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View Full Version : Triangle tops Charlotte?!



SupaDave
07-14-2009, 01:06 PM
Well I've always thought Charlotte was a little overrated...

http://www.wralsportsfan.com/voices/blogpost/5539661/

moonpie23
07-14-2009, 09:03 PM
truth be known....charlotte is in South carolina...

Matches
07-15-2009, 10:16 AM
Not particularly surprising that a Raleigh native who is the sports editor for a Raleigh media outlet prefers the Triangle...

I've lived both places. Charlotte is a better pro sports town, mostly because of the Panthers and NASCAR. (The less said about the Bobcats, the better.) The Triangle is superior for college sports, of course, with Duke, UNC and NCSU right there together. Focus in Charlotte is more split between the ACC and SEC - the Triangle gets immersed in ACC basketball like nowhere else.

fan345678
07-15-2009, 10:47 AM
That article does a pretty good job of laying out Charlotte's pros and cons and covers the Hornets-Panthers transfer of power pretty well. It should mention that the Continental/Meineke Bowl has done very well and that the ACC football championship should be much better in Charlotte (after all, how could it be worse?). Plus, high school football in Charlotte has become pretty big.

The article says almost nothing about the Triangle, but a real comparison between the two is difficult. Raleigh is a basketball and hockey town; Charlotte is a football and NASCAR town. Charlotte also has better lakes (and probably better fishing and hunting in general), the National Whitewater Center, and is much closer to the mountains while not being too much farther from the beach.

Still, it's hard to argue with three ACC schools in the Triangle. But at least Charlotte gets to host the ACC tourney.

CLT Devil
07-15-2009, 10:56 AM
Don't forget about the CIAA....party time! The Panthers are pretty unique in the fact that everyone has their college they went to and subsequently pull for, but everyone comes together to pull for the Panthers. It's the one thing a Duke, State, Wake, ECU, Tarhole, App State, etc fan can agree to. Also, once we build our downtown AA Baseball stadium there will be that to add to the list, as well as UNC Charlotte Football.

Triangle for sure on college sports.

SupaDave
07-15-2009, 11:46 AM
Let's not forget the Durham Bulls and Raleigh Mudcats...

airowe
07-15-2009, 11:55 AM
The Panthers are pretty unique in the fact that everyone has their college they went to and subsequently pull for, but everyone comes together to pull for the Panthers. It's the one thing a Duke, State, Wake, ECU, Tarhole, App State, etc fan can agree to.

Same can be said for the Hurricanes. I go to games with my Tarhole and Pack friends all the time.

Durham Bulls are not talked about here, and neither is the ACC Baseball tourney, which will be in Durham real soon.

All in all, as a poster said above, the two towns have different things to offer sports-wise. The Bobcats would be smart to cater to the Triangle market as the Hornets did. I believe this had a lot to do with the Hornets' attendance numbers and the Bobcats' lack thereof.

Matches
07-15-2009, 01:09 PM
All in all, as a poster said above, the two towns have different things to offer sports-wise. The Bobcats would be smart to cater to the Triangle market as the Hornets did. I believe this had a lot to do with the Hornets' attendance numbers and the Bobcats' lack thereof.

As tempting as it might be to tap into fans' devotion to college bball, whenever the Bobcats have attempted to do this it's led them to do things like drafting Sean May. Pro sports really have their own identity, and although clearly there is some overlap between NBA and NCAA fans, there are some pretty significant differences between the audiences.

The best thing the Bobcats can do to grow a fanbase is WIN. The pieces are in place, they've played five seasons and can't use the expansion team excuse anymore, and fans aren't going to keep going to games just because they liked Ray Felton when he played at UNC. If the Bobcats succeed on the court they can build an audience.

airowe
07-15-2009, 01:31 PM
As tempting as it might be to tap into fans' devotion to college bball, whenever the Bobcats have attempted to do this it's led them to do things like drafting Sean May. Pro sports really have their own identity, and although clearly there is some overlap between NBA and NCAA fans, there are some pretty significant differences between the audiences.

The best thing the Bobcats can do to grow a fanbase is WIN. The pieces are in place, they've played five seasons and can't use the expansion team excuse anymore, and fans aren't going to keep going to games just because they liked Ray Felton when he played at UNC. If the Bobcats succeed on the court they can build an audience.

I absolutely agree. While I will check the box scores to see how G is doing the fact that he plays with the Bobcats is not going to make me buy a ticket and drive two hours to see him play.

What I was getting at was the discrepancy between the Hornets' and Bobcats' marketing budgets for the Triangle area. The Hornets branded themselves as the Carolinas' team, not just Charlotte's and had much better draws because of it. The Panthers have seen similar efforts pay off tremendously (NFL football is also a much bigger draw obviously.). Hopefully the new ownership group will realize this.

CDu
07-15-2009, 01:58 PM
I absolutely agree. While I will check the box scores to see how G is doing the fact that he plays with the Bobcats is not going to make me buy a ticket and drive two hours to see him play.

What I was getting at was the discrepancy between the Hornets' and Bobcats' marketing budgets for the Triangle area. The Hornets branded themselves as the Carolinas' team, not just Charlotte's and had much better draws because of it. The Panthers have seen similar efforts pay off tremendously (NFL football is also a much bigger draw obviously.). Hopefully the new ownership group will realize this.

Yes, having quite possibly the cheapest owner in the NBA (and that includes Donald Sterling!) for the history of the franchise to this point has not helped. Hopefully for the Bobcats the new ownership will take a more aggressive marketing approach and (perhaps more importantly) a more aggressive approach in terms of spending money on quality basketball players. To this point, they've generally gone for the bargain basement approach, which has resulted in them being in the lottery every year of their existence.

Matches
07-15-2009, 02:03 PM
Yeah, I'm hopeful for the sale of the team too. We don't necessarily need a Mark Cuban - just someone who won't make the team the K-Mart franchise of the NBA.

The potential for a lockout in 2011 worries me a lot, though. I don't think the Bobcats can survive in this market if there's an extended work stoppage.