NBA’s Hornets sorry after giving child PS5 before taking it back off camera

The Charlotte Hornets have apologized for an in-game skit gone wrong where a young fan was promised a PlayStation 5, only to have it taken off camera.

The incident happened during the second quarter of Monday’s game against the Philadelphia 76ers when Hugo, the team’s mascot dressed as Santa Claus, brought a 13-year-old fan onto the field. After a letter to Santa requesting a PS5 was read aloud, a cheerleader presented the console, prompting cheers from the crowd and visible excitement from the boy.

But the joy quickly faded when a Hornets employee took the console back after the cameras stopped rolling and instead handed the boy a jersey, according to witnesses and a viral social media post. The confusion was said to have left the boy, his family and even team performers bewildered.

Alexei Phillips, the boy’s uncle and season ticket holder, told Queen City News that the family had been approached by staff earlier in the competition to participate in the skit. Although Phillips was quietly informed just before the skit that the boy would not be keeping the PS5, this crucial detail was not shared with his cousin.

“Everyone thought he was keeping it – cheerleaders, dancers, everyone,” Phillips said. “When they took it down, people thought it was a joke. Then they realized that wasn’t the case.”

The incident sparked outrage on social media after a bystander’s post about the skit was viewed more than 3.4 million times on Tuesday evening. Fans criticized the Hornets for what many called a misleading and “Grinch-like” gesture.

The Hornets publicly apologized Tuesday and acknowledged their mistake. “During last night’s game, there was an on-field skit that missed the point,” the team said said in a statement. “The skit involved poor decision making and poor communication. Simply put, we turned the ball over and apologize.”

The team promised to make up for it by giving the boy the PS5 he was promised, along with a VIP experience at a future game.

Phillips said the Hornets have since contacted him and his cousin and expressed their regret for the accident. “There are no hard feelings,” he said. “But this could have been avoided if they had just given him the jersey on the field. He would have been happy.”

The Hornets lost to the Sixers 121-108 in Monday’s game and fell to 7-19 on the season.