I wonder if they even gave the fans a chance to name the team. I doubt fans of a professional basketball team would willingly name them the Pelicans.
I doubt fans of a pro basketball team would willingly name them the Knickerbockers...or Nets...or Lakers in LA...or Clippers...or Sixers...or Wizards....
Neither does Red Sox...White Sox...Canadiens...Orioles...Blue Jays...Cardinals....Knickerbockers...Nets....Astros...Magic...Jazz.... Many of these names...like Astros, Canadiens, and Magic are chosen because those names are relevant to their home towns...that's a good thing, I'd argue. And that's absolutely positively true of Pelicans for New Orleans, Louisiana.