Pelicans & Smoothie King Center — NBA on the River

The Smoothie King Center opened in October 1999 as New Orleans Arena, built for $114 million on a block adjacent to the Superdome. The New Orleans Brass, an ECHL ice hockey team, played the building's first home game. When the Hornets arrived from Charlotte in 2002, the franchise returned NBA basketball to the city — the Utah Jazz had played here from 1974 to 1979 before leaving for Salt Lake City. The Hornets played their first game on October 30, 2002, against that same Jazz franchise. Hurricane Katrina struck on August 29, 2005. The Superdome sustained damage to its roof and housed medical operations in areas with poor lighting, leaking ceilings, and soggy carpet. Medical personnel moved to the arena, which had been tested by a wind engineering firm in 1996 and fared better during the storm. The arena reopened one month after Katrina. On March 8, 2006, 17,744 people filled the building for the Hornets' first home game since the hurricane — the Lakers won 113–107. In 2014, a 10-year naming-rights agreement renamed the building Smoothie King Center. The arena has hosted three NBA All-Star Games — 2008, 2014, and 2017 — and the Women's Final Four in 2004 and 2013. For Pelicans games, the building seats 16,867. As of the 2018–19 season, the franchise held a home record of 341–275 during the regular season and 15–9 during the playoffs. The arena's busiest nights are touring concerts, not basketball games.