Hornets need savin!!

[2poor]

Abandon the thread 2poor because there is none to be found here.

Public perception does wonders for crafting opinions. Why research? So much easier to repeat.

btw, tomorrow night's game is near sold out. all the $10 tickets are gone.

[Blame Rasho]

You can believe whatever you want to believe 2poor.... that is fine. Just don't expect everyone to believe you esp when we can bring up facts like that the Hornets weren't some crappy team when they moved to New Orleans and when we see the attendance figures that show that people only come to see other stars instead of their up and coming team. Nevertheless, there is a point where there is no real useful dialog can discussed, and it is getting there in this thread.

[NO-KG-AI]

Well, it seemed like as soon as people started to like the Hornets in the city(not sure about ticket sales, just general buzz in the city) the Hornets got major injuries, the stars started complainin, and the team went into tank mode. We draft Chris Paul, and the team goes to OKC before any buzz is created.

If they keep winning, they will be fine, I've already heard people that I didn't know were into basketball talking about the Hornets. New Orleans might be the biggest bandwagon sports fans ever, they don't give a **** about the teams until they win, LSU also....

[RobertGlory]

it's up to us

if we want a team here, we better support it

if not, i can't blame them for wanting to go somewhere else

all we wanted was a fair chance after katrina, and we got it, as opposed to going right to OKC.

i've done my part. i work nights mostly, but i've been four times this season, all on weeknights. i've missed ONE home game that I didn't work during. i was even at the 8,302 game.

[2poor]

You can believe whatever you want to believe 2poor.... that is fine. Just don't expect everyone to believe you esp when we can bring up facts like that the Hornets weren't some crappy team when they moved to New Orleans and when we see the attendance figures that show that people only come to see other stars instead of their up and coming team. Nevertheless, there is a point where there is no real useful dialog can discussed, and it is getting there in this thread.

What? I've been following this closely SINCE THEY MOVED. My opinions are based on being a diehard fan from day one. This isn't about "believing" this is about seeing it with my own eyes and seeing the fans' reactions to the team. The dysfunctional clubs they had prior to Katrina should really have no effect on the great team they've assembled now.

Once they got rid of Baron and Mashburn, had a [then-promising] J.R. Smith, and had just drafted Chris Paul, they were on pace to set New Orleans season ticket records before Katrina hit. Is that something you'd learn by staring at W/L records? No.

I won't even bother getting into how much the shady dealings in OKC set things back, because again, those are not things you can deduce from staring at W/L records and instead actually have to have been following closely and seeing yourself.

[Rah Fentons]

I don't think I've ever read as many ridiculous excuses for not attending games as I have in this thread.

You New Orleans fans are in denial.

[Copperhead]

You Okie fans are in denial.

Awww, don't be so angry.

[2poor]

You should know better than to bother with a known troll Copper.

[Copperhead]

You should know better than to bother with a known troll Copper.

You're right. Not worth my time really.

[Rah Fentons]

Well, about this time next year, you N'awlens boys won't have to worry about inventing excuses for poor attendance.

[Dtown84]

I can see how a lack of a proper television contract could hurt attendance, hell it's killed established teams in other sports and there isn't the bond there yet with the Hornets. Still if attendance doesn't pick up by the time by the time the playoffs roll around, it's going to be near impossible to defend them.

On another note the Hornets are 14-5 on the road, and only 9-7 at home. Imagine their record if they had some kind of homecourt advantage.

[Sedale Threatt]

"If you notice in the article, the attendance figure used is what was averaged here in NOLA before Katrina. Shinn is just asking that we support him like we did before Katrina hit."

This is the whole rub.

How, with the city's general population down substantially, and the economic climate being severely depressed, is this going to happen?

Almost by rule, it's virtually impossible to do more, or even the same, with less, especially when you're dealing with expendable income in a region only just starting to recover from one of the greatest disasters in U.S. history.

Personally, I would hate to see New Orleans lose the Hornets, just as I hated to see Charlotte lose the Hornets. I want to see them do well, and I want to see the city of New Orleans flourish. I commend Shinn for apparently doing what he can to make it happen by agreeing to the extended lease and lowering ticket prices.

It's just hard to imagine, when you look at those attendance figures, and recognize the plight the city is in, how they're going to be able to support the Hornets for very much longer. Although I appreciate the thought and insight their die-hard fans have provided on this thread, I haven't read anything that makes me believe otherwise.

I definitely don't think the buyout will be an impediment. According to one of the articles posted, $60 million of that would go towards buying out a minority partner.

Shinn would be able to recoup all that money, if not make a hefty profit, if the team were to move to a new area and he wished to resell the portion to a new partner. Or he could simply keep it and reap a larger share of the revenue. Either way, his purchase retains value.

Which really means that Shinn would only be forced to pay out $30 or $40 million -- a relatively small price to pay in the grand scheme of a major business if it means avoiding long-term losses.

So it basically comes down to what it always did -- if the Hornets can put enough butts in the seat, they'll stay. If they can't, they won't.

I am hoping like crazy they succeed. But again, even after reading everything in this thread, including the links, it seems pretty grim from this vantage point. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed that I'm wrong.

[2poor]

"If you notice in the article, the attendance figure used is what was averaged here in NOLA before Katrina. Shinn is just asking that we support him like we did before Katrina hit."

This is the whole rub.

How, with the city's general population down substantially, and the economic climate being severely depressed, is this going to happen?

Almost by rule, it's virtually impossible to do more, or even the same, with less, especially when you're dealing with expendable income in a region only just starting to recover from one of the greatest disasters in U.S. history.

Personally, I would hate to see New Orleans lose the Hornets, just as I hated to see Charlotte lose the Hornets. I want to see them do well, and I want to see the city of New Orleans flourish. I commend Shinn for apparently doing what he can to make it happen by agreeing to the extended lease and lowering ticket prices.

It's just hard to imagine, when you look at those attendance figures, and recognize the plight the city is in, how they're going to be able to support the Hornets for very much longer. Although I appreciate the thought and insight their die-hard fans have provided on this thread, I haven't read anything that makes me believe otherwise.

I definitely don't think the buyout will be an impediment. According to one of the articles posted, $60 million of that would go towards buying out a minority partner.

Shinn would be able to recoup all that money, if not make a hefty profit, if the team were to move to a new area and he wished to resell the portion to a new partner. Or he could simply keep it and reap a larger share of the revenue. Either way, his purchase retains value.

Which really means that Shinn would only be forced to pay out $30 or $40 million -- a relatively small price to pay in the grand scheme of a major business if it means avoiding long-term losses.

So it basically comes down to what it always did -- if the Hornets can put enough butts in the seat, they'll stay. If they can't, they won't.

I am hoping like crazy they succeed. But again, even after reading everything in this thread, including the links, it seems pretty grim from this vantage point. I'll be keeping my fingers crossed that I'm wrong.

You got the gist of it, I'll just add a couple things:

-Shinn would have to pay back $30M to New Orleans, he would then have to deal with the roughly $30-35M that is the NBA's relocation fee (subject to change). I know many of you think OKC or whomever else would throw that money around like life is one big game of Monopoly, but it isn't as simple as that. OKC is already getting a little antsy about the potential Sonics move now that all the costs involved are taking on more concrete figures.

-The Chouest buyout ($62M) could be problematic depending on when payment was to be made. If the terms require a buyout prior to moving, it might not be so easy. Not to mention, if Shinn does this and moves on, with his history, he isn't exactly going to have people lining up to partner up with him after [what would be] 2 failed minority partnerships. Not only that, but he has made it abundantly clear that he has no intention of releasing control of the majority. At that point, would he be someone you'd want to deal with? Probably not.

-I've read/heard that the general estimation is that for every 1 person that leaves the New Orleans area, 5,000+ are returning. So the populace is definitely returing.

-As I've stated a couple of times, over 250,000 people in the [middle-class] areas surrounding have little-to-no means of catching Hornets game. Can't get them on TV, and whether or not you can actually get the radio broadcast signal is a toss-up. I know of people who live 5 minutes away from the arena and they still can't get the signal in their house. Once this deal gets hashed out, I personally think that it'll go a long way to attracting the "casual fan" back.

Some see this as an extension, others an ultimatum. Others see it for what it is: support the team and nothing else matters. Optimists and pessimists alike.

[Sedale Threatt]

It seems clear to me, after reading up on everything, that Shinn is making a legitimate attempt to make New Orleans work. I sincerely hope he succeeds.

As unbelievable as that ratio sounds, I'll leave the facts and figures to you considering you either live there or know the area much better than I do. But there's also this report from the Washington Post a few weeks back:

Greg Rigamer, GCR & Associates' chief executive, said Monday that he does not expect the city's population to approach its estimated pre-Katrina level of 455,000 anytime soon. Rather, it will level off at 325,000 to 350,000 in the next few years, he said.

"When you look at the [available] housing stock on the market, it's not a matter of housing, but whether we can support those who are back, both economically and from a service standpoint," he said.

If that is indeed the case, you'd be asking the team to fill the same number of seats before Katrina hit from a fan base that's between 20 to 30 smaller.

Plus, as the comment indicated, you're looking at a vastly different economic climate. Just because people are coming back doesn't mean they'll have the same amount of money to spend on NBA basketball as they did before.

Although it is certainly a huge detriment to growing their fan base, I doubt having Hornets games on TV is going to have as much of an impact on in-house attendence as you expect. That's just my opinion.

So, again, as much as I hope that I'm wrong, the numbers just don't seem to add up in my mind.

[2poor]

Although it is certainly a huge detriment to growing their fan base, I doubt having Hornets games on TV is going to have as much of an impact on in-house attendence as you expect. That's just my opinion.

Really? The tickets they're having problems with are the $10-25 upper bowl seats, the ones usually reserved for the "casual fan." However since the "casual fan" has been given little-to-no exposure thanks to the lack of any sort of national/local coverage, those seats remain sparsely populated.

You don't think that once the Hornets are able to reach the 250,000+ via TV, that they might woo just ~3000 of those to games?

(I might add that pre-Katrina these seats were going for $50, so indeed, Shinn has made dramatic price cuts to accommodate the region...not to mention the buy 1-get 1 and other such promotions they routinely run)

Corporate support: all-time high
Lower-bowl (more expensive) seating: full
Luxury suites: full

I know at this point it just becomes a matter of individual faith; in my case I believe the Hornets and Shinn are making a concerted effort to reconnect with the community and they will be rewarded with a packed arena in the near future. I understand that there will be doubters though, always have been and always will be. Human nature really. Plenty of people were doubting this team last year and look where they're at now. Just a little further to go and a little more doubt to dispel.

[D-Wade]

Basically they're doomed.

[Sedale Threatt]

-= original quote snipped =-
Really? The tickets they're having problems with are the $10-25 upper bowl seats, the ones usually reserved for the "casual fan." However since the "casual fan" has been given little-to-no exposure thanks to the lack of any sort of national/local coverage, those seats remain sparsely populated.

You don't think that once the Hornets are able to reach the 250,000+ via TV, that they might woo just ~3000 of those to games?

(I might add that pre-Katrina these seats were going for $50, so indeed, Shinn has made dramatic price cuts to accommodate the region...not to mention the buy 1-get 1 and other such promotions they routinely run)

Corporate support: all-time high
Lower-bowl (more expensive) seating: full
Luxury suites: full

I know at this point it just becomes a matter of individual faith; in my case I believe the Hornets and Shinn are making a concerted effort to reconnect with the community and they will be rewarded with a packed arena in the near future. I understand that there will be doubters though, always have been and always will be. Human nature really. Plenty of people were doubting this team last year and look where they're at now. Just a little further to go and a little more doubt to dispel.

Well, like I said, I could be way off base regarding the TV thing.

I'm just thinking, if you care even the slightest about basketball, how could you not realize that you've got a cheap opportunity to watch a good team? Of course, that's the very definition of the casual fan that the Hornets are apparently struggling to attract.

But even if they do bring in the stragglers, I don't see how it can be any more than a quick fix. The success of a truly healthy franchise can be judged by season ticket sales. And considering the population and economic factors at work, I'm still not sure how that's going to be something the Hornets can count on in NO.

In closing, I will say that I agree with you on at least one thing -- I have absolutely no doubt that Shinn and the city are doing their best to make it work. Which sort of surprises me. After how he shafted Charlotte, I would have imagined that he'd be the first to cut and run in a pinch. But he is clearly making an effort to stay.

I hope it works out.

[2poor]

I'm just glad to have some more objective posting in this thread instead of the 'ol "I'll quote this mindless quote" to pad my post count.

[NO-KG-AI]

Like I said before, people here follow a winner....

LSU wasn't that popular before the 2000's, but when they won the championship everyone turned into a lifelong LSU fan

The Saints had a nice sized fan base of diehards, and a lot of people that dogged them. After last years playoff run people got Saints fever, and everyone became a Saints fan.

What I'm saying is, everyone here is a pink hat/bandwagon fan it seems, when teams start winning, they do whatever they can to show that they were huge fans all along.

Keep winning, and playoff success, or draft an exciting franchise player=money.