Ok, you might be an NBA fan. You might be a Hornet fan, I am a homer. By that I want the Louisiana team to win. Jazz, Hornets whatever.
But to call the Hornets a professional team is a joke. They are not alone. IMO there is one professional league and it goes by the letters NFL. There may be some others but not the NBA, and not MLB. Both of these leagues have about eight professional teams, and the rest are high priced minor league teams developing players for the big boys.
NBA: Every year teams like the Hornets develop players for the major markets. They then find themselves unable or unwilling to sign their own stars. They con the fans into buying tickets with promice of a future, a future doomed to developing stars for the major markets.
MLB: Almost the same thing happens there.