Spurs' Luke Kornet Speaks Out Against Hawks' Strip Club Promotion

San Antonio Spurs center Luke Kornet asked the Atlanta Hawks to cancel their upcoming promotion of iconic Atlanta strip club "Magic City" at an upcoming game, generating tremendous amounts of backlash and support.

Kornet recently started publishing on his personal Medium blog again, showcasing his sense of humor, songwriting skills and interest in church architecture. On Monday, though, he took a more serious tone and wrote a direct appeal to the Hawks, the NBA and fans.

"This week the Atlanta Hawks 'announced a special one-night collaboration to celebrate the city’s iconic cultural institution Magic City' during the team’s home game against Orlando on Monday, March 16," Kornet wrote. "In its press release the Hawks failed to acknowledge that this place is, as the business itself boasts, 'Atlanta’s premier strip club.' Given this fact, I would like to respectfully ask that the Atlanta Hawks cancel this promotional night with Magic City."

Kornet's full appeal is fairly short and worth reading in its entirety. He didn't bring up religion, and he didn't attempt to demonize sex workers. He didn't say that Magic City shouldn't exist, or that their world-famous lemon pepper wings are bad, or that women can't choose to work there of their own free will. He mainly shared his concerns about an NBA team officially promoting a strip club at a game that will be attended by fans of all ages.

"Allowing this night to go forward without protest would reflect poorly on us as an NBA community, specifically in being complicit in the potential objectification and mistreatment of women in our society," Kornet wrote. "Regardless of how a woman finds her way into the adult entertainment industry, many in this space experience abuse, harassment, and violence to which they should never be subjected."

It's easily the most impactful and controversial thing Kornet has written, and mixed reaction poured in from all corners of the internet. Many criticized Kornet's plea as prudish. Others pointed out that the NBA has bigger moral issues, from the pervasive promotion of gambling to the numerous domestic abusers who are allowed to play.

Plenty of other people agreed with Kornet's assertion that an NBA game is an inappropriate place to highlight this sort of establishment. He's hoping that together, they can make their voices heard and have the event canceled.

"We desire to provide an environment where fans of all ages can safely come and enjoy the game of basketball and where we can celebrate the history and culture of communities in good conscience. The celebration of a strip club is not conduct aligned with that vision," Kornet wrote. "Please join me in petitioning the Atlanta Hawks to cancel this promotion so as to ensure that the NBA remains a safe, respectful, and welcoming environment for everyone involved."

The event is scheduled for March 16 when the Hawks host the Orlando Magic. At shootaround on Tuesday Kornet said that he hasn't heard from the Hawks or the NBA since releasing his statement, but said that he did reach out to some people in the league before he published to make sure he was up to date.

Kornet said that he doesn't use social media, but he'd seen some of the positive and negative reactions to his statement.

"The public voice as it pertains to this, I feel like it didn't really represent what I know myself and a lot of others throughout the NBA felt, so I think I did just want to make sure that that part of the discussion is expressed," Kornet said. "It comes with... criticism and stuff like that. And I think that's part and parcel of why people might be hesitant to (speak out). But I think actually trying to get the conversation started and able to have is something that's important."

According to a report from Front Office Sports, a spokesperson for the Hawks said that the team doesn't plan to cancel the promotion.

Kornet's former Celtics teammate Al Horford shared Kornet's statement in support. Spurs coach Mitch Johnson praised his player's courage and thoughtfulness when asked about it before Tuesday's game.

"When you're a public figure, anything you say in front of a microphone — and maybe not in front of a microphone — is open for criticism," Johnson said. "That comes with the territory. When someone, in a situation like Luke's, intentionally shares their opinion, that takes a lot of courage. You're opening yourself up for everyone to have an opinion or give criticism to your opinion."

"I thought he did it in a very thoughtful way, in a way to encourage and produce conversation, not judgement or trying to tell someone how they're supposed to feel," Johnson said. "I thought it took a lot of courage."

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