It was a year ago today when Seattle’s 41-year-old NBA franchise decided Oklahoma City was a better place to be than Seattle. That sentiment alone was enough to push SuperSonics fans over the edge. How could a dusty mid-west pit stop, located in a big red flyover state be a more attractive home than Seattle, we asked. I mean, Seattle is a hip, iconic city. Pike Place Market, Tom Hanks movies, Eddie Vedder, Kurt Cobain, great coffee, Microsoft. Oklahoma has Bob Stoops, a pretty decent AAA baseball franchise and is the fast food capital of the U.S.
The handwriting was on the wall, though, when former Sonics owner Howard Schultz sold the team to Oklahoman of the Year Clay Bennett and his merry band of oil magnets. And the months of litigation, backstabbing and bad decision making played out in front of fans right up to the day the team picked up and headed East. It was no surprise to anyone who had a couple marbles rolling around in his or her melon. It was your typical hostile takeover, sorta speak, played to perfection. Make the team stink, alienate fans, show everyone you’re losing money because the fans don’t care, go to court, dupe a dim-witted mayor, cut him a check and then load up your truck for OKC.
I’m not going to rehash what happened, why it happened or what can be done next because, to be honest, I don’t have the first damn clue. I don’t know if we’ll see the NBA return to this city in my lifetime. For the NBA to return, it would take an ownership group who doesn’t mind burning piles of money while they spend more of their own cash to build an arena. It would be a pure philanthropic endeavor. You’re not going to get one red cent from state or local governments to upgrade or build an arena. That ship has sailed. There's no broad public support for it and it seems to be too complex an issue for state legislators to truly understand. If nothing else, I’ve learned that state congress is comprised of some of the denser, obtuse people in Washington.
If one actually got over the arena hurdle, he'd still have the issue of the NBA business model – a model in which you can’t make any money without building or upgrading your arena every five years with the hopes that shoe-horning in a couple new restaurants will offset inflating operating expenses. It’s akin to a dog chasing its own tail, but every so often a dog will succeed. Until expenses and salaries are reigned in, the NBA will continue to be a failing business venture for most franchises not named the Lakers.
There are a number of articles in the local media outlets looking back at what happened a year ago and its impact on surrounding businesses on Queen Anne. And surprise, surprise, surprise – many of them are hurting or gone altogether. What? You’re shocked to learn that high school graduations and Seattle U basketball games aren’t supplying the type of clientele who will hit a restaurant or bar and drop $100 on dinner and beers beforehand? I know, it’s hard to imagine that the college students who stand in the beer aisle at Safeway and do the math on how many cans of beer they can purchase with their last $11 are not going to go out to eat out before the big Seattle U basketball game.
The good news for the downtrodden Sonics fan, is that you’re not alone. There are people out there, with no political affiliation, who are keeping hope alive. Tonight, you can join like-minded fans at Floyd’s Place on lower Queen Anne for a rally and DVD viewing party. They’re going to fire up the 1979 Championship Series DVD and celebrate Sonics history. I'm guessing they'll knock back a few beers as well. You can learn more details here: http://sonicsmia.com/.
The handwriting was on the wall, though, when former Sonics owner Howard Schultz sold the team to Oklahoman of the Year Clay Bennett and his merry band of oil magnets. And the months of litigation, backstabbing and bad decision making played out in front of fans right up to the day the team picked up and headed East. It was no surprise to anyone who had a couple marbles rolling around in his or her melon. It was your typical hostile takeover, sorta speak, played to perfection. Make the team stink, alienate fans, show everyone you’re losing money because the fans don’t care, go to court, dupe a dim-witted mayor, cut him a check and then load up your truck for OKC.
I’m not going to rehash what happened, why it happened or what can be done next because, to be honest, I don’t have the first damn clue. I don’t know if we’ll see the NBA return to this city in my lifetime. For the NBA to return, it would take an ownership group who doesn’t mind burning piles of money while they spend more of their own cash to build an arena. It would be a pure philanthropic endeavor. You’re not going to get one red cent from state or local governments to upgrade or build an arena. That ship has sailed. There's no broad public support for it and it seems to be too complex an issue for state legislators to truly understand. If nothing else, I’ve learned that state congress is comprised of some of the denser, obtuse people in Washington.If one actually got over the arena hurdle, he'd still have the issue of the NBA business model – a model in which you can’t make any money without building or upgrading your arena every five years with the hopes that shoe-horning in a couple new restaurants will offset inflating operating expenses. It’s akin to a dog chasing its own tail, but every so often a dog will succeed. Until expenses and salaries are reigned in, the NBA will continue to be a failing business venture for most franchises not named the Lakers.
There are a number of articles in the local media outlets looking back at what happened a year ago and its impact on surrounding businesses on Queen Anne. And surprise, surprise, surprise – many of them are hurting or gone altogether. What? You’re shocked to learn that high school graduations and Seattle U basketball games aren’t supplying the type of clientele who will hit a restaurant or bar and drop $100 on dinner and beers beforehand? I know, it’s hard to imagine that the college students who stand in the beer aisle at Safeway and do the math on how many cans of beer they can purchase with their last $11 are not going to go out to eat out before the big Seattle U basketball game.
The good news for the downtrodden Sonics fan, is that you’re not alone. There are people out there, with no political affiliation, who are keeping hope alive. Tonight, you can join like-minded fans at Floyd’s Place on lower Queen Anne for a rally and DVD viewing party. They’re going to fire up the 1979 Championship Series DVD and celebrate Sonics history. I'm guessing they'll knock back a few beers as well. You can learn more details here: http://sonicsmia.com/.
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