Say Hello to Chuck the Condor, the Clippers’ Slightly Terrifying, Very Strange New Mascot

Didn’t we learn anything from the Pierre the Pelican fiasco?!

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Image via Complex Original
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Remember what happened when the Pelicansintroduced their new mascot Pierre the Pelican to the world back in 2013? Yeah, it didn’t go well. Pierre was one of the most terrifying mascots anyone had ever seen. So terrifying that, within months, New Orleans had to scrap Pierre’s original costume and force him to undergo “plastic surgery” to get a slightly-less-terrifying new look. It was one of the weirdest mascot rollouts we had ever seen.

Last night, the Clippers appeared to try to outdo the Pelicans' mascot fiasco. During halftime of the Nets/Clippers game, team owner Steve Ballmer surprised everyone at Staples Center by taking center court and introducing Clippers fans to their new mascot, the first mascot the team has had since relocating from San Diego to Los Angeles in 1984. And OMG, WHAT IS THAT?!

The mascot’s name is Chuck the Condor, and he is, as his name would suggest, a California condor. A California condor with a gigantic pink head, a big blue beak, and a Clippers cape and uniform. And he didn’t get a great reaction from those gathered at the Staples Center on Monday night. In fact, most people seemed confused by his introduction, and Ballmer had to resort to dunking off a trampoline and giving away a bunch of free Converse sneakers to get the crowd excited:

After the game ended, Clippers head coach Doc Rivers also defended the new mascot and explained why he feels Chuck is the perfect representation of the Clippers:

But sadly for Chuck, almost no one on Twitter agreed with Rivers. The consensus seemed to be that while Chuck isn’t the worst mascot ever—after all, Pierre still exists!—he’s also far from the best. Just scroll down to see some of the best Twitter reactions to his bizarre introduction.

Send all complaints, compliments, and tips to sportstips@complex.com.

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