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The Hornets managed to claw their way back into their first-round series against the Denver Nuggets, winning 95–93 (thanks to two late misses by the Nuggets’ Carmelo Anthony). It was as an improbably a win as they come considering how badly the Hornets played in their first two games of the series and considering that the Hornets were trailing by as much as 16 in the first quarter of today’s game.

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It was when the Hornets were down double-digits early that the I noticed the Hornets had given out voodoo dolls to fans top of the free gold “Fan Up” t-shirts. Now, the voodoo dolls are definitely the most creative giveaway the Hornets have had all season. There’s only one problem: they’re adorned with Hornets colors and logos.

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Now, I’m no expert on voodoo, but the quick Googling I did on the subject confirmed that, if you want to put a hex on someone with a voodoo doll, you dress the doll to resemble the person being hexed, not as yourself. So it’s pretty confusing to see the jumbotron show pictures of voodoo dolls when the Nuggets shoot free throws (pictured below) and urging fans to squeeze their voodoo dolls to hex Denver. The only possible explanation is that the dolls had all-black backs, and black voodoo dolls are meant to repel negativity. But that doesn’t explain why they were used to hex the Nuggets.

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Today, though, New Orleans found a way to win, hex or not. But if the Hornets end up losing this series, New Orleanians will know definitively that their team was cursed. It’s just jarring to think the Hornets may have cursed themselves.

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(All that said, though, the voodoo dolls are still pretty freakin’ cool).

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