get this weekend started!

9:27 a.m. - Charlotte Douglas International Airport 

This is going to be an exciting trip heading to All-Star. We’re here in Charlotte waiting to fly to New York. I heard there’s a lot of snow out there, so hopefully we don’t get delayed or anything. I’m definitely excited to get to New York though… I’m going to get the chance to play with some of the best rookies and sophomores in the league. I think I’m going to enjoy New York.

cody-zeller-2015-all-star-journal

Cody Zeller 2015 All-Star Journal

VIDEO: Zeller Highlights | Zeller Spotlight | Matt and Matt with Cody Zeller | Gallery: Zeller

January 28, 2015 – The NBA today announced that Charlotte Hornets forward Cody Zeller has been selected to participate in the BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge that will be played on Friday, Feb. 13. The game will be part of the NBA’s All-Star Weekend in New York and will showcase the NBA’s best young players. For the first time since its inception, the BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge will feature a new USA versus the World format.

The BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge will pit first- and second-year NBA players from the United States against first- and second-year NBA players from around the world, with assistant coaches from around the league selecting 10 U.S. players and 10 international players for the game.

Zeller is enjoying a breakout 2014-15 campaign, improving in many statistical categories on the season. This season, Zeller is averaging career highs in points (7.6) and rebounds (5.5), while also shooting a career-best field-goal percentage of  .451 (119-264) and free-throw percentage of .750 (96-128).

The full list of participants for NBA All Star Weekend’s BBVA Compass Rising Stars Challenge is below:

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Zeller Headed to All-Star Weekend

December 11, 2014 – All Hornets players will be eligible to be voted to the NBA All-Star Game this season as balloting goes all-digital and all NBA players are included on the ballot for the first time.

NBA All-Star Balloting 2015 presented by Sprint begins today and gives fans around the world the opportunity to vote daily for their favorite players as starters for NBA All-Star Game 2015.  The official NBA All-Star Ballot presented by Sprint will include all current NBA players for the first time ever.  Fans will continue to select two guards and three frontcourt players when choosing the starters for the 2015 NBA All-Star Game, but can now vote for any current NBA player.

Fans can vote on NBA.com by clicking here.   Limit one ballot per day per computer with up to 5 Hornets players and 5 Western Conference players.  Fans can also access the ballot and vote from their mobile device.

Fans can vote by texting a player's last name to 69622 (MYNBA).  Limit one vote per player every 24 hours, and only 10 votes per phone per day.  Message and data rates may apply.

NBA Game Time and NBA Game Time from Sprint apps

Limit one ballot per phone per day on those apps.

Fans can post status updates from their personal account that includes the hashtag #NBABallot and the first & last name of the player (Example: "Al Jefferson #NBABallot").  Limit one vote per player per day and limit 10 votes per account per day.  Note: Comments on status updates do not count as votes.

Fans can tweet a player's first and last name or Twitter handle, along with #NBABallot to cast a vote (Example: "@KembaWalker #NBABallot" OR "Kemba Walker #NBABallot").  Retweets, replies and mentions also count as votes.  Limit one vote per player per day, and limit 10 total votes per account per day.

Fans can post photos to their personal accounts with the player's first and last name and #NBABallot in the caption to cast a vote (Example: Lance Stephenson #NBABallot).  Comments on photos will not count as votes.

Voting for more than one player at a time through text or social media will not count.  So remember, vote for your favorite Hornets, but be sure to do it in separate texts, posts, etc.

As part of the NBA’s all-digital program, fans can vote on NBA.com, through social media networks including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Sina Weibo and Tencent Microblog in China, via SMS text, and the NBA Game Time and NBA Game Time from Sprint applications.

New to this year’s program is SAP, which will integrate daily stats into the online ballot.  Fans can sort players on the NBA Ballot by their current stats from NBA.com/stats powered by SAP HANA.  SAP will also host a new feature on NBA.com/stats called the SAP NBA All-Star 2015 Game Predictor.  After fans vote, they will be able to see how the East and West starters they picked would match up.  The game predictor will compare player statistics and compute a game score based on the fan’s picks.

Balloting concludes on Monday, Jan. 19, and starters will be announced live on TNT on Thursday, Jan. 22, during a special one-hour edition of TNT NBA Tip-Off presented by Autotrader.com at 7 p.m. ET, featuring Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kenny Smith. The special will air prior to TNT’s exclusive doubleheader featuring the San Antonio Spurs at the Chicago Bulls (8 p.m. ET) and the Brooklyn Nets at the Los Angeles Clippers (10:30 p.m. ET).

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All Hornets Eligible for All-Star Ballot

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Charlotte Sports Foundation (CSF) and the Charlotte Hornets announced this morning in a press conference that the team will officially submit a bid for Charlotte to host the NBA All-Star Weekend at Time Warner Cable Arena in 2017 or 2018. The bid is the result of a partnership between the city of Charlotte, local community and business leaders, and the Hornets.

A contingent of representatives including Fred Whitfield, Hornets Sports & Entertainment President & COO; Will Webb, CSF Executive Director; Johnny Harris, CSF Board Chairman and President of Lincoln Harris; Dell Curry, Charlotte Hornets legend and All-Star participant; and Hornets mascot Hugo will fly to New York this afternoon to personally deliver the All-Star Game bid to NBA Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum and other league executives.

“On behalf of everyone involved, we are very excited to announce that we will submit an official bid this afternoon for Charlotte to host NBA All-Star Weekend,” said Webb.“The overwhelming support for the Hornets during their playoff run and rebranding has proven the passion Charlotte has for the NBA. And the worldwide fan base of the NBA makes this a perfect opportunity to showcase Charlotte and Time Warner Cable Arena on a global stage.”

“It is our honor to submit our bid for the city of Charlotte to host a future All-Star Weekend,” said Whitfield. “The Charlotte Sports Foundation and other community and business leaders have urged us to undertake this effort and have pledged their full support.  We are grateful for their backing and look forward to once again having the chance to bring international acclaim to the city of Charlotte.  With the return of the Hornets name and our team on the rise, we feel like this is the perfect time for Charlotte to host an All-Star Game and we are confident in our chances for success.”

“We are very confident in the strength of our bid to host NBA All-Star Weekend,” said Harris. “Charlotte has proven to be a thriving center of economic growth and development. It is a tremendous destination for both domestic and international sports fans. The board of CSF is dedicated to impacting the Charlotte community, both economically and socially. Hosting the NBA All-Star Game will not only have Charlotte buzzing with excitement, but will have a huge economic impact on the tourism industry.”

Charlotte is a leading city in the sports industry. In addition to the Charlotte Hornets and NFL Carolina Panthers, Charlotte is home to ESPNU, ESPN Regional, Raycom Sports, the SEC Network, the NASCAR Hall of Fame, the Sports Business Daily/Journal, Street & Smith’s/Sporting News, and FOX Sports1 production, as well as the AAA baseball Charlotte Knights, AHL Charlotte Checkers and Major League Lacrosse’s Charlotte Hounds.

The city has also hosts a number of major sporting events annually, including the Belk Bowl, the ACC Football Championship, the CIAA Tournament, the PGA Tour’s Wells Fargo Championship and NASCAR’s All-Star Race, Coca-Cola 600 and Bank of America 500.  The coming years will mark the returns of NCAA men’s basketball tournament games in 2015 and the ACC Tournament in 2019, as well as Charlotte’s first time hosting the PGA Championship in 2017.

Charlotte hosted the NBA All-Star Game in 1991, with the East defeating the West 116-114 before a sold-out crowd of 23,530 at the Charlotte Coliseum. The Hornets sold out 364 consecutive NBA games from December 1988 to November 1997 and led the league in attendance in eight of their first nine seasons.

The Charlotte Sports Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization created in 2013 to provide leadership for sports-based initiatives that enhance the economy and quality of life in the Charlotte region. CSF provides unique events and business opportunities around professional, collegiate and amateur sporting events, highlighted by the Belk Bowl and the Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship. These efforts are intended to create a positive economic impact in the region as well as to enhance the quality of life.

Hornets Sports & Entertainment owns the Charlotte Hornets and operates Charlotte’s Time Warner Cable Arena.

All Star

Charlotte to Host NBA All-Star 2017

Cody Zeller 2015 All-Star Journal

Zeller Headed to All-Star Weekend

All Hornets Eligible for All-Star Ballot

Charlotte Sports Foundation and Hornets Announce Official Bid to Host NBA All-Star Weekend