No more NBA play in Key Arena now. Andrew Hitchcock photo originally posted to Flickr
Seattle teamless, SuperSonic fans abandoned by Stern and the NBA
Oklahoma - Oklahoma - Oklahoma!?! Are you kidding me, the Sonics are really moving from Seattle to Oklahoma? Another professional sports team’s hometown fans who love and support their team are abandoned by a league that does not respect their loyalty. The NBA Board of Goons…I mean Governors approved Clay Bennett and the Sonics’ move to Oklahoma City. In return for not holding Bennett to the current lease, the City of Seattle will receive $45 million, the SuperSonic name, colors, and history. How could the greedy Bennett take history with him to Oklahoma City anyway? The fact that this happened to Sonics fans should not come as a surprise; for more than ten years Clay Bennett has wanted to move to the team to Oklahoma City. After watching how Seattle has been treated by Bennett and the NBA, I hope Oklahoma City’s voters are prepared to be treated the same way.
What really galls me about how this situation went down was Bennett’s demand for the tax payers to pony up millions of dollars for a new arena. Key Arena, was just renovated by the same Seattle tax payers in 1995 at a cost of $75 million. This is a perfect example of an owner claiming “need” for a stadium, when that “need” is really a “want”; good luck Oklahoma City with greedy Bennett. Bennett is not the only guilty party in this sad story.
Howard Starbucks Shultz sold the SuperSonics and placed Seattle’s team in the hands of Bennett, who openly desired to move the team to Oklahoma. Shultz’s sale of the team is an example of poor stewardship; if Mr.Starbuck really cared for Seattle and respected the history of the SuperSonics, he would have taken better care of the team and waited for a buyer who would keep the Sonics in Seattle. It is a good thing Seattle folks are not huge Starbucks coffee drinkers; if I lived in that town today I would find a new and better brand of java. I remember watching great SuperSonics teams led by likes of Shawn Kemp and Gary Payton; for me the Sonics were synonymous with the NBA playoffs and Seattle. Payton and Kemp describe the Sonics’ players close connection with their fans on the Best Damn Sports Show below:
Shame on you David Stern for not looking out for your fans and keeping the Sonics in Seattle.
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4 Responses to “Seattle teamless, SuperSonic fans abandoned by Stern and the NBA”
July 3rd, 2008 at 10:44 am
What a disaster for Seattle!
As UCONN Alumni I followed teh Sonics with Ray Allen being there. This is a major blow to a city that has treated the team and owner very well over the years - mostly when the Sonics sucked (sorry!)
This reminds me of the Colts leaving Baltimore and the Browns leaving Cleveland - I have never liked either team since then. (Sorry again but I love my football)
I hope Seattle is able to do soemthing about this, but of luck.
July 3rd, 2008 at 12:53 pm
When you say that you have never liked either team since then, I hope you’re talking about the Ravens and not the Browns.
The worst is when Ravens fans justify stealing the Browns by using the Colts as an example. “Hey he shot that guy so I’ll shoot this guy.” Only in Baltiwhore.
July 3rd, 2008 at 1:14 pm
The worst part is the precedent this sets for NBA owners in towns that don’t have great arenas. Milwaukee has tried to hold off on rebuilding the Bradley Center — much like how Seattle was reluctant to rebuild Key Arena. What happens when Bucks owner Herb Kohl inevitably sells the team to a guy who wants to put a team in Kansas City (or even back in Seattle if they upgrade Key Arena)? The effect of this could be a game of franchise hopscotch, with teams constantly hopping around the map. If the Hornets weren’t so vital in rebuilding the economy of New Orleans, I’m convinced David Stern would have shipped them off to a different city as well.
The worst part is the fact that the Sonics are moving to such a small media market — OKC is somewhere in the 40’s, and would be the smallest media market in pro sports. What happens when the “newness” of the new pro team wears off? What if the team stinks when it gets there, and people stop going to games?
I think this is worse than the Colts leaving Baltimore — while it was certainly painful for the city of Baltimore after the team literally left in the dead of night, this was a long, drawn out process that tortured Sonics fans for the better part of a calendar year. While the team moving was pretty much seen as inevitable, there was still enough hope left for the fans to not give up on the team, and then they landed Kevin Durant in the draft last year — something that only makes the separation harder.
July 3rd, 2008 at 2:09 pm
Jaymes, I agree with you that the main concern with teams moving is because of Arenas, not because of lack of fan support. With Seattle the Key was renovated in 1995, so the building is only 13 years old. Too me - looking from the outside it appears that the Sonics, um Oklahoma City owner wanted a new stadium because the other two major sports in town received new stadiums. It may be time for some renovations after 13 years and perhaps adding a few more luxury boxes could be added to Key Arena, but I would not want to be the Seattle tax payers who has to foot the bill for 2 new stadiums. I also think we as fans have been led to believe that pro sports complexes means economic growth. Show me the statistics and I’ll believe - until then I believe sports arenas simply move money from other events in the city to the arena and really provide no substantial growth in jobs economic stimulus. I hope that Milwaukee could get their building renovated - so much less than a new crib. Happy 4th everyone.
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