NBA Votes Against Sacramento Kings' Relocation To Seattle

[dfwabel]

I'm sure the NBA's relocation fee is included in the price.

Relocation fees are discretionary and determined by the NBA Board of Governors. The Board has not met since October.

On a completely unrelated note, who in their right mind pays half a billion dollars for an NBA franchise? Hell, the Boston Celtics only went for $ 360 million, and that's a Chicago Cub-like franchise (i.e., one you simply can't screw up to a point where you alienate the fan base). Sacramento/Seattle would be an entirely different story, and one that's certainly not worth $ 500,000,000 to read.

As evidenced on eBay constantly, sometimes you overpay to make sure you get what you want.

That and this price would include the payoff of 77 million in debt the team owes the city. So it's not technically part of the price. Not clear if the relocation fee is in the price however.

The Kings also are one of 19 NBA teams who also owe the league money. The NBA has a credit program worth $2.3B and a team may borrow up to $125M.

Pera was the last to use it for the acquisition of the Grizzlies late in 2012.

[Brendan]

Accidentally posted in here so might as well edit it to add something relevant...

Hoping this deal goes through so I can head down to Seattle and watch some NBA games.

[Sonofaa]

Where does everyone get those banner graphics with the team logos and trophies???

[JackieMoon]

As much as I hate the NBA, I would love to see this go forward. Back in the mid 90's - last time I watched the NBA, I was a huge Sonics fan.

[MellowTheMyth]

I always had a feeling they'd take Sacramento to Seattle eventually. It will definitely be sad for Sacramento whenever it goes through. I just hope that they do this new Seattle franchise justice, and aren't just doing this to say they've brought a team into Seattle because of nostalgic purposes only. Do it right.

Who would spend $500 million plus millions more on a stadium for "nostalgic purposes only"? I think anyone that goes through the efforts of moving a franchise wants to do a good job.

True, but there are some people that are just so driven on making money that they would go to extremes to do something like this to say they have done something special, but their only motive was to make money and not have a care of how the franchise is handled.

[kajeet]

Where does everyone get those banner graphics with the team logos and trophies???

here you're the third person I helped out with this in like a month.

[DaytonBlue]

I'm happy for Seattle, but dismayed for Seattle.

I sure hope all the history goes back/stays in Seattle; none of this "shared history with OKC" business.

The Thunder should make their own history, which they already have started.

Hope that first OKC/Sonics 2.0 game in Seattle is on National TV.

Then what happens to the Kings history? I'm sorry but the best scenario would be the Jets/Thrashers deal. Kings become Sonics but maintain their long existing history. Thunder take the Sonics history for themselves for good. The shared or just give them the history thing ala Cleveland Browns would have worked if Seattle were getting an expansion team. But it doesn't work with an existing team coming in.

I know as part of the settlement letting Sonics 1.0 go to OKC was some agreement on the history. I knew it included the name and "shared history" but not much more than that. Also not sure if that agreement would apply to an expansion team only or a relocated team.

It's a mess.

Somewhere I read some conspiracy that the NBA would expand to Sacramento immediately after the Maloofs sell to the Seattle interests. The idea was to get Seattle a team back and get rid of the Maloofs. Yes, a theory to be sure.

[The_Admiral]

Stern pretty much hates the Maloofs for getting the NBA to fund the exploratory process for the new arena, getting the new arena all but approved, and then saying oh never mind. Nothing will surprise me with Stern anymore.

[CubsFanBudMan]

Somewhere I read some conspiracy that the NBA would expand to Sacramento immediately after the Maloofs sell to the Seattle interests. The idea was to get Seattle a team back and get rid of the Maloofs. Yes, a theory to be sure.

After the Maloofs held hands with Kevin Johnson and celebrated center court, then dumped from all accounts a perfectly fine arena deal, I could imagine a scenario where the Maloofs are ousted and replaced (albeit taking $500M with them). Assuming that the arena deal in Sac can be revived for a new owner...

So does KC or Vancouver get the 32nd team... (Actually, Stern has expressed regret over the Grizzlies move before...) Anaheim would be another slap in the face of the Maloofs.

Unfortunately, I feel like the Maloofs are going to be this era's version of the Spirits of St. Louis owners. Their small retained piece of the Sonics will probably make them millions over time...

[OnWis97]

Stern pretty much hates the Maloofs for getting the NBA to fund the exploratory process for the new arena, getting the new arena all but approved, and then saying oh never mind. Nothing will surprise me with Stern anymore.

I kinda think Stern single-handily stopped the T-wolves from moving to New Orleans in the 1990s because he did not want boxing promoter Bob Arum in the league.

[dfwabel]

Stern pretty much hates the Maloofs for getting the NBA to fund the exploratory process for the new arena, getting the new arena all but approved, and then saying oh never mind. Nothing will surprise me with Stern anymore.

I kinda think Stern single-handily stopped the T-wolves from moving to New Orleans in the 1990s because he did not want boxing promoter Bob Arum in the league.

True. There were to be the Redwolves, but was stopped.

LATimes link from 1994

The whole idea was insane anyway. How could anyone offer $152 million for a basketball team without a history, a present and a near future, and call it sound financial judgment? And how could the National Basketball Association say with a straight face, "We're delighted to welcome Bob Arum into our exclusive world of ownership?"

The Timberwolves are staying in Minnesota. Arum is staying in boxing. And because of that, you can bet the league office is wiping its brow and breathing a sigh of relief.

The Wolves were headed to New Orleans until last week, when the league's relocation committee examined the finances of Arum's group, Top Rank, and abruptly canceled the Louisiana Purchase. The committee found Top Rank's proposal "a speculative and inadequately financed plan" and will recommend to NBA owners to dismiss the sale.

Now, given a choice of cities, the owners would probably opt for New Orleans. Minneapolis is very cosmopolitan and clean, but this tends to be overlooked from November through March, when the wind chill becomes a bitter pill. They'd prefer gumbo over ice-fishing every time.

But, plain and simple, the NBA couldn't afford to approve this move, given the circumstances.

Because of a drop in scoring and an increase in violence, the league's image isn't exactly on an all-time high right now. And the last thing the NBA needs is another punch to its soft underbelly.

After years of watching teams pack and move from Kansas City-Omaha to Sacramento and Buffalo to Los Angeles via San Diego, the NBA has prided itself on stability. Imagine, then, the potential embarrassment of a team leaving Minneapolis after only five years.

The Wolves had tremendous fan support in the Twin Cities and a decent facility in the Target Center. They just don't have owners with deep pockets and financial foresight.

And then there's the Arum issue. NBA Commisssioner David Stern said he didn't have any problem doing business with Top Rank. But more than one league official said it was near unanimous - that hardly anyone wanted anything to do with Arum, the boxing promoter with the slippery-slick image.

Therefore, the relocation committee did a thorough check of the New Orleans group, hoping to find a measure of doubt, which it says it did.

Arum wasn't New Orleans' only problem. The city doesn't have a suitable arena and wouldn't have one in place in time for next season, although there were plans for a $100 million, state-of-the-art facility. There's also the uncertainty of the New Orleans market and whether the city would support the NBA. Plus, backed against the summer deadline for the 1994-95 schedule, the league had to act quickly.

That's not to suggest that the Wolves' situation is secure, however. There's still the matter of settling the $74 million debt on the Target Center. Stern believes the local government can resolve the financial crisis and find suitable owners who will keep the team in Minnesota.

Remember this: The current Wolves' owners, Harvey Ratner and Marv Wolfenson, can apply for relocation again next March 1.

By then, the league hopes the Wolves will be in the hands of the kind of ownership it can live with . . . either in Minneapolis or New Orleans.

And Dallas and Norm Sonju were to get the Buffalo Braves to be renamed the Dallas Express, but then Buffalo owner John Y. Brown traded the Braves franchise to Irv Levin who owned the Celtics. At the time of the sale in 1978, Levin wanted to be closer to his asset.

[MadmanLA]

Stern pretty much hates the Maloofs for getting the NBA to fund the exploratory process for the new arena, getting the new arena all but approved, and then saying oh never mind. Nothing will surprise me with Stern anymore.

I kinda think Stern single-handily stopped the T-wolves from moving to New Orleans in the 1990s because he did not want boxing promoter Bob Arum in the league.

True. There were to be the Redwolves, but was stopped.

LATimes link from 1994

The whole idea was insane anyway. How could anyone offer $152 million for a basketball team without a history, a present and a near future, and call it sound financial judgment? And how could the National Basketball Association say with a straight face, "We're delighted to welcome Bob Arum into our exclusive world of ownership?"

The Timberwolves are staying in Minnesota. Arum is staying in boxing. And because of that, you can bet the league office is wiping its brow and breathing a sigh of relief.

The Wolves were headed to New Orleans until last week, when the league's relocation committee examined the finances of Arum's group, Top Rank, and abruptly canceled the Louisiana Purchase. The committee found Top Rank's proposal "a speculative and inadequately financed plan" and will recommend to NBA owners to dismiss the sale.

Now, given a choice of cities, the owners would probably opt for New Orleans. Minneapolis is very cosmopolitan and clean, but this tends to be overlooked from November through March, when the wind chill becomes a bitter pill. They'd prefer gumbo over ice-fishing every time.

But, plain and simple, the NBA couldn't afford to approve this move, given the circumstances.

Because of a drop in scoring and an increase in violence, the league's image isn't exactly on an all-time high right now. And the last thing the NBA needs is another punch to its soft underbelly.

After years of watching teams pack and move from Kansas City-Omaha to Sacramento and Buffalo to Los Angeles via San Diego, the NBA has prided itself on stability. Imagine, then, the potential embarrassment of a team leaving Minneapolis after only five years.

The Wolves had tremendous fan support in the Twin Cities and a decent facility in the Target Center. They just don't have owners with deep pockets and financial foresight.

And then there's the Arum issue. NBA Commisssioner David Stern said he didn't have any problem doing business with Top Rank. But more than one league official said it was near unanimous - that hardly anyone wanted anything to do with Arum, the boxing promoter with the slippery-slick image.

Therefore, the relocation committee did a thorough check of the New Orleans group, hoping to find a measure of doubt, which it says it did.

Arum wasn't New Orleans' only problem. The city doesn't have a suitable arena and wouldn't have one in place in time for next season, although there were plans for a $100 million, state-of-the-art facility. There's also the uncertainty of the New Orleans market and whether the city would support the NBA. Plus, backed against the summer deadline for the 1994-95 schedule, the league had to act quickly.

That's not to suggest that the Wolves' situation is secure, however. There's still the matter of settling the $74 million debt on the Target Center. Stern believes the local government can resolve the financial crisis and find suitable owners who will keep the team in Minnesota.

Remember this: The current Wolves' owners, Harvey Ratner and Marv Wolfenson, can apply for relocation again next March 1.

By then, the league hopes the Wolves will be in the hands of the kind of ownership it can live with . . . either in Minneapolis or New Orleans.

And Dallas and Norm Sonju were to get the Buffalo Braves to be renamed the Dallas Express, but then Buffalo owner John Y. Brown traded the Braves franchise to Irv Levin who owned the Celtics. At the time of the sale in 1978, Levin wanted to be closer to his asset.

And the man who brokered the Celtics-Braves franchise swap, which cleared the way for the Braves' relocation to San Diego...

David J. Stern

[rvrdgsfn]

Not so fast, there could be an owner to save them...

http://www.cbssports...m-in-sacramento

Mark Mastrov, the founder of 24-Hour Fitness who finished second to Joe Lacob and Peter Guber in bidding for the Warriors, told CBSSports.com Friday that he has interest in buying the Kings and keeping the franchise in Sacramento.

"Definitely, there've been conversations," Mastrov said from his northern California office. "Definitely, there's interest in acquiring the team and keeping it in Sacramento."

Mastrov met with the Maloofs recently, and two league sources speaking on condition of anonymity said he has made a formal offer.

Although he only has a net worth of $350 million, not enough... Wait there's more!

http://www.sactownro...trov/in/3620295

Dale Kasler tweets that Sleep Train CEO Dale Carlsen is also out there as a potential local buyer.

UPDATE 3:03 PM:

Rob McAllister tweets that former Kings Exec. Greg Van Dusen and his group are interested in buying the team and will submit an offer.

EDIT: It kind of makes me think... Where were these guys when this first happen?

[raysox]

Works for me, Seattle is a better market. Also I want the Seahawks/Sounders color scheme used for all teams Seattle(looking at you Mariners), but the Sonics did good with green and yellow.

[bosrs1]

Works for me, Seattle is a better market. Also I want the Seahawks/Sounders color scheme used for all teams Seattle(looking at you Mariners), but the Sonics did good with green and yellow.

Seattle is a better market than Sacramento? How so? Did Seattle offer to pay $275 million of the $350 million arena with public funds (and arrange for private partners to pay the rest)?

[IceCap]

Works for me, Seattle is a better market. Also I want the Seahawks/Sounders color scheme used for all teams Seattle(looking at you Mariners), but the Sonics did good with green and yellow.

Seattle is a better market than Sacramento? How so? Did Seattle offer to pay $275 million of the $350 million arena with public funds (and arrange for private partners to pay the rest)?

Seattle's a larger tv market.

[Gothamite]

That's incontrovertible, but isn't the NBA a gate-driven league? I really don't know for a fact, but that was floated when they traded the eighth largest market for the forty-seventh.

Television markets might not actually matter as much to the NBA.

[IceCap]

That's incontrovertible, but isn't the NBA a gate-driven league? I really don't know for a fact, but that was floated when they traded the eighth largest market for the forty-seventh.

Television markets might not actually matter as much to the NBA.

That's true, but it is worth noting, I think.

[crashcarson15]

Works for me, Seattle is a better market. Also I want the Seahawks/Sounders color scheme used for all teams Seattle(looking at you Mariners), but the Sonics did good with green and yellow.

Seattle is a better market than Sacramento? How so? Did Seattle offer to pay $275 million of the $350 million arena with public funds (and arrange for private partners to pay the rest)?

One city's decision to fit the massive bill for a private sports team contrasted to another's decision not to does not make one market better than the other.

[DaytonBlue]

I suppose we haven't heard too much about these buyers to keep them in Sacto since the Maloofs were supposedly not selling.

We've been maloofed again!