Puddy Posted April 14, 2006 Share Posted April 14, 2006 Stern: Seattle 'not interested in having the NBA there' By BRIAN MAHONEY, AP Basketball Writer April 13, 2006 NEW YORK (AP) -- David Stern gave another warning that the SuperSonics could eventually leave Seattle, saying Thursday that the city is, "not interested in having the NBA there." The NBA commissioner also touched on the situations regarding the Trail Blazers and Hornets during a conference call, but his strongest words were saved for the Sonics' future in Seattle. ADVERTISEMENT Stern has said the Sonics' lease with the city is the worst in the NBA, and he went to Seattle in February to ask Washington state lawmakers for tax money to renovate Key Arena. Sonics owner Howard Schultz, the chairman of Starbucks Corp., has threatened to move or sell the team if state lawmakers don't approve a sales-tax package to pay for a new or renovated arena. But state lawmakers last month said there would be no deal this year. "I would say that the city is making it pretty clear of what they want us to do, and we'll accommodate them," Stern said. Asked what that meant, Stern responded: "What I mean is they're not interested in having the NBA there. We understand that, we understand that there are competing issues, and the mayor is free to make whatever decisions he needs to make and I support that. "But that's a pretty strong signal and I think that the existing ownership has said they don't want to own a team that's not in Seattle, so I know what they're in the process of doing. So we'll just see how this play ends." Marianne Bichsel, spokeswoman for Mayor Greg Nickels, said the city wants the Sonics to remain in Seattle. "The mayor has made it perfectly clear in several interviews given, the Sonics have been in Seattle for 40-plus years, and we would like them around another 40-plus years and we'd like them at Key Arena," she said. "We're in discussions with the Sonics a lot about the situation, but we have a lease through 2010 and we fully expect that the lease will be honored." But once the lease expires in 2010, it doesn't sound as if the league would stand in the way if ownership wants to move the franchise. "It's not a very good lease, to say the least it's the worst in the league," Stern said. "The city says they're not prepared to do anything to improve it. I don't think this is a difficult choice." Also, Stern said he would "never say never" to getting involved again in the situation in Portland. The NBA recently pulled out of the process of trying to help find one buyer for both the Trail Blazers and the Rose Garden because it was frustrated by Portland Arena Management, the lenders who now own the arena. And he repeated that the Hornets will return to New Orleans, even if investors from Oklahoma buy a minority share of the team from George Shinn, saying that he didn't even know how the Hornets would get out of their lease with the city. "I have no idea," he said, "because we're not planning to break it." Associated Press writer Tim Booth contributed to this report from Seattle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted April 14, 2006 Share Posted April 14, 2006 Well, that sucks, but we haven't had a team in 10 years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big John Posted April 14, 2006 Share Posted April 14, 2006 Wasn't that arena completly gutted and renovated in 1995? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted April 14, 2006 Share Posted April 14, 2006 Wasn't that arena completly gutted and renovated in 1995? 1419672[/snapback] Around that time, yes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seahawk37 Posted April 17, 2006 Share Posted April 17, 2006 Seattle is now officially a Football town. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godtomsatan Posted April 17, 2006 Share Posted April 17, 2006 A few fast facts: The Key Arena was gutted and renovated in 1995 to the specifications of the Sonics. The Key Arena was profitable according to the city until the NBA lockout of 1998, since then they have lost money. The Sonics hosted 23 playoff games in Key Arena between 1996 and 1998. They have hosted 10 since 1998 (5 of which came in the spring of 2005). The Key Arena is owned/operated by the City of Seattle. The Sonics went to the State of Washington to ask for redevelopment money. The City and the State do not get along. The Sonics ownership group has offered no plan or solution to this, literally have only asked for other entities to pony up $$$. The Sonics and the NBA are throwing a temper tantrum and it's not going over particularly well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Like Soup Posted April 17, 2006 Share Posted April 17, 2006 Screw those guys. I am very much against using public money to prop up these arenas for professional sports teams. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godtomsatan Posted April 20, 2006 Share Posted April 20, 2006 As an update. The Sonics offered up a proposal to the City of Seattle today to agree *IN ONE MONTH* to their proposal of $220 million in renovations to Key Arena. They offered $18.3 million of their own dollars to the project. That's less than 10% of the project costs. The Seahawks and the Mariners each paid 25% (or thereabouts) of the costs of their facilities. Goodbye Sonics! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonehand Posted April 20, 2006 Share Posted April 20, 2006 (edited) As an update. The Sonics offered up a proposal to the City of Seattle today to agree *IN ONE MONTH* to their proposal of $220 million in renovations to Key Arena. They offered $18.3 million of their own dollars to the project. That's less than 10% of the project costs. The Seahawks and the Mariners each paid 25% (or thereabouts) of the costs of their facilities. Goodbye Sonics! 1428183[/snapback] Yep, Bye Bye Sonics! Hope things are better in... Bellevue. ...Where the Sonics will be building a new stadium in the Overlake/Crossroads area, thereby officially F'ing up Bonehand's commute 41 Nights a year... Edited April 20, 2006 by Bonehand Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OathKeeper Posted April 20, 2006 Share Posted April 20, 2006 .... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wildcat2334 Posted April 20, 2006 Share Posted April 20, 2006 Yep, Bye Bye Sonics! Hope things are better in... Bellevue. ...Where the Sonics will be building a new stadium in the Overlake/Crossroads area, thereby officially F'ing up Bonehand's commute 41 Nights a year... 1428250[/snapback] Crossroads? oh god- seriously? Seattle has come too far in becoming a major league sports town to have the Supes go to Bellevue- There is no f ing room in Bellevue- besides I am in Sea, don't want to go to the Eastside EVER if I can help it. I grew up there, so I can hate on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godtomsatan Posted April 21, 2006 Share Posted April 21, 2006 Crossroads? oh god- seriously? Seattle has come too far in becoming a major league sports town to have the Supes go to Bellevue- There is no f ing room in Bellevue- besides I am in Sea, don't want to go to the Eastside EVER if I can help it. I grew up there, so I can hate on it. 1429083[/snapback] The $75 ticket price for seats more interesting than the couch in front of my TV prevents me from travelling a mile to NBA games now. 8 miles won't keep me from the 1 or 2 a year I make it to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ursa Majoris Posted April 21, 2006 Share Posted April 21, 2006 Stern has said the Sonics' lease with the city is the worst in the NBA, Sure, maybe it is, but if it wasn't then someone else's would be and you'd be biatchin' about that instead. proposal of $220 million in renovations to Key Arena Why not just build a new arena from scratch, because it wouldn't cost much more than this amount. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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