New court at the New Orleans Arena

[LMU]

There was NO talk of the Hornets leaving New Orleans prior to Hurricane Katrina and they are only in Oklahoma City because of Hurricane Katrina. Therefore, the attendance argument is irrelevant.

There was in fact talk of a move. The Hornets were one of the teams rumored to move to the new Sprint Center that is being built in Kansas City.

And, here's another addition to icecap's scoreboard: population base. Oklahoma City has a population of 528,042, with a metropolitan area of 1.3 million residents. The population of the city, smaller to begin with, is only rumored to reach as many as 300,000 at the end of 2006, and with a metropolitan area far fewer tan the 1.3 or so million they had pre-Katrina. Plus, the remaining population obviously has higher concerns at the moment than to support a basketball team.

OKC-4, NOLA-0

Yes, it's sad that the Hornets have to leave, but this is a capitalist nation, and you can't expect a team to return to a dire economic existance because of a feel-good story. That's just irresponsible.

[rams80]

There was NO talk of the Hornets leaving New Orleans prior to Hurricane Katrina and they are only in Oklahoma City because of Hurricane Katrina.  Therefore, the attendance argument is irrelevant.

That was either willful ignorance on the behalf of the New Orleans media or because it looks real bad if a team leaves after 2-3 years. I saw plenty of pre-Katrina talk that the New Orleans Hornets might not be long for the world. Attendance is a very valid concern-the team didn't have fans before the hurricane wrecked the city, how are we to expect them to draw any better now?

And yes, the OKC patch is a slap in the face to us--especially since they removed "New Orleans" from the home jerseys.  There is NO mention of New Orleans on the home jerseys--not even a patch commemorating the victims of Hurricane Katrina.  After 9-11, the Mets and Yankees wore patches in rememberance of that tragedy.  You would think that our own team would have SOME kind of acknowledgement on their home uniforms about their home city.

I thought it was typical to see the nickname on the home jerseys and the city name on the roadies (I could be completely mistaken on this practice, though. Also, you have to do something to recognize Oklahoma City on the jerseys, its in the team name this year; it may even be part of that NBA bylaw that requires teams playing 25+% of their games in another market to include that market in the team name.

And we didn't take them from Charlotte--the Hornets willingly moved.

The Saints and Hornets WILL return to New Orleans--where they belong.

And a move to OKC would be different how?

From what I've seen, both teams would have ended up moving within five years to a decade pre-Katrina. If anything, the hurricane might have bought you some time with them because of the additional negativity a move would incur. (Although I think the NFL is gonna go one year full-time in N.O., realize it can only support one Green Bay size market, and that it should take the one that is community owned and would sell out if you trotted out a Pop Warner team every week.)

[IceCap]

There was NO talk of the Hornets leaving New Orleans prior to Hurricane Katrina and they are only in Oklahoma City because of Hurricane Katrina. Therefore, the attendance argument is irrelevant.

As was ponited out above, there was plenty of talk concering the Hornets moving from NOLA prior to Katrina. Also, to say attendence figures are irrelevent when disscussing the relocation of a team shows a lot of A) False hope, and/or B)Civic pride taken to dangerous levels.

And yes, the OKC patch is a slap in the face to us--especially since they removed "New Orleans" from the home jerseys.

Most NBA teams have the team name on the home jersey. Also, the OKC patch was the least they could do to honor OKC for adopting the team as their own AND treating it better then NOLA ever did.

And we didn't take them from Charlotte--the Hornets willingly moved.

And if the Hornets decided to stay in OKC, how would that be different?

[CityOfWalrus]

"Imitating George Shinn"

You know OKC has been a good place to be but you know I really wanna move back to where my team was a losing team, the fans were not coming to the games even when they had money and I really just wanna not make money anymore.

Hint of Sarcasm?

The Hornets belong in OKC, it just took a couple of years and a hurricane to prove it. Get over it NOLA_Nore they're gonna stay for good.

[NOLA_Nole]

For those that love to point out that the team name goes on the home jerseys and the city goes on the away jerseys . . . after the Hornets moved to New Orleans, the organization said that they'll keep "New Orleans" on both jerseys because they were so proud of their new city. If y'all remember, they had "Charlotte" on both jerseys before they moved to New Orleans. Do you REALLY think that they would have put "Hornets" on their home jerseys had Katrina never happened?

I really don't know where y'all are getting this idea that there was plenty of talk about the Hornets leaving New Orleans prior to Katrina. I was in New Orleans prior to Hurricane Katrina, and I did not hear any of this. If it existed, it was not coming from the Hornets organization.

There was a sign at the Hornets game in New Orleans last Wednesday: "You're OK, but the answer is still NO!"

Shinn and Stern both re-committed to New Orleans and said that the move to Oklahoma City was only temporary. Want proof? David Stern's press conference: http://boss.streamos.com/wmedia/nba...sser_060308.asx George Shinn's press conference: http://boss.streamos.com/wmedia/nba...nets_060308.asx

Oklahoma City can enjoy OUR team for another year, but then they will return.

To lose either the Saints or the Hornets would be a tragedy on top of a tragedy.

[IceCap]

Shinn and Stern both re-committed to New Orleans and said that the move to Oklahoma City was only temporary. Want proof? David Stern's press conference: http://boss.streamos.com/wmedia/nba...sser_060308.asx George Shinn's press conference: http://boss.streamos.com/wmedia/nba...nets_060308.asx

It's called PR. They arn't going to say "We're going to OKC, sorry." By saying they plan on returning to NOLA they basically have dogged a PR bullet. Also, when they initaially planed on playing a season or two in OKC I don't think Shinn or Stern had any idea who well OKC would receive the team. OKC has blown away any expectations Shinn and Stern may have had. Now that Shinn is situated in OKC, and seeing how much better off the team is there, I promise you he is seriously considering staying put. All he has to do is look at the bottom line: OKC wins, NOLA comes up short.

To lose either the Saints or the Hornets would be a tragedy on top of a tragedy.

Congradulations. By comparing Hurricane Katrina with the loss of a sports franchise you have cheapened all that you city has gone through.

[McCall]

To lose either the Saints or the Hornets would be a tragedy on top of a tragedy.

Hey, don't get me wrong, I absolutely admire your dedication to your team. I just don't want you to get the all hoped up and then let down for a big fall it they do move. Keep the faith, there's nothing wrong with it. But it just doesn't make sense RIGHT NOW to worry about basketball. I would have no doubt NOLA would probably be the first choice of expansion in the next "round" if the Hornets were to make the move permanent.

Keep up hope, but don't block out the obvious points that go against what your hoping for. Just keep a sense of reality, I guess. Sounds like you have a lot more to worry about right now, too. If you're a "Katrina Refugee", I wish you the best of luck and hope you get all the truly importants things worked out and going for you.

As far as this quote I selected above, don't even try to compare both of them as tragedies. If the Hornets leave, that's not a tradedy. Being short one professional sports team, not a tragedy. People losing their homes, their businesses, their way of life, and unfortunately for some, their lives, is a tremendous tragedy. Because of your situation and what you've gone through, I don't believe your being stupid or irrational, just a little too hopeful for things that really DON'T matter in the long run.

Always remember these words:

"Keep Truckin. Yeah, that's...that's good stuff." - Frank the Tank, "Old School"

[StoneRaizer]

It's sad to think that New Orleans should lose the Hornets and Saints, but after Katrina the city has more important things to worry about than a basketball and football team. What happens if another hurricane hits New Orleans within the next few years? Let another city babysit their sports teams again?

New Orleans already has college football and basketball in an economy that can support it. In the post-Katrina New Orleans it's going to take years, if not decades to rebuild the city to a pre-Katrina state. The NBA and NFL should sign some sortof agreement with the city that guarantees New Orleans an expansion team if/when they feel the city can adequately support it.

For the sake of the NFL, NBA and their fans, the Hornets should stay in Oklahoma City permanently and the Saints should move to Los Angeles.

[The_Admiral]

For those that love to point out that the team name goes on the home jerseys and the city goes on the away jerseys . . . after the Hornets moved to New Orleans, the organization said that they'll keep "New Orleans" on both jerseys because they were so proud of their new city.

They say "New Orleans" on the road and alternate uniforms. I think that's fair.

To lose either the Saints or the Hornets would be a tragedy on top of a tragedy.

Oh, man.

[LMU]

For those that love to point out that the team name goes on the home jerseys and the city goes on the away jerseys . . . after the Hornets moved to New Orleans, the organization said that they'll keep "New Orleans" on both jerseys because they were so proud of their new city.

They say "New Orleans" on the road and alternate uniforms. I think that's fair.

Especially considering that the team is officially known as the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets.

[rockchalk]

I like the quote from the article asking why anyone would think George Shinn would be such a heartless guy to move a team after a disaster like that. Um, does that guy realize how New Orleans got the Hornets?? Which team has the record for the most consecutive sellouts in NBA history *thinking* oh yeah, the CHARLOTTE HORNETS. However, Shinn tried to shove a new arena down the throats of the Carolinans right as he was going through his sexual harrasment case, all while moving out of the state. Yes, this is the same guy. Why would he change in about a seven year period?

[RichardWitham]

To lose either the Saints or the Hornets would be a tragedy on top of a tragedy.

{dr phil} i am stupified {/dr phil}

[HatCityEnforcer]

To lose either the Saints or the Hornets would be a tragedy on top of a tragedy.

Wow...just wow