The naming rights to Los Angeles’ Staples Center have been sold, it was revealed Tuesday night, meaning that effective Christmas Day, the iconic venue will be called Crypto.com Arena. Well, only officially, that is — because fans are definitely not open to calling it anything else.
For years, Staples Center has been home to the NBA’s Lakers and Clippers, the WNBA’s Sparks and the NHL’s Kings — not to mention, the site of historic concerts and awards shows like the Grammys and the Emmys. So after decades of knowing it as the Staples Center, no one is all that eager to reprogram it in their brain.
“Bless their hearts. We are always gonna call it Staples Center no matter what lil name you slap on the building,” writer Roxanne Gay tweeted following the news.
Bless their hearts. We are always gonna call it Staples Center no matter what lil name you slap on the building.
— roxane gay (@rgay) November 17, 2021
Meanwhile, others argued that if the name were ever going to change, it should honor late Lakers legend Kobe Bryant.
“The only name name the Staples Center should do is calling it Kobe Bryant Arena,” one Twitter user wrote. “It’s the house Kobe Built!”
The only name name the Staples Center should do is calling it Kobe Bryant Arena. It’s the house Kobe Built!
— #LakeShow Rudy (@LakeShowRudy) November 17, 2021
The renaming deal was announced Tuesday in a joint statement by Crypto.com and Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), which owns the venue. For those in Chicago, the situation is all too familiar; many online pointed out that even though the Sears Tower was renamed the Willis Tower in 2009, few “true” Chicagoans ever actually call it by its new name.
“Remember when the Sears Tower was renamed ‘Willis Tower’ and most people didn’t care and just kept calling it the Sears Tower? I feel like that might happen with this too,” one person speculated.
Remember when the Sears Tower was renamed ‘Willis Tower’ and most people didn’t care and just kept calling it the Sears Tower? I feel like that might happen with this too. https://t.co/mQJdBJopF9
— Nick and The 50 Wins Of Shida (@FearlessRiOT) November 17, 2021
You can check out more defiant reactions to the Staples Center news below.
Your momma named you Staples Center. I’m going to call you Staples Center.
— KC (@KarenCivil) November 17, 2021
It’s not that L.A. is attached to the name of an office supply store, it’s that many of the greatest moments in L.A. sports history have occurred in a building we’ve called “Staples Center”for over 20 years. We’re not going to call it https://t.co/sPEtlkDkFI Arena in a few days.
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) November 17, 2021
it’ll always be called Staples Center idc
— LakeShowYo (@LakeShowYo) November 17, 2021