I'm back from the Press Conference and will be getting an article ready regarding it tonight.
For the record Mr. Bennett did not say anything concrete. There have already been reports in the media that The Key Arena is out of consideration entirely and these are inaccurate. Mr. Bennett continued to re-affirm that all options are still on the table and that he had been extremely incouraged by meetings to date. The media pushed him very hard to say that Seattle was out of the running and he did not bite other than to say essentially "The Key Arena as it stands does not meet our standards as an NBA facility".
He spent this trip with team officials and representatives from the City of Seattle. No meetings were held with Bellevue or Renton. He attended the game at Safeco yesterday and said "that is the goal." Describing the event, atmosphere, and world class feeling of Safeco field as what he hopes for in regards to Seattle basketball.
The comments he made were for the most part what he had to say whether he is moving the team or not, but most members of the media asked the question "why bother to have this press conference if you don't intend to work towards keeping the team?" Better to just stay silent.
Mr. Bennett warmed up a bit during Q&A but Seattle fans and media are going to struggle with his very dry and reserved personality. He emphasized that the onus is on him and his group to put together a business plan that demonstrates a viable and working public/private partnership to meet all parties standards. He hopes to have a single site narrowed down between October and January and a deal roughed out by the end of the year. He intends to spend a great deal of time in Seattle, already loves the city, and is considering purchasing a home here.
More to follow tonight.