The fans will show up in Seattle to watch THEIR team, they did, they will again, or at lease some of the 1.2 million people expected to move into the Seattle metropolitan area over the next ten years will (isn't that roughly the size of the Oklahoma City media market?). Showing up, or not, to a meaningless preseason game between the hated Portland Trailblazers (you miss being hated, don't ya) and the Phoenix Suns (the home and away, back to back games with GP facing Jason Kidd were epic contests set in the dead of Winter).
Show up, don't, it does not matter to the Sonics chances. The Blazers would get more respect if they just showed up at Green Lake and played there for an hour, a preseason grab for fans - not so much.
From Steve Kelley's Seattle Times column are three things everybody should hold in their heads when when others around you are imagineering a different picture of the Sonics rising again.
"The next step is really the right putative owner, who really wants to have a team and is prepared to do what it takes, working together with the city, the state to get an arena and get the job done," he said. "I think ultimately there will be [another team in Seattle]. I really do."
. . .
"I don't want to put the whammy on him [Steve Ballmer]," Stern said, "but he'd be a hell of an owner."
. . .
I asked Stern if this could be considered a hopeful sign for those of us who want the league in our town.
"I think it's just an attempt by Portland to do the right thing and show fans a good time," Stern said.
He was asked if he was concerned about a possible boycott of that game.
"I think the fans are entitled to do whatever they want to do," he said, beginning to move away. "It is an independent city. It always has been and I hope it always will be."
Steve Kelley gets the point here!
Here was my email that I fired of AT Steve Kelley when he whined about a possible boycott of a possible meaningless Blazer game:
Mr. Kelley,
When you end your column with,
"And look at it as a very small, but necessary, first step to welcoming back the NBA.", it capped so much that is wrong with your story.
The only first, and necessary first stem is to secure funding to remodel KeyArena. No matter how many fans attended games, protests, courtrooms, it will always and only come back to the arena.
You can call the Blazers your home team all you want, but the NBA will never call that arena a home in its current condition.
This game is no help to Seattle, just to Paul Allen's Portland Trailblazers, and sports writers.
Good luck putting lipstick on that pig.
Mike Baker
Seattle, Wa
Sonics fan
So, I will not expect Steve Balmer to Facebook Friend me anytime soon to lobby for that Blazer game.
Have a great day,
Mike Baker
Sent from my iPhone
Visit me here:
http://ManyWordsForRain.blogspot.com
Posts
6 comments:
RE: King County Executives on "No new taxes for NBA Arena" Yeah, that's definately splitting hairs there, but I thought the taxes expired in 2012. I remember the bonds for Safeco maturing early and the powers that were (HS, and the rest of Star Chamber Sonics ownership)wanted them extended to 2016. I guess you need to straighten me out again.
2012 was the projected date, it is getting closer to 2011 or next year.
They will likely expire before the next full legislature in 2011. If they are not extended this fall, or in next year's short session then Safeco will have to go ask for a "new" tax in 2017 for capital improvements in 2019.
Redirecting that for a few years at Seattle Center, and those other things keep that tax alive, remember, an exhisting tax gets a simple majority, a new tax takes 60% vote.
http://www.publicbroadcasting.net/kplu/news.newsmain/article/1/0/1530791/KPLU.Local.News/Art.Thiel.After.10.Years..Safeco.Field.Worth.the.Risk..Money
Just eavesdropping on the discourse on SOS. I zeroed in on Seafan's comment. Which I whole-heartedly disagree with by the way. There will always be people in denial I guess, even if they're on our side---Whatever that is. Anyway I came across this as is my habit to do since I follow how these things get done around the country. Here we have Madison Square Gardens's $500 million renovation. Which will be primarily funded privately with some concessions from the city and state. This version of MSG was built in 1968 and has been through numerous renovations. This will be the latest.
http://www.msg.com/renovation/
No need for a new arena, or even new taxes.
http://manywordsforrain.blogspot.com/2009/07/they-said-no-new-taxes.html
I know that is not what he meant.
KeyArena does not compete with Safeco and Qwest to meet event expectations of the ticket buying and sponsorship/advertising public.
That is a fact born out by the migration of money to Safeco and Qwest.
Art Theil is right, Safeco is an asset, people like going there for the entire event.
Interesting link regarding the Sprint Center. Boy...if the NBA's finances weren't so screwed up it would almost make sense to have expand to KC and Seattle for Sonics 2.0
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