It would be so awesome if Durant signed with the Sonics if they make it back to the NBA. Take that OKC Thieves!
Oh I've watched the Sonics doc. Stealing is stealing and Hanson would be stealing the Kings. There is no grey area. If he were to negotiate some kind of deal with the NBA to promise Sacramento a franchise within a year for another team then maybe it's not as bad. But until then Sacramento now loses its only pro sports team and the ramifications will include tons of Sports jobs. Pathetic. If the Maloofs are willing to sell to Hanson then the NBA has a DUTY to seek a buyer in Sacramento that will keep the team in Sacramento!
Like it or not, the NBA is a business. As it stands, the Sacramento Kings are one of the least marketable teams in the league. During their one window of relevancy, the league went out of its way to screw the city and fix the series for the Lakers. It's been downhill ever since. In 2013, what matters is money and room for growth. Seattle is offering all of that and more. To the people saying Seattle is "stealing" this team: really? The ownership group, led by Steve Ballmer and Chris Hansen (the guy who is paying so much for the construction of a new arena, too), has been nothing but open about their intentions: buy a NBA team and relocate it to Seattle. This isn't a Clay Bennett/OKC type deal where new owners sweep in, act out a half-assed "We want to stay in City X, but can't if we don't get the most expensive arena ever built," routine and then move them like they always wanted to. Yes, it sucks for Sacramento. But, the Seattle group has been quite open and the Kings have been on the market for years.
Sacramento is, what, 27th in the league in attendance %? If I recall correctly, Seattle's was low as well when the team was in the pits. I reckon they'll still be bottom tier with this roster, after the first year or so of nostalgia wears off.
Completely false. The Maloofs have made it a point that they were unwilling to sell the team. These new developments change thing but Sacramento has a right to find a local buyer if they are willing to pay the same as Henson.
Hanson isn't stealing anything; he's buying a franchise with the explicit understand that he would move them. Stealing is what Bennett did when he initially promised to keep the franchise in the city, then reneged on that promise and took them elsewhere when he didn't get a new stadium. And for god's sake, I hope they don't name the team the Seattle Rain (or Seattle Reign).
Then if that's the case what if Sacramento now has a buyer in place to keep the team there? Willing to pay the same price? The NBA has to do what's right here or they are just as guilty as they were when Clay took the Sonics.
They've been intractable, true. Unfortunately, the politics in Sacramento also appear to have been pretty dicey. The city was hit really hard by the recession, as with most of California, and it's difficult for politicians to justify any public funds toward an arena for sleazy owners like the Maloofs. They were close to a deal, but fell through at the last minute. If there is a local businessperson in Sacramento who has the $500 million to buy the team, and the money to front an arena in one of the smallest media markets in the country, they should have first dibs. But, where is this person? Larry Ellison's pretty rich and wants a team (shut out by the Warriors). But there's no way he'd keep the team in such a small city. You're correct: two wrongs don't make a right. But where does the fairness stop? The Kings were relocated to Sacramento from Kansas City. The latter, to date, still doesn't have a team despite having built the Sprint Center (light years more modern than the Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento). Should Kansas City also get a team? What about Vancouver? Or San Diego? The quality of play in the NBA is poor enough already; more teams would dilute the talent pool further.
If they made it a point, they were lying, and everyone knew it. The started negotiating to move to Anaheim in 2010, and it was basically public knowledge. In August of this year they were pressuring Virginia Beach voters to accept a tax hike to build a new arena. Now, it's fair to argue that one had to be blind to not see the ultimate intentions of Clay Bennett and his group. But even still, when Schultz sold the team he was very vocal about his expectations, based on his discussions with the buyer, that the team would stay in Seattle. Clay Bennett's group was equally vocal about the same intention. Even though behind the scenes what was obvious was actually happening - the new ownership group was doing everything in their power to make the relationship with Seattle fans (who ultimately controlled the ability to vote for a new arena) as sour as possible while preparing OKC for a move. Then on top of all that, the city still had the lease leverage. And yes, they got some money out of letting them out of their lease early, but many believe the mayor effectively stabbed them on the back in that negotiation as well. It's a completely different set of circumstances here. Still extremely sad for Sacramento fans, of course.
All I'm saying is give Sacramento a chance. They've been putting Arena packages together without the knowledge that they were now willing to sell. Let them have a chance at matching and if they can't then....then you did everything you could.
Is there anything against letting the new Sonics put up those banners and retired numbers in their own court? They own the name and trademark, so why wouldn't they be allowed to.
The Maloofs had a good rep before all this. They just got unlucky with Bernie Maddoff and the GFC when casino owners were jumping out of windows by the minute.
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Exactly. Bennett lied to get a franchise for his hometown of OKC. Hanson/Ballmer are being very clear upfront about their intentions to move the Kings to Seattle. Nobody's being dishonest here. Have you heard anything at all about a buyer who wants to keep the team there? Because I sure haven't. If the old owners want to sell and nobody local steps up to keep the team there, that's a shame. But the new owners are buying it specifically to move it and are making no bones about that.
