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Originally Posted by roscoe36  Clay Bennett Might Leave the "Sonics" Name Behind
This guy should be tarred and feathered.
The whole idea of abandoning his lease is ludicrous. I heard a speaker at a conference use him as an example.
To get out of the lease cheaply, he has to argue that the Sonics don't provide an economic benefit to Seattle . Meanwhile, he's in Oklahoma City, arguing that the franchise will bring an economic advantage there, which is why they should build him an arena.
It's guys like this that give capitalists a bad name.
You have to wonder who is the bigger fool, Seattle or the OK City? |
Mr. Bennett never had any intention of staying in Seattle. He demanded a brand new, 500 million dollar arena paid for in its entirety by taxpayers. He refused a 150 million dollar renovation to the existing World Class arena (circa 1998 when 150 million dollars was spent on upgrades). OKC is offering less than Seattle toward renovations, a much smaller market, and almost no guarantee of fan support. (ticket sales for the Hornets dropped dramatically their second year in OKC).
The owners want to have an NBA team in their hometown, and Stern's NBA believes that the owners of the team should have that right.
In most cases, I would agree. If you own a business, pay the employees, and take the risk, you can put your business anywhere you want it, even if it doesn't seem like a smart move economically.
The difference in this case is that the city has invested alot of money into this franchise. The bonds on arena renovations won't be paid off for another 10 years, and the repayment plan relies on taxpayer money and concession sales taxes at the Key. Guess how many hot dogs and cold beers they will sell when the basketball team leaves town.
As a Seattle resident, I hope the team stays. I've been to quite a few Sonics games since I've been here, and I will truly miss pro basketball if they leave. (Or semi-pro in the case of the Sonics!), but I won't miss Clay Bennett
