El N.B.A.: Insulting Latino Names or Smart Marketing?

By Stuart Miller, New York Times

Every March the N.B.A. reaches out to the country’s fastest growing minority with Noche Latina, a campaign to celebrate Hispanic heritage. And every March some bloggers criticize the league for its most visual and commercial aspect: the jerseys worn by certain teams. Instead of translating team names like Heat (Calor) or Bulls (Toros), the N.B.A. simply puts a definite article in front, for a Spanglish touch, with El Heat and Los Bulls.

“Does the N.B.A. really think fans would be baffled by ‘Los Toros,’ ” asked one blogger. “It’s like saying, ‘Yeah, I speako Español.’ La N.B.A. can do better.”

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