Wednesday, September 19
Durant
After reading this article the other day which painted Kevin Durant is less than a stellar light, you can see another, more optimistic, opinion here. Suffice it to say that "Durant" and "Jordan" appear in a comparison, and the comparison isn't negative.
AK
No doubt you've read by now how Andrei Kirilenko wants to be traded away from "Robot Coach" Jerry Sloan and the Utah Jazz. Aside from the fact that his wanting out of Utah instantly makes him one of my favorite players, does it make sense for the Sonics to pursue the former all-star? After all, he's on the hook for four more seasons and $63 million, so it's not as though we're looking at a quick pick-me-up. Add in the fact that the Sonics aren't going to realistically compete for the playoffs anytime soon and, well, ...
As I see it, the Sonics have only one hope of acquiring AK-47, and that's by dealing away Kurt Thomas and some draft picks. Cap-wise, a deal including Kurt Thomas, Damien Wilkins, and a #1 pick (maybe a future Suns' pick?) MIGHT be enough to make it happen. The Jazz acquire a player Sloan might like (Wilkins) and a player he would definitely like (Thomas), plus Thomas' contract expires this June to boot. Add in the benefit of shedding themselves of AK's contract and malcontentedness as well as the pick, and it's a possibility. I'll look at how Kirilenko would fit into the Sonics' roster later on, but be aware that any deal involving Thomas will be held up for about two months because he was recently acquired via trade (however, I'm not 100% sure of that; for some reason I had the idea that players acquired via trade where they are the only player moving don't have a trade restriction; on the other hand, realgm.com says Thomas has a trade restriction, so who knows).
Anyway, it's a starting point for discussion, so feel free to offer your opinion on whether the Sonics ought to acquire AK.
As I see it, the Sonics have only one hope of acquiring AK-47, and that's by dealing away Kurt Thomas and some draft picks. Cap-wise, a deal including Kurt Thomas, Damien Wilkins, and a #1 pick (maybe a future Suns' pick?) MIGHT be enough to make it happen. The Jazz acquire a player Sloan might like (Wilkins) and a player he would definitely like (Thomas), plus Thomas' contract expires this June to boot. Add in the benefit of shedding themselves of AK's contract and malcontentedness as well as the pick, and it's a possibility. I'll look at how Kirilenko would fit into the Sonics' roster later on, but be aware that any deal involving Thomas will be held up for about two months because he was recently acquired via trade (however, I'm not 100% sure of that; for some reason I had the idea that players acquired via trade where they are the only player moving don't have a trade restriction; on the other hand, realgm.com says Thomas has a trade restriction, so who knows).
Anyway, it's a starting point for discussion, so feel free to offer your opinion on whether the Sonics ought to acquire AK.
Tuesday, September 18
Studious
I wanted to put together a thorough look at the feasibility study presented by the Muckleshoot’s consultants, but time constraints prevent me from wasting, err, spending too much time on that, so here’s a quick look at what I found from reading the document.
- A great deal of the article looks at the relative financial health of this market as opposed to seven similar NBA markets. The conclusion drawn is that 1) Seattle is strong relative to those markets and 2) Seattle is strong relative to the rest of the NBA, especially in regard to EBI (effective buying income) and population size, and even moreso when one looks at how the future may go. For example, Seattle stands at 112% of the national average in EBI (these numbers are from here, not from the consultants). Oklahoma City? Try 83%. According to the consultants, by 2011, Seattle’s EBI will rank 9th or 10th in the league. Care to hazard a guess where OKC would fit in? It just further convinces me that the NBA would be unbelievably foolish to move a team from the Greater Puget Sound and give it to Oklahoma City. The only rational reason for doing so would be to augment the blackmailing tactics the league will use/uses in other cities, because it would be financial suicide for the NBA to trade Seattle for OKC, and that’s not even considering the impact on television ratings.
- Along those same lines, here is the consultant’s summary of Seattle’s economic picture in relation to the NBA: “Seattle’s significant wealth and comparatively small average household size allow for higher levels of entertainment spending and present an attractive events center market.” In other words, not only is Seattle’s population much larger than OKC’s, but it’s percentage of population with higher incomes is among the highest in the NBA (top 4), and it’s percentage of income spent on entertainment ranks 5th in the NBA.
- The figure put forth to get this project done is $415 million. I looked at the numbers they used to get to $415, and it got me to thinking: How much would it cost to renovate KeyArena to an acceptable level for the NBA? Would it cost ½ as much? 2/3 as much? I’m not an economist or a project manager by any means, but the figure would have to be considerably lower, and bear in mind that the $415 million doesn’t include transportation improvements, which will absolutely be necessary to finish this deal. If you think otherwise, take a look at this picture included in the report, which is a view of the proposed site. Think 18,500 people would be able to use that road for a Sonic playoff game?
- A great deal of the article looks at the relative financial health of this market as opposed to seven similar NBA markets. The conclusion drawn is that 1) Seattle is strong relative to those markets and 2) Seattle is strong relative to the rest of the NBA, especially in regard to EBI (effective buying income) and population size, and even moreso when one looks at how the future may go. For example, Seattle stands at 112% of the national average in EBI (these numbers are from here, not from the consultants). Oklahoma City? Try 83%. According to the consultants, by 2011, Seattle’s EBI will rank 9th or 10th in the league. Care to hazard a guess where OKC would fit in? It just further convinces me that the NBA would be unbelievably foolish to move a team from the Greater Puget Sound and give it to Oklahoma City. The only rational reason for doing so would be to augment the blackmailing tactics the league will use/uses in other cities, because it would be financial suicide for the NBA to trade Seattle for OKC, and that’s not even considering the impact on television ratings.
- Along those same lines, here is the consultant’s summary of Seattle’s economic picture in relation to the NBA: “Seattle’s significant wealth and comparatively small average household size allow for higher levels of entertainment spending and present an attractive events center market.” In other words, not only is Seattle’s population much larger than OKC’s, but it’s percentage of population with higher incomes is among the highest in the NBA (top 4), and it’s percentage of income spent on entertainment ranks 5th in the NBA.
- The figure put forth to get this project done is $415 million. I looked at the numbers they used to get to $415, and it got me to thinking: How much would it cost to renovate KeyArena to an acceptable level for the NBA? Would it cost ½ as much? 2/3 as much? I’m not an economist or a project manager by any means, but the figure would have to be considerably lower, and bear in mind that the $415 million doesn’t include transportation improvements, which will absolutely be necessary to finish this deal. If you think otherwise, take a look at this picture included in the report, which is a view of the proposed site. Think 18,500 people would be able to use that road for a Sonic playoff game?
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