I feel bad for the fans of the Seattle Sonics

TheBobcatDan · Post #1 » by **TheBobcatDan** » Thu Jul 3, 2008 12:04 pm

Most of us know how it felt whenever the Hornets left for New Orleans and now these people are going through the same **** as we all have to endure. I went over there and posted and welcomed fans to come here to chat some basketball in the future. We're brothers in this situation and feel that most of you can give these poor fans some great advice for the future.

W_HAMILTON · Post #2 » by **W_HAMILTON** » Thu Jul 3, 2008 1:18 pm

On one hand, I feel bad for them.

On the other hand, it is a similar situation. It's basically a city with a great basketball tradition, going with the flavor of the month and abandoning their basketball team in favor of another pro sports team (an NFL team in this situation, too).

So, for the real basketball fans, I feel sorry for them. For the fairweather fans that are happy because the Seahawks are finally good for the first time in their lifetime, and don't care about their NBA team anymore, I don't feel bad for them. They'll realize their shortsightedness on their own, when the Seahawks go through another two decades of single-digit wins, and all they're left with...is the Mariners? And they seem to have started another two-decade stretch of sucking.

On the bright side, by the time either the Seahawks/Mariners reach the levels the Sonics had, Seattle will probably have another NBA team anyway. Of course, I don't know whether or not because they will get a team replaced quickly, or because it will probably be 2023 before either of those teams are as successful as the Sonics.

Badd_Intentions · Post #3 » by **Badd_Intentions** » Thu Jul 3, 2008 1:18 pm

Man yea, it was a horrible feeling, so glad when we got a team back, so even if we are bad at least we have a team with some young potential, but it's just horrible for your team to be there one season then gone the next. I think it may even have been worse for us b/c the team was actually a playoff team.

I remember going to freakin playoff games with bunches of empty seats all over.

Condolences go out to Seattle

August Us Seazr · Post #4 » by **August Us Seazr** » Thu Jul 3, 2008 2:05 pm

My sympathy is with the die-hard Sonics fan as well. I hope that there will soon be some expansion rumblings coming your way. We were lucky to be out of the league for only 2 years. It could have been much worse.

Those who are interested in a quick return of the Sonics need to start early on identifying those potential LOCAL ownership groups. I know that in the business world, money talks and apparently with non-local ownership, your team can walk or in this case, roll away. But dedicated local ownership with a succession plan can take the uncertainty out of the equation, along with good support of your team. So, Sonics fans, get your local money people together and get your sleeves rolled up.

When the Hornets left Charlotte, people were already working on the successor team. You should be getting your plans in order too. Good luck from North Carolina!

6_Rings · Post #5 » by **6_Rings** » Thu Jul 3, 2008 2:16 pm

you should've retained ur name like what Seattle did. The Charlotte Hornets of old were a pretty tight squad.

Post #6 » by **Paydro70** » Thu Jul 3, 2008 2:37 pm

The Grizz will be sold, and if Seattle's ready to pick up the tab, it's quite possible they get a new team quickly.

Honestly though... it's a business, and businesses relocate. Capitalism sucks.

Post #7 » by **Walt Cronkite** » Thu Jul 3, 2008 2:53 pm

Seattle SuperGrizz?

Rich4114 · Post #8 » by **Rich4114** » Thu Jul 3, 2008 3:54 pm

This whole relocation thing is a bunch of BS. Think about the size of the market Seattle is compared to Oklahoma City. Look at NOLA compared to Charlotte. Stern and the NBA care about quick easy money and clearly don't value the long term. Nobody understands that once the honeymoon is over for these smaller market cities, you must put a winning product on the floor for people to show. Are Charlotte and Seattle fans fickle? Of course they are. Look at the Hornets and Hawks attendance when their teams blow - it's the bottom of the league. Even Philly doesn't support their teams when they suck. You have to go to NY, Chicago, LA, etc. to find people that will still fill the seats regardless of if the team is good or not.

So basically moving to OKC will net a year or two worth of hype and if the Sonics still suck, nobody will go to the games and now you've got a nice new shiney empty arena. Just like the Hawks have, just like NO had until last season when they became good, and just like we'll have until we are a contender.

What the NBA fails to realize is that this reloction thing takes 1000's of loyal fans and completely turns them off to the NBA all together. That's another reason why it's so hard for the Bobcats to gain support here. But winning cures everything and the NBA doesn't seem to realize that.

doc.end · Post #9 » by **doc.end** » Thu Jul 3, 2008 4:35 pm

uhm, will they stay at nortwestern divion?

Sometimes I fell like majority of Charlotte "fans" (Ham describe similar of Seatlle perfectly) is oding everything for not having nba team in Charlotte again.

sonic-ben · Post #10 » by **sonic-ben** » Fri Jul 4, 2008 2:23 am

This was not a fan thing.... chech attendance records...

This was Bendick Arnold wanting a Team in Oklahoma...

Ask us to spend 500 million ... biggest stadiom cost anywhere
accepted 150 million in Oaklahoma

We just remodeled 300+ million at the Key

BIG BOYS PLAYING WITH BIG TOYS ... our emotions

Post #11 » by **Paydro70** » Fri Jul 4, 2008 3:13 am

A local company was purchased and relocated... local customers are upset. It definitely sucks for the people who have followed the Sonics a long time.

As far as I know though, Key Arena was last renovated 13 years ago for nowhere near 300m... but you're right that the stadium had nothing to do with whether the team moved, that was just a rich guy buying a company from another rich guy so he could move it where he pleased.

e4Nf6 · Post #12 » by **e4Nf6** » Fri Jul 4, 2008 6:32 am

I read somewhere that only Paul Allen and Cuban voted against it. Which means our owner had a hand in this debacle..........

Oh and after reading all the pro-Seattle comments on the general board, where the **** were all these people when the Hornet's moved?

W_HAMILTON · Post #13 » by **W_HAMILTON** » Fri Jul 4, 2008 2:37 pm

Nice to see Cuban makes good on his word when it comes to a team relocating near him that might take away some of his fans.

I guess the Hornets weren't much of a threat to take away his business, so even though he went on Charlotte airwaves and said he would be voting "no" to relocation, he ended up voting "yes."

Don't think Cuban is some great owner, standing up for the little guys. Same goes for Allen. Both had horses in this race, and that's why they voted "no" on relocation this time, but both voted "yes" to the Hornets relocating.

doc.end · Post #14 » by **doc.end** » Fri Jul 4, 2008 2:46 pm

Other owners probably though that franchise in smaller market than Seatlle couldn't hurt them.

freakon0mics · Post #15 » by **freakon0mics** » Fri Jul 4, 2008 9:11 pm

I feel really bad for the citizens of Seattle. When the Hornets bolted here it sucked the life out of many basketball fans in Charlotte. Charlotte had some of the most devoted basketball fans in this country. This city lead attendance for some many years. To have an owner like George Shinn to decide to move the team, just made everybody here angry. Now imagine the same citizens but with a team that has been in that same city for over 40 years. Hopefully the NBA can establish another team in Seattle. I just don't understand how the NBA would allow owners to move a team from a devoted basketball city but establish another NBA team in a not so great basketball market, ex: Memphis.

Post #16 » by **Walt Cronkite** » Fri Jul 4, 2008 10:06 pm

I think if Memphis wasn't on the chopping block, Seattle would've been a harder move for owners and NBA executives. However, I fully expect that once Seattleites renovate the Key so that it has a more NBA ready building that a franchise will be relocated there.

Memphis is the prime candidate for a few reasons. Unlike Milwaukee and Charlotte (the NBA cities with a greater population than Seattle, but less than Memphis) the Grizzlies play in a MUCH smaller TV media market. In fact, unless I'm missing someone, only New Orleans has a smaller media market of the NBA cities. To really drive home this point, Charlotte, Raleigh/Durham/Fayetteville, Greenville/Spartanburh/Asheville AND Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Salem are larger markets than Memphis. Further, while Seattle isn't that populated for a major city, there are a lot of big cities around it (Tacoma and Olympia) and it's rank as the 14th largest media market makes it a vital location.

I don't want to see the league add more expansion franchises and I don't think anyone with any say so does either. If Memphis doesn't make the move, I guess it would be Oklahoma City, New Orleans Charlotte, Sacramento--in that order. OKC is obviously unlikely to move back to Seattle, but it will be interesting to see how the city responds to the team as they struggle for years with their growing pains. New Orleans would be almost as hot of a discussion topic as the Sonic situation had the Hornets not done so well over the 2nd half of the season, they were really struggling for attendees and we all know that doesn't sit well with Shinn. Do not want to talk about the possibility of Charlotte losing the Bobcats, but I think they're placed correctly. Sacramento has been talked about a lot because the Maloofs always push hard for moving the franchise to Vegas. The Kings are trying to get a new arena built in Sacramento, but it seems to be rather unlikely.