Reply With Quote
Namely hisMavericks owner Mark Cuban has previously expressed concerns about the market size
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/200....ap/index.html
NBA owners OK Sonics relocation
Story Highlights:
The Sonics could play in Oklahoma City as early as next season
To relocate for '08-09, the Sonics must get out of their arena lease
The Mavs' Mark Cuban and Blazers' Paul Allen voted against relocation
NEW YORK (AP) -- NBA owners approved the Seattle SuperSonics' move to Oklahoma City for the 2008-09 season Friday, provided the team can settle its lawsuit with the city.
The Sonics could begin playing in owner Clay Bennett's hometown as early as next season if they can get out of the remaining two years of their lease at KeyArena.
Owners voted 28-2 in favor of the move, with Dallas and Portland voting against. Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has previously expressed concerns about the market size, and commissioner David Stern said the Trail Blazers, owned by Paul Allen, didn't say why they voted the way they did.
"The vote further confirms that Oklahoma is in the big leagues and can compete with anyone," Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry said in a statement.
The Sonics, who have been in Seattle since the start of the 1967-68 season, will be the first NBA team to change cities since the Hornets went from Charlotte to New Orleans for the 2002-03 season. Stern said although owners understand the move from a larger market to a much smaller one, they "focused on the likelihood of success in Oklahoma City."
Seattle has filed suit trying to force the Sonics to remain in the city until the lease expires in 2010, while Bennett wants to buy out the remainder. The city already has rejected Bennett's $26 million to settle the lease dispute. A trial is set to begin in federal court June 16.
At a news conference Friday, Bennett would not say how much he was willing to offer the city but said he wants a reasonable settlement.
"Step one, I am hopeful we can re-establish communication and some sort of platform to have a meaningful, principled conversation," Bennett said. "Certainly, we're nowhere near that today."
Stern, who encouraged Bennett to make the offer to the city in February, said the league is prepared to play out the remaining two seasons in Seattle. However, he cautioned that would mean a possible loss of $30 million a year for a team playing in front of reduced attendance.
The city's hope is to keep the Sonics in town for what would appear to be two lame duck seasons, to buy time for a group led by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer to find an arena solution and eventually purchase the team from Bennett to keep them in town.
Ballmer's group already has proposed paying for half of a $300 million expansion of KeyArena, with the other half coming from the city and from county tax revenues.
"We know the longer they are in the Seattle, the better the chance they will stay," Mayor Greg Nickels said Thursday of the Sonics.
"I think if we had a group the caliber of one led by Steve Ballmer and we had an arena pot with $300 million available in it, the NBA would have a hard time abandoning a city that's always had pro basketball -- at least for the last 41 years," he said.
"I think the Ballmer group stepping forward was a game-changer for us," Nickels said.
Stern dismissed that idea, saying there was no viable KeyArena plan available. He also wouldn't speculate on a possible return to Seattle in the future if the league expanded or if another team moved.
Bennett is also facing a class-action lawsuit brought by season-ticket holders who say they were duped into buying tickets under the premise the Sonics wouldn't leave.
And this week former team owner Howard Schultz announced plans to sue to get the team back, saying Bennett did not make a good-faith effort to secure a new arena deal as he promised when he bought the team in 2006.
That idea came from e-mails between Bennett and his ownership partners released recently as part of the city's lawsuit, which appeared to show they planned to move the team to their hometown all along. Stern said owners didn't buy that, saying that none "questioned the good faith of Clay Bennett."
Henry said the Sonics will provide an economic boost to Oklahoma by "elevating our national profile and enhancing the quality of life here."
"When we work to attract and retain high-paying jobs and top industries, the NBA label is one more thing we can point to as we market our state to the rest of world. Make no mistake, this is a big, big win for Oklahoma."
Namely hisMavericks owner Mark Cuban has previously expressed concerns about the market size
Cuban doesn't deserve cheap shots for his. Props to him and Allen
Kind of transparent, ain't he?
GO Mark Cuban! He actually knows what will happen if the Sonics move. Bad decision by the NBA. Oklahoma is a tiny market (the ENTIRE state). Seattle's market is actually the size of the entire state of Oklahoma. Stupid Stern and Friends.
Cubes and Paul Allen are absolutely right.
Going from the 14th ranked market to the 40th doesn't make any sense. The nba is doing nothing but telling all the other nba owners if you don't get your crap together with your local governments, this is what can happen.
Sonics belong to Seattle
who the wants to hear about the Oklahoma City Sonics. Stupid. Oklahoma Sucks.
It would make more sense for New Orleans to move, since no one in the city can afford to go see games, and they already were playing in OK.
Yeah, they'll take money away from the Dallas market.
That too.
How about Portland's owner though? If the Sonics move, that opens up a big market for Portland to pursue more.
I am interested to see how long the new fan base remains interested.
The test they ran with the Hornets I feel is an anomaly because everyone KNEW that they were in a way testing out the city. What if the team continues to struggle while they rebuild for the next few years? Are they really going to continue to sell tickets with new fans who have no long-term loyalty to the team when the team isn't winning?
I am no Owner/GM, but I feel like they just shunned the relatively large fan base they had in Seattle, who will likely be so dejected they will in turn end up hating the sonics. Instead, they have a relatively untested market in Oklahoma, a low population state bordering on a state with 3 well established, highly successful franchises.
Stupid and disrespectful IMO. Here I was thinking the NBA was the best run sports organization in the states...
Sorry my friend, that is the NFL easily. NFL>>>>>every other American sports league.
Not quite
NFL>College Basketball=College Football>>>>>>>>>>every other American sports league.
Paul Allen also owns the Seahawks. How do you think approving the move would fly?
This whole thing is so ed. I know my owner is just one of 27 who voted yes, but basically I thought this would be a good time to call Larry Miller one of the biggest sacks of in America, which obviously, makes him one of the biggest sacks of in the world. I mean just look at this repugnant . Sorry bout the small pic, but take care to notice the creepy growth on his left ear.
didn't Grizzles moved from Vancouver to Mem?
"focused on the likelihood of success in Oklahoma City."
After all these decades, were the Sonics a FAILURE in Seattle?
The Sonics, who have been in Seattle since the start of the 1967-68 season, will be the first NBA team to change cities since the Hornets went from Charlotte to New Orleans for the 2002-03 season.
Nobody cared about them.
So technically, that one doesn't count.
It would make so much more sense to just move the Clippers.
I'm curious as to how this might change alignment. Could New Orleans return to the Eastern Conference? Doesn't make sense to send Memphis to the EC and make it worse. I'd like to see New Orleans, a good young and talented team, to get added to the East to give the East another legit conference contender. Milwaukee can go to the West.
Seattle didn't pay to play. Now they'll end up paying a load more a few years down the road to get/steal another franchise. That is, if they want another one.
Business as usual.
How sad.
The nba may be willing to wait out the two year lease agreement but I don't think Bennett will honestly.
And it pisses me off the Stern is taking the stance he is. A 300 million dollar plan with Ballmer at the helm isn't something to scoff at. Nor is it adequete to merely deny that it exists.
Seattle thought it had two more years to work out the new arena deal, and by all rights they deserve that much time.
There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)
Posting Permissions
