Spurs make top 10 list of NBA teams
By William Pack - Express-News
Strong management, consistent team performance, a commitment to customer service and the absence of big-league compe ion have helped make the San Antonio Spurs one of the top valued teams in the NBA, analysts said Thursday.
“Without question, they are the model small-market franchise in the NBA,” said Kurt Badenhausen who co-authored a Forbes report on the business of basketball this month. That report includes an updated estimate of the value of the 30 NBA teams.
It ranked the Spurs 10th in the league, with a value of $415 million, up more than 2 percent from the valuation the team got last year. The Spurs also ranked 10th in 2007, ahead of teams such as Atlanta, Washington and Philadelphia in much larger media markets.
San Antonio — whose media market ranks 37th nationally in the most recent Nielsen estimates, slightly behind Salt Lake City and a few slots ahead of Oklahoma City and Memphis, Tenn. — is the only small-market team in the top 10.
Paul Swangard, who heads the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon, said a business's value “always starts with good ownership,” and the Spurs have that.
Peter Holt, majority owner of the Spurs since 1996, has created “good hometown appeal,” Swangard said, by keeping the same staff intact a long while, maintaining a solid core of highly regarded players and focusing his attention on what fans want.
“They are a very fan-friendly franchise,” Swangard said.
Forbes concurred with Swangard's assessment, ranking Holt as one of the league's four best owners, just behind Les Alexander, who owns the Houston Rockets.
The Spurs revenue reached $138 million in the 2007-2008 season, tied for 10th best among NBA teams with the Toronto Raptors, and their operating income, or profits before interest, taxes and depreciation are paid, hit $19 million, ninth best.
Badenhausen and Swangard agreed that winning on the court contributes considerably to a team's market success. And the Spurs' consistency as a winner is unmatched in recent years, Badenhausen said.
But the compe ion a team gets from other professional franchises also affects the bottom line, and Badenhausen called the Spurs “the only show in town.”
San Antonio also is home to a WNBA team and to two minor league franchises.
The Spurs earn strong revenues off their arena deal at the AT&T Center, which can make a big difference in a team's profitability, Badenhausen said.
The nation's economic turmoil is likely to affect team revenues, if not this year then in the 2009-2010 season, Badenhausen said. But the “elite” teams will perform better than those that are struggling, he said.
This explain the reluctance Holt showed to go over the luxury tax.The Spurs revenue reached $138 million in the 2007-2008 season, tied for 10th best among NBA teams with the Toronto Raptors, and their operating income, or profits before interest, taxes and depreciation are paid, hit $19 million, ninth best.
19M$ is not that much considering it's gross margin.
Best find of this year Imo 228. Ill be the first to say. I dont pay much attention to how much teams can pay their players or cant. Im always a look on the court and the talent first kind of man. For me money has never mattered. The rich get richer, and the poor get poorer. I read an article yesterday in ATL. They had less then 6,000 people show up for a game. Yes it was ATL vs Mem. But only 6,000? Guess maybe Im spoiled. And I know Im rough in my ways. Once again. For me its the best article Ive ever seen you put up girly.......thanks. And gosh dangit.......I mean it.
And that was good for 10th in the league just 1 million below Boston.
That's a really good NBA profit number.
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