Hoopless in Seattle?
The Seattle Sonics and Storm might be loading up the moving trucks…
Late-breaking news from Seattle that the Sonics and the WNBA’s Seattle Storm have reportedly been sold to a group of Oklahoma City-based investors.
The key player in the Oklahoma City group is a businessman named Clay Bennett, who previously was on the board of directors with the Spurs and last season was part of the group that brought the Hornets to Oklahoma City.
According to the Seattle Times, Sonics management told employees they were committed to keeping the team in Seattle, but one of the ownership group released a statement noting that the Sonics would stay in Seattle for the 2006-07, but after that things depend on negotiations in Seattle for a new arena or at the very least a major remodeling of Key Arena. The Tacoma News Tribune has a good recap of how things got to where they are.
According to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, a spokesperson for the mayor of Seattle says they’ll hold the team to their lease, which would keep the team in Seattle through 2010.
So what do you think, Seattle fans? Are we about to see the end of the Seattle Sonics?
21 Responses to “Hoopless in Seattle?”
Jul.18 at 5:00 pm
Sight says:
It’s terrible that owners are moving teams around like it’s a board game. The Sonics have a strong fan base where they are. Spend the money on Seattle and on the fans and get Allen some help. Dag!
Jul.18 at 5:37 pm
Tunez says:
Hey Lang, no credit due?
Jul.18 at 6:17 pm
Lang Whitaker says:
I know what you’re talking about Tunez. You posted a link on a different page to a news story (on a different site) about this. I was nearly finished writing this when I saw your post, so I deaded that comment. Unless you think I’m good enough to see your post and just write this really fast. I mean, I’m good and all, but…
Jul.18 at 6:25 pm
Jack says:
It’s been comin’, really. So many stories and so many places wanting a franchise.
Jul.18 at 7:00 pm
jj says:
Yes Lang, this is the end of the Seattle Sonics. OKC is proving to have such a huge fan base, not to mention that the Sonics have lost 60 mill. the past 5 years. I mean if YOU owned this team, what’d you rather do? I’d move them to OKC in a heartbeat. As much as we care for or are loyal to our teams, we shouldn’t forget this is a business after all, and as such, it’s meant to make money. It sucks, but unless Seattle makes some major concessiones they’re not gonna have this team for too long …
Jul.18 at 7:09 pm
steve body says:
Those of you not from Seattle won’t remember Howard Schultz’s greeting card prose upon buying the Sonics; stuff about “proud tradition”, “getting back to the Sonics I remember as a kid”, “restoring the pride”…and this is the same bean-counting weasel that, through sheer negligence, let Seattle’s most beloved athlete, Nate McMillan, walk to the hated Trailblazers, completely disrespected the mammoth contributions of the Sonics’ all-time best player, Gary Payton, as they traded him to Milwaukee, trod rough-shod on the most exciting, upbeat time in the history of Seattle sports with his whiny diatribes during the two weeks leading up to the Super Bowl (and don’t we all know he did it that way on purpose because that’s when sports visibility was at its zenith?), and now has become Ken Behring-cubed as the fathead who ushered Seattle’s only championship pro franchises out of town. This is a guy who trades - literally - upon his Seattle roots, declaims loudly about Starbucks’ Seattle origins, and has sold himself for years as the archtype of the modern Seattle businessman. A weasel is a weasel is a weasel, folks. And Howard and his ilk are as pure-bred as they come.
Jul.18 at 7:41 pm
BT says:
As a Sonics fan living in the Puget Sound area, this day has unfortunately been in the making for quite some time. While some of the blame does obviously to SBux head honcho Howard Schultz for his inability to politically work with Seattle’s civic government, it’s the old Ackerly ownership group that doomed the team over 10 years ago. It was 1995 when they remodeled Key Arena with absolutely no foresight whatsoever. They kept the capacity low (17,072) so no tenant could share the building (NHL?), thus no competing interests. The suite levels are adequate, but limited, and once Safeco Field and Qwest Field were built, all the corporate money went to those stadiums, especially to the Mariners, whose suites are always filled, while suites in the “Key” are lucky to be half filled on game nights. With that being said, H-Schultz is trying to get public money for a 4th stadium/arena in the last ten years, and with other obvious civic needs, that’s just not gonna happen. So my last wish for the Soups is that they sign The Reign Man for the final campaign in 06-07, and we can go out with some sort of nostalgic bang. It just sucks to think that the squad I grew up is gonna split, and even worse that if I want to catch an NBA game, I’ll now have to drive 3 1/2 hours to the P to watch the JailBlazers…uh.
Jul.18 at 9:00 pm
Tunez says:
All good man, figured you would have had it anyways
Jul.18 at 10:36 pm
Sam says:
What does this mean for the return of the Hornets to New Orleans?
Jul.18 at 11:40 pm
jurishoopdence says:
Sam, it means they can move to Kansas City, baby!
Jul.19 at 12:31 am
Alfredo says:
This means the Hornets return to New Orleans in 2007 like it was planned. There might even be a few more games tacked on to the six in New Orleans in 2006-07. Sad thing is that when David Stern came out and basically blasted the Seattle City Council for not working with Schultz on the arena issue, you could almost see the moving vans in the distance. Anytime a man like Stern (who doesn’t suffer foolishness) comes out like that, expect hard decisions. It’s sad for Sonics fans, but this is what happens in the new sports world: You either give the teams what they want or watch them leave (better known as the Charlie Murphy “Gimme that money” move).
Jul.19 at 1:05 am
Waxtron says:
Now, I’d love it if they came to KC! OKC would be alright with me also. I’d be a lil sad for my indie rock homies in the Seattle area though. But really I want all 3 cities to have teams. I know a lot of people think there are already too many teams.So that being said, even though I am from KC, I think OKC is the best place for them. Why? Because there is no other pro team there. They’d be the only show in town. Didn’t OKC have really high attendance?
Jul.19 at 1:36 am
Gerhard Schroeder says:
Didn’t Seattle waste 1 billion dollars just studying Monorail, only to ultimately trash the project? Too bad they don’t have a few million to spare to keep the NBA, the sport that is a favorite among the black community…
Jul.19 at 1:41 am
RentonSentinel says:
Seattle is losing its edge…
Jul.19 at 1:42 am
Sonics-206 says:
Is Tully’s coffee nationwide?
Jul.19 at 3:42 am
Ron Hitley says:
Lang, ESPN.com totally stole your “Hoopless in Seattle” headline.
Jul.19 at 10:10 am
Mark says:
So there’s no demand for a team in Seattle, yet people are talking about Paul Allen moving the Blazers to his hometown? I don’t get that idea at all…? Sensationalism, that’s what it is.
Jul.19 at 11:24 pm
Mighty says:
He you got Jesus Shuttlesworth! why bother leaving???
Jul.19 at 11:25 pm
Mighty says:
hey you got Jesus Shuttlesworth so why leave????
Jul.19 at 11:56 pm
Althea Peterson says:
As somebody from just outside Oklahoma City, I feel bad for the fans of Seattle. The thought of losing a franchise that you’ve grown to love is terrible. Oklahoma City feels the same way. We adopted a team with one of the worst records in the NBA and grew to love them. The Hornets were the hottest attraction in town and helped local businesses tremendously. Oklahoma City’s never had a major team to be proud of (outside of college) like the Hornets. Well, we found out with the NBA All-Star Game in Nawlins that the Hornets will likely be gone soon from here also. So hey, I’m sorry if we take your team. I wish we could just create a new team like they did with Charlotte, but if Seattle doesn’t make the adjustments the NBA and the new owners want, the city will be partially to blame if the team leaves.
Mar.5 at 2:27 pm
J says:
Please people, lets do something. If you go to any NBA game, take a sign that says “Save the Sonics”. If you dont want to do it, tell someone else. This is bull s*$t. The Sonics need to stay in Seattle!