Seahawks21 Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 (edited) I don't know what else to do. I've got to vent. The NBA owners voted something like 26-2 to approve the relocation of my beloved Sonics to Oklahoma City. Oklahoma City?!?/ Oklahoma City?!?!? I just don't get it. Why?!? We are freakin' Seattle. We are Nintendo, Starbucks, Boeing, Microsoft and plenty others. Oklahoma City is bombings. When this first came across, I thought David Stern was ultimately going to be our biggest ally. There is no way he would let something like this happen, right??? I didn't think Stern would even allow a franchise that has been very successful for 41 years to be stolen by rich rednecks and taken back to their little town, let alone encourage and practically plan the whole thing. I think this is a sad day in sports. What's to stop some guy from stealing the Phoenix Suns, or buying the Eagles and bringing them back to Montana with him. Let me get this straight....this guy can buy a team, ask for the most expensive building ever built for sports--- without ever saying how much you are willing to help pay for it, then cry foul and demand to relocate when he doesn't get it? And the commissioner is going to let this fly? This thing is so messed up from so many angles that I don't even know who I should be the most upset with. I lay blame in this order--- 1. Local government---At first, they said that the Sonics had "no cultural value". They would not even allow the issue to be voted on by the public. All the Sonic supporters wanted was to continue the tax that we passed for the Seahawks and Mariners, to recently get them new stadiums. This is a tax, mind you, that is placed on hotels and restaurants. It is a tourist tax. The people of Seattle would have to sacrifice very very little. Furthermore, leadership did absolutely zero to help the cause, and in many circumstances actually helped push the Sonics out the door. Some leaders jumped on the bandwagon really late in the process to avoid being blamed for the whole thing. I don't even want to mention the governor. 2. Howard Schultz--Owner of Starbucks, the guy that sold the team to Clay Bennett . Wow. How can you do such a thing and not know this is going to happen? Nice PR move, suing after the fact, but come on guy. He claimed to be losing $15 mil a year these past few years. BOO freakin' hoo. Franchises appreciate at a greater value then this. Don't forget that he and his boys split a cool $200 mil profit by selling the team....a number that only would have increased every year they own the team. 3. David Stern.---see above 4. The Fans-----I don't know how much blame can come to the fans. True, they haven't been out in droves the last few seasons, but the Sonics have been bad, and nobody wants to give any money to this prick that keeps lying to us. We are hostage, but still, we could have been like Cubs fans and shown up anyways. If you'll notice, I didn't blame Clay Bennett. I think I would probably try the exact same thing if I was a rich guy in the middle of nowhere with no professional sports teams. He is going to be a local hero for this. He and his buddies are the toast of the town. None of this would have ever happened without the previous four factors facilitating Bennett's desires. It sucks that he keeps lying, but most of us knew the guy was lying all along, and knew why, so it really doesn't surprise us. Who knows, maybe they will let the team come back after they fail in OKC after five years. I sure am gonna miss Durant though. Edited April 19, 2008 by Seahawks21 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KevinL Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 As a Cleveland fan who remembers the Browns leaving, I empathize with you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whomper Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 Will you still root for them ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seahawks21 Posted April 19, 2008 Author Share Posted April 19, 2008 Will you still root for them ? To be completely honest, after seeing this pony show, it will probably be many years before I root for anything having to do with the NBA, except for maybe Nate McMillan and Brandon Roy. This is coming from one of the brave souls that has tried to carry the NBA flag very hard for the past few years, when so many people had already given up on the league. I just wish I knew the reason behind David Stern's actions. He obviously has some big problems with someone or something in Seattle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budlitebrad Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 (edited) The NFL and MLB got new stadiums and Stern wanted one too (or at least a renovation), since the current one doesn't bring in much $$. When the local government blocked it, he and Schultz were fed up. Even though Sonics attendance was over 75%, Stern probably liked seeing all the support and sold out games the Hornets got when they were in OKC. Edited April 19, 2008 by budlitebrad Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big John Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 The NFL and MLB got new stadiums and Stern wanted one too (or at least a renovation), since the current one doesn't bring in much $$. When the local government blocked it, he and Schultz were fed up. Even though Sonics attendance was over 75%, Stern probably liked seeing all the support and sold out games the Hornets got when they were in OKC. And Key Arena was completely rebuilt in 1995, leaving only a few key structural members intact.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seahawks21 Posted April 19, 2008 Author Share Posted April 19, 2008 And Key Arena was completely rebuilt in 1995, leaving only a few key structural members intact.. The Key was done on the cheap, and was done very poorly. The funny thing is that two years ago, David Stern told the city that a renovation of Key Arena was necessary. A few months back, when given news about the plan to renovate the arena, Stern changed his story and said that a renovation would not be suffecient, and we would have to build a whole new facility. I may be out of bounds here, but I have a hard time believing that Bennett didn't slide Stern some money to get him to be so against Seattle, all of a sudden. Yesterday, Stern was asked very directly about the emails going back and forth between he and Bennett, and Bennett and his buddies. These emails detailed how it was apparent from day one that he was going to move the team, and never wanted to stay in Seattle to begin with. Stern's reply to the questions was "I don't like to be interrupted, and I don't want to interrupt you, so lets just move on to the next question". Something is rotten. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justin Posted April 19, 2008 Share Posted April 19, 2008 Not only was my favorite franchise stolen away, the league then continued to snub by creating expansion teams in different cities. It was a dose of harsh reality at a young age. While sports are great, "professional sport organizations" are businesses and business is just that, business. Teams relocate, and while that's bad, it may not be as worse as a poor owner taking over a franchise and seeing that same franchise deteriorate. Sorry for your potential loss. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
detlef Posted April 21, 2008 Share Posted April 21, 2008 This is a tax, mind you, that is placed on hotels and restaurants. It is a tourist tax. The people of Seattle would have to sacrifice very very little. This is very faulty logic on your part. For starters, people who live in Seattle dine out in Seattle far more than those who don't live there. Secondly, it bloody well affects all the restaurants and hotels who see the sort of decreased spending that often accompanies increased taxes like this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cameltosis Posted April 21, 2008 Share Posted April 21, 2008 As a Cleveland fan who remembers the Browns leaving, I empathize with you. WURD. And then watch the culprit win a Super Bowl was the salt in the wound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
policyvote Posted April 21, 2008 Share Posted April 21, 2008 The NBA owners voted something like 26-2 to approve the relocation of my beloved Sonics to Oklahoma City. Oklahoma City?!?/ Oklahoma City?!?!? I just don't get it. Why?!? We are freakin' Seattle. We are Nintendo, Starbucks, Boeing, Microsoft and plenty others. Oklahoma City is bombings. That has got to the most audaciously funny thing I've read on the Huddle . . . and I have seen some chit. Peace policy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donutrun Jellies Posted April 21, 2008 Share Posted April 21, 2008 Why?!? We are freakin' Seattle. We are Nintendo, Starbucks, Boeing, Microsoft and plenty others. .... 1. Local government---At first, they said that the Sonics had "no cultural value". I think this may be the heart of the matter -- It's Seattle and the emphasis is elsewhere for the mucketymucks, so the sports teams suffer. Say Seattle and folks think Starbucks and Microsoft -- and you might have more folks say "Fish Market" from the training videos than would say "sonics" ... In Oklahoma City? Basketball will be all they have, so it'll feel more appreciated. Maybe folks thought baseball back in Griffey's hey day when you said Seattle, but it's been a while in basketball ... I think sometimes municipalities forget just how special it is to have a major league franchise -- or it got beaten out of them by being held hostage by unrealistic owners. It's a damn shame if the sonics leave. If nobody went to the games -- like back when I'd go to a Montreal Expos game 70 miles to da nord and be one of 3,000 fans (with our single A affiliate in Burlington, Vermont outdrawing the major league club some nights), I could understand relocation. But c'mon! The sonics draw. Their fans care, even if the city is not gaga about it because of other interests -- the fans come out and they care. This certainly feels like the Browns trapsing off to Baltimore -- and the Browns were loved in Cleveland. Dang. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swashbucklers Posted April 21, 2008 Share Posted April 21, 2008 I feel no sympathy for the city of Cleveland, as they stole my Muskegon Lumberjacks several years ago!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justin Posted April 21, 2008 Share Posted April 21, 2008 Cities don't steal teams, owners do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KevinL Posted April 21, 2008 Share Posted April 21, 2008 I feel no sympathy for the city of Cleveland, as they stole my Muskegon Lumberjacks several years ago!!! Sorry about that one dude. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budlitebrad Posted April 21, 2008 Share Posted April 21, 2008 At least you know it's coming and the team can't surprise you by sneaking out of town in a bunch of Mayflower trucks in the middle of a snow storm. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vt700guy Posted April 23, 2008 Share Posted April 23, 2008 Us Okies sher do preciate yuins givin up dat dere team to us. I'z gonna ride my pony up town and watch dem play sometime. Rekon' u could mozey on down fer a game? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Outshined Posted April 24, 2008 Share Posted April 24, 2008 When Norm Green bought the North Stars and moved them to Dallas. Even worse, he sold the team a few years later just to line his pockets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted April 25, 2008 Share Posted April 25, 2008 (edited) Us Okies sher do preciate yuins givin up dat dere team to us. I'z gonna ride my pony up town and watch dem play sometime. Rekon' u could mozey on down fer a game? It would be pretty ironic if Clay Bennet and his cohorts end up losing the suit filed by Schultz because they didn't realize their emails could prove they breeched the best faith efforts in the contract. I'm not a multi-millionaire business man with ulterior motives, but the first rule of common business sense is to not make incriminating statements in writing. Heard a legal ESPN analyst today on the "them there radio airwaves " state that he was taken aback how much muster the Shultz suit is packing from a preliminary overview . Edited April 25, 2008 by bushwacked Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
budlitebrad Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 SEATTLE -- The SuperSonics will move to Oklahoma City for the 2008-09 season as part of a settlement with the city of Seattle, ending a contentious relationship that resulted in a trial in which the judge was due to issue her ruling Wednesday. The settlement calls for Sonics owner Clay Bennett and the Professional Basketball Club LLC to pay up to $75 million to the city in exchange for the immediate termination of the KeyArena lease between the NBA team and the city. The team's name and colors will be staying in Seattle. "We made it," Bennett said after stepping to an Oklahoma City podium featuring the NBA logo and the letters OKC. "The NBA will be in Oklahoma City next season." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 I was too young in 1978 to give a hoot about the championship. The Sonics were an incredibly entertaining team for me to watch in my late teens through mid 20's'; it was a social event and bonding experience for me and my buddies during the Payton, Kemp, Schrempf, Sam Perkins, Hersey Hawkins, and George Karl era.....can't forget the physical play of Vinnie Askew and Frank Brickowski. Although I have hardly watched the NBA for 10 years, I feel like something is stolen. [Homer alert]Gary Payton was an absolute warrior, and unless you had the chance to watch the guy play the way he did, game after game, season after season.....you can't realize the veracity of the guy. [/Homer alert] The teams name and colors will be staying in Seattle? Great, can't wait to see Payton's jersey retired in Key Arena. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SheikYerbuti Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 [Homer alert]Gary Payton was an absolute warrior, and unless you had the chance to watch the guy play the way he did, game after game, season after season.....you can't realize the veracity of the guy. [/Homer alert] My lasting memory of Payton will be when they played the Bulls in the final. In a press conference, they asked him about guarding Jordan. He said "what's my name? they call me the glove, right? I'm gonna be on him like a glove". Then in the Bulls presser someone read this back to MJ. Michael got this amused/confused look on his face and said "Uh huh. . .did he really say that?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwacked Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 My lasting memory of Payton will be when they played the Bulls in the final. In a press conference, they asked him about guarding Jordan. He said "what's my name? they call me the glove, right? I'm gonna be on him like a glove". Then in the Bulls presser someone read this back to MJ. Michael got this amused/confused look on his face and said "Uh huh. . .did he really say that?" Too bad your dog just died. Boy was he a stupid dog. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
piratesownninjas Posted July 3, 2008 Share Posted July 3, 2008 Us Okies sher do preciate yuins givin up dat dere team to us. I'z gonna ride my pony up town and watch dem play sometime. Rekon' u could mozey on down fer a game? jack.ass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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