Yahoo: NBA set to Pull 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte Over ‘Bathroom’ Law

Following in the footsteps of prominent musicians who have cancelled performances in North Carolina in protest of the state’s controvesial anti-LGBT HB2 law, the NBA is now on the verge of moving its All-Star game, scheduled for next February, away from the Tar Heel state.

Yahoo! Sports’ The Vertical is reporting that the league is about to pull its annual mid-winter showcase from Charlotte and award it instead to New Orleans.

Sources: NBA on brink of pulling 2017 All-Star Game out of Charlotte, with New Orleans emerging as a front-runner to host Feb. 19 game.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) July 21, 2016

Failure of North Carolina to change discriminatory legislation targeting the state’s LGBT community pushing NBA to abandon Charlotte game.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojVerticalNBA) July 21, 2016

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver voiced his opposition to HB2 in April on ESPN’s Mike & Mike radio show, saying that he found the law “problematic.” During that appearance, he floated the idea that the Charlotte All-Star game could be in jeopardy if the law wasn’t repealed.

“They know what’s at stake in terms of the All-Star Game,” Silver told the hosts. “But at least at the moment, constructive engagement on our part is the best way to go as opposed to putting a gun to their head and saying ‘do this or else,’”

Now, if the Yahoo! report is correct, it appears the effort to engage North Carolina officials constructively has gone for naught.

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