There have been better separations of cities from teams. But the move of the Seattle Supersonics from Seattle to become the Oklahoma City Thunder remains the worst in the history of the NBA. It’s not just the forty years of history, the success of the franchise, the passion of the fans, it’s the way the entire thing went down. Fans not just in Seattle but across the country are still angry over a perceived plot by David Stern alongside Clay Bennett to rob the city of its franchise.
Since then, there’s been a lot of talk about Seattle getting a team back, but nothing seemed substantive. But that may be about to change. The Seattle Times reports that a buyer is in place for a team... and there are plans to move forward with building a new arena, while bringing in a team to play in old Key Arena while the new facility is built. The timeline for all this could start as soon as this fall. From the Seattle Times:A wealthy San Francisco hedge-fund manager and officials in the Seattle mayor’s office have been working behind the scenes for eight months to bring an NBA team back to the city as early as next fall and build a new arena, according to emails and documents that reveal a far more concerted effort than previously known.
A Dec. 13 agenda for a meeting between the parties shows they were talking about details such as a “Review of Basic Deal Structure,” “Financing Issues,” including “City Debt Capacity,” and “Security for Public Financing.”
The documents, released Friday to The Seattle Times under a public-disclosure request, also provide the first glimpse of how the largely unknown hedge-fund manager, 44-year-old Seattle native Christopher Hansen, approached the city about his desire to buy an NBA team and build an arena south of Safeco Field.
In an initial email laying out his vision, Hansen told city officials an arena could be built with minimal impact on taxpayers.
via Local News | Seattle sports-arena talks well under way, documents show | Seattle Times Newspaper.
OK, there are about a million parts to this, and the article lays out many of them so I suggest you head on over to that link to read the full thing. Among the items you’ll read there are things that involve how the city has to come up with a plan that profits the city thanks to a voter-approved initiative in recent years, and... the Sacramento Kings. Apparently the owners that are looking to steal back a team to replace the one that was stolen from them are looking at the Kings, who of course are involved in their own highly complex situation regarding a new arena to keep them in Sacramento.
In order for that to happen there would have be a decision on the part of the Maloofs to sell, something they have not indicated they are willing to do at this point. Their last initiative to move to Anaheim was blocked by the board of governors, and they may wind up getting a new arena, which paired with the new CBA and revenue sharing could stabilize their finances. But if Hansen and company get rolling with a big offer, you never know how things will work out.
It would be interesting to see public reaction to such a move. Everyone freaked out over Seattle losing its team while many feel small markets don’t deserve their teams. Sacramento Kings fans were supportive of the Sonics fans’ efforts to keep the team. But they could wind up losing theirs to Seattle if a number of things fall through. From here, though, it seems like there are too many obstacles that would have to befall Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson’s efforts to get concerned.
But one thing’s certain. The movement to return the Sonics is underway. It’s no longer just talk anymore.