NBA to Take Over Hornets?

[Mings]

I heard there was one cable system north of Lake Pontchartrain that was holding out on Cox (snort).

Could be. I don't make it up there that often.

[The_Admiral]

Is that area particularly affluent relative to the rest of metro New Orleans, Josh? The NBA is a league of the upper middle class, and not being able to make any inroads into the one part of the region that might actually have some money could prove critical.

[Lights Out]

What I want to know is why the NBA was so happy to force George Shinn out in New Orleans, but they're perfectly content with allowing guys like Heisley and Sterling embarrass the league with their incompetence.

/Secretly hoping that Sterling's their next target for a hostile takeover.

[BrianVlietDesign]

George Shinn, noted franchise ruiner.

Evidence: Runied Hampton Roads/Norfolk's bid for an NHL club in 1996.

[McCall]

What I want to know is why the NBA was so happy to force George Shinn out in New Orleans, but they're perfectly content with allowing guys like Heisley and Sterling embarrass the league with their incompetence.

/Secretly hoping that Sterling's their next target for a hostile takeover.

They didn't force Shinn out. He decided to sale the team after surviving cancer. He decided to use his money in other ways, I think towards research or something. But it was his decision and he made about a year ago or so. This all happened because the minority owner, what's his name, who was gonna buy them now can't.

[Lights Out]

My bad. It's been portrayed around the Internet that he was forced out, so you can imagine my confusion.

[The_Admiral]

I don't know if Shinn was "forced out," but he certainly wasn't in good standing by the end of his time in the NBA. Running out of money is what forced Stern to foreclose on his team more than anything (though all that grousing about wanting to get out of New Orleans couldn't have helped). Sterling is a rat bastard, but he's not broke.

[Mings]

Is that area particularly affluent relative to the rest of metro New Orleans, Josh? The NBA is a league of the upper middle class, and not being able to make any inroads into the one part of the region that might actually have some money could prove critical.

A lot of people did move to the Northshore after Katrina...particularly Mandeville and Covington. There are still affluent areas in the Garden District (pretty much where all the celebrities live), Uptown, French Quarter and then some parts of Metairie.

[rvrdgsfn]

George Shinn, noted franchise ruiner.

Evidence: Runied Hampton Roads/Norfolk's bid for an NHL club in 1996.

Yup, to think if he didn't mess up, Norfolk could've had the NHL.

[Eye]

George Shinn, noted franchise ruiner.

Evidence: Runied Hampton Roads/Norfolk's bid for an NHL club in 1996.

Ok, I'll bite.

I've heard about Shinn's tenure as Hornets owner, his fallout in Charlotte, wanting to leave New Orleans, etc. so what's the story on this one?

[Eye]

What I want to know is why the NBA was so happy to force George Shinn out in New Orleans, but they're perfectly content with allowing guys like Heisley and Sterling embarrass the league with their incompetence.

/Secretly hoping that Sterling's their next target for a hostile takeover.

Come on though, Sterling can't be that bad of an owner; the Clippers are on the fringe, man. Just one piece away from being a title contender.

[dfwabel]

Is that area particularly affluent relative to the rest of metro New Orleans, Josh? The NBA is a league of the upper middle class, and not being able to make any inroads into the one part of the region that might actually have some money could prove critical.

A lot of people did move to the Northshore after Katrina...particularly Mandeville and Covington. There are still affluent areas in the Garden District (pretty much where all the celebrities live), Uptown, French Quarter and then some parts of Metairie.

Parts of Slidell and St. Tammany Parish still cannot get games due to the fact that the team's TV deal is with are produced by one cable outlet (Cox Sports Television), while it is not carried by their local cable operators (Charter and Comcast) or on DirecTV.

What I want to know is why the NBA was so happy to force George Shinn out in New Orleans, but they're perfectly content with allowing guys like Heisley and Sterling embarrass the league with their incompetence.

/Secretly hoping that Sterling's their next target for a hostile takeover.

Come on though, Sterling can't be that bad of an owner; the Clippers are on the fringe, man. Just one piece away from being a title contender.

When the team returned to New Orleans, a local business man named Gary Chouest became a minority owner (35%). He bid to buy out Shinn, but that is where the problems came in.

Gary Chouest is an heir to his father's ship-building operation, Edison Chouest Offshore. Edison Chouest Offshore is privately held and is presumed to be owned entirely by the Chouest family. Since it isn't public, the company doesn't release financial statements, so it's difficult for the NBA to calculate the value of the company, and even tougher to calculate Gary Chouest's net worth.

Plus, it still seemed that Chouest was worried about the ability to own a team and run his other businesses, in addition to the new CBA negociations.

I use the following quote from another site, but anyone could see where he or his company contributes on OpenSecrets.org

Chouest is a strong supporter of Gov. Bobby Jindal, and his companies and close relatives gave $132,500 to Jindal's campaign over 2007 and 2008. Gary is the biggest donor to federal elections in the State of Louisiana, and most of his money goes to Republicans. He and his family have given thousands to almost every single major Republican on the national scene, from John McCain to George W. Bush to Trent Lott.

In the past year, Gary has given the maximum yearly contribution to most Louisiana Congresspeople and has given thousands to Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Alaska Rep. Don Young, the legendary king of pork-barrel spending. An unlikely recipient of Chouest's largesse is Elijah Cummings, a Democratic congressman from Maryland. He seems out of place in this cavalcade of Republican candidates and organizations from Louisiana and Alaska. A quick trip to Rep. Cummings's Wikipedia page provides some insight: he's the Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, and as such would be in charge of doling out Federal shipbuilding contracts.