"Only two things give me pleasure in life: Stealing NBA teams and my collection of Adolf Hitler's golf clubs."Another day, another cover-up from the Bennett camp.
The News Tribune reported yesterday that a Sonics employee has leaked details about yet another secret meeting:
Seattle SuperSonics chairman Clay Bennett told his employees that Oklahoma City is ready to foot the bill for the team to relocate there next season, a source within the organization said.And exactly how far would OKC be willing to go?
That information was passed along to Sonics employees during a meeting with Bennett on Wednesday, an employee who attended the meeting told The News Tribune on the condition of anonymity.
During the 40-minute meeting Wednesday, the team employee said Bennett provided the group with details of what Oklahoma City is willing to pay for to woo the Sonics:Of course, Bennett immediately went into red-alert denial mode:
• Any legal fees involving the team’s fight to break the KeyArena lease.
• Whatever the settlement is to the Seattle Center to buy out the lease.
• All relocation fees the NBA would force the team to pay other owners.
• Costs of physically moving the team’s staff and offices.
• Costs of upgrading the city’s current arena, the Ford Center, to make it NBA-ready.
• Costs of building a new arena, and when it’s finished, keeping the old facility running.
Read the rest here.
Bennett told The News Tribune that his comments were a hypothetical response.Rrrrright.
“The context of my response was after being asked the question how could Oklahoma City possibly be a competitive market to Seattle,” Bennett said. “And my answer is because Oklahoma City is a medium marketplace that highly values the opportunity to obtain an NBA franchise, not unlike any community or any state would value the pursuit of any other highly additive economic development opportunity, such as the value of a manufacturing plant or corporate headquarters."
Meanwhile, our pal, Henry Abbott at True Hoop has a good take on the story:
I don't know where the Sonics belong. Maybe Seattle ultimately sees this team as worth it and maybe it doesn't. But I feel Sonic fans are at least owed an honest attempt to keep the team -- not a process that has long smelled it like it might have been on rails out of town. Getting a good arena deal is a complicated process that takes multiple willing partners.
It's like building a house. If the guy who pours the foundation doesn't show up, and all your framers, roofers, electricians, plumbers, and sheetrockers etc. are all standing around doing nothing, do you really have proof that you can't get it done? Or do you have proof that you need the foundation guy to try harder or get replaced?
Read the rest here.
12 comments:
C'mon. Anyone who thinks Bennett didn't know this comment would get out raise your hand. I don't see any hands. You don't hold a meeting, secret or not, with employees who have no history of loyalty to you or your company and assume the gist of the meeting will be kept secret. You don't hold a meeting with more than one person (yourself) and assume it will stay a secret. This was either a message to Seattle, Oklahoma City or both.
Just another way for that sneaky bastard to send a message without making a public statement (for which he'd be fined).
Unfortunately this is just another nail that wasn't so secretly hammered into the Supersonics' coffin. I just hate that these guys don't have the balls to just come out and say what they intend to do, even though we all know that they intend to move the franchise ala movie Major League. If only their were a magic playoff run to get the fan behind team.
Oh well, all we can do is double our efforts in bugging local officals, emailing the various blogs, mail letters to Stern, etc to show that the fans of the "SEATTLE" Supersonics do not want to them move, whether it's to KC, OKC, LV, Berlin, etc.
AN OPEN APOLOGY TO AK
Hello AK, this is SonicComic over at SonicsCentral and heard you post here now. Since we barely know each other, I will tell you a little something about my postings. I used to post at PI where I would jokingly pick on other posters there, and there were times I would unintentionally go over the line by putting my strive to be funny over people’s feelings. Lots of time people insulted me back which I rather enjoyed because I knew it was all in good fun. I assumed everyone else knew my posts were also in the spirit of good fun. But there is a line where “funny” becomes down right “hurtful”. As I’m sure you know, someone was asking where you were and the banning subject came up. I instinctively decide to have a ball with it and poked fun at any and everything I could remember about your posting style. (And some totally made up crap as well!) It was pointed out that I am being out of line since you are not there to at least defend yourself. My immediate reaction was to blow it off. After a bit of thinking about it, I realized that they were right and it was out of line. In all honestly, I thought you were a solid poster despite your unorthodox style. I want to say I’m sorry for stepping over the line. I just get so wrapped up in roasting people I lose track of how it might be interpreted and instead of making people laugh, it backfires and I piss people off.
-SonicComic
In my opinion, Clay Bennett and his cronies probably have the cojones to be straightforward about their (i.e., The Professional Basketball Club, LLC) intention of relocating the Seattle Supersonics to Oklahoma City.
Yet, under these set of circumstances, they've got to be somewhat subtle and covert regarding that objective; otherwise, there could be more fines that are levied against them.
Thus, no matter my contempt for those carpetbaggers, it doesn't seem like they're ignorant morons; that'd be oversimplifying things.
Instead, it's the auora of smugness being exuded by them -- which, in all honesty, they've sort of earned by having purchased the franchise from The Basketball Club of Seattle, LLC -- that angers many people.
Yet, if I was in Bennett's shoes, then I'd also be an arrogant bastard who's trying to relocate a professional sports team to my hometown—as would most of you guys, too.
Remember, folks, the world can't be viewed in black and white, but rather shades of gray.
Dude, SonicComic, I thought your post was filled with some amusing stuff. Hell, you don't need to apologize for it.
Besides, the only times that I've gotten mad were after the millionth shot at my writing style and, of course, the whole incident that went down last month.
Yet, as y'all can tell by this point, I've been making a sly joke of my banning—so it's no big deal.
AK, obviously you are a stand up guy.
-SonicComic
Yet, as y'all can tell by this point, I've been making a sly joke of my banning—so it's no big deal.
By the looks of things, I don't think too many folks have caught on yet.
"By the looks of things, I don't think too many folks have caught on yet."
Once the higher-ups at SonicsCentral learn that I've been posting there under a new alias, I'll probably be snuffed out by 'em.
Either way, though, I've quit using big words and toned down my abrasive attitude; thus, some people haven't noticed that it's me.
Oh well, I've probably blown my cover with this admission.
if you've went to all that trouble to stay under the radar, hopefully they don't hate you blindly enough to try and sniff you out. Sounds like you're doing your part to be fair and make ammends, it'd be a pretty despicable move if they took you out based on a grudge alone...
I've quit using big words and toned down my abrasive attitude
Not to mention amazing restraint on trade proposals. OK, i'll wait until they figure it out before making any more cuckoo jokes.
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