Charlotte Hornets enters NBA 2K League as Hornets Venom GT

NBA side Charlotte Hornets has unveiled the NBA 2K League brand that it will be affiliated with starting in 2020.

The Hornets Venom GT‘s logo has a ‘V’ that both relates to the brand name and represents a hornet’s head.

A new player has entered the arena??

Welcome to the #NBA2KLeague, @HornetsVenomGT? pic.twitter.com/vSPXSTfiuJ

— NBA 2K League (@NBA2KLeague) June 27, 2019

Hornets Venom GT will unveil its court and jersey designs in the coming months, though it won’t compete in the NBA 2K League until its third season in 2020.

The Hornets’ entry into the league makes it the 22nd franchise, with only eight NBA teams yet to get involved. At the time of writing, this is the only instance of a new team entering the scene ahead of the third season.

Charlotte Hornets first revealed its intention to join the league in April. The second season of NBA 2K League kicked off around the same time, boasting a $1.2 million (£944,688) prize pool with 18 weeks to be played in totality.

The competition added Raynor Gaming as its official gaming chair partner in April, allowing the gaming chair brand to join the likes of Twitch, SCUF Gaming, HyperX, Intel, Alienware, State Farm, New Era, AT&T, Stance and Champion.

Esports Insider says: While it’s (seemingly) still early in the NBA 2K League’s lifespan, more and more NBA teams getting involved should be good for the competition. It’s mostly plausible to assume that the popularity of the league will grow as more traditional NBA teams make the leap – though, with that thought process, you have to think about where the league wants its fan base to be rooted.

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