So we seem to be getting more conflicting opinions on this board and our recent analytics are showing about 15% of site traffic coming from Sacramento.
I want to stress that I won’t allow people to get into badgering each other. If I start to see people going back and forth trying to get people from one city or another to acknowledge their sides I will just lock it up and ask the people involved to leave for a while.
I want to respect people’s right to come here and not have their efforts mocked. I want to respect differing opinions WITHIN REASON. If Travern wants to come here and troll we will ban him. If Sacramento people come looking for an argument we will ban them.
I urge you all to practice restraint in your responses. You don’t need to prove anything to each other. Let things go and do not reply if it is not getting you anywhere or you become part of the problem. April 19th will arrive eventually.
I have also asked the writers to hold off on making comical posts about Kevin Johnson or the efforts down there. I’ve been there, we’ve done that. I could post the press release that I issued when we discovered “Specific Performance” in our own contract and dropped the bomb just the way they have done with ROFR.
We will not be successful at staying classy all the time. Do it as much as possible.
I think its gotten to the point that we have all heard the same thing over and over and over. Its a dead period. Nothing new and its becoming frustrating. Maybe its best to check back when something substantial is reported. Something from the NBA or a legit news source vs Twitter. The 19th cant get here soon enough.
Yeah, we need some news beyond the Sacramento cycle of rehashing the same few topics: whales, ROFR, etc. Not doin’ us any good.
It’s now Recycle Central, LOL. Not like we haven’t been here before… ;)
i cant imagine another 2 and a half months like this. gonna be brutal.
One of goals is to get talking about the game of basketball again. We are going to get a team back eventually. If the Kings do stay in Sacramento the NBA isn’t going to let $525M and an arena that is going to be the gold standard across the league sit on the table.
I’ve always thought Sonics fans were some of the brightest in the league. Time to start studying again, kids. Lot has changed in the last five years.
I have watched more NBA in last two weeks than the last 5 years for sure. Nice being able to enjoy it again
Keep on doing it. There are a ton of games that are on free TV and well League Pass dirt cheap right now.
Just don’t watch the Suns, Spurs or Thunder home feeds. They have the worst announcers in the league.
For sure. Fremont Dock has League Pass, good excuse to get out for drinks. Really enjoying it all again, and even watching more college ball than I used too
As one of the 15%, I’d like to say that I have the utmost respect for all the discussions and opinions you have here and only seek to contribute facts and reasoned opinion to the situation, particular the history of how we in Sacramento got here before Seattle/Hansen came into the picture.
We appreciate the insight. I remember during our time being so annoyed at OKC people not understanding what was happening or had happened on our end. They created this “Seattle didnt support rhe team, and deserves what they’re getting” narrative to make themselves feel better that was downright insulting.
And I think Sacramento is doing a fine job of supporting the Kings. They have been beaten down by the Maloofs and have had a string of bad coaches, bad free agent signings and bad draft picks in the last few years.
No matter which way this goes, one city’s fan base is going to be devastated. Unless, of course, the “E” fantasy becomes reality. As I’ve written in previous posts, as much as I want a team - - - I don’t wish membership to the “Lose Your Team” club on any fan.
As far as KJ and his efforts, I think Sonic fans have nothing but admiration. I just wish the NBA would put both fan bases out of our misery and give us a final decision. The sooner the better so we can all move forward with our efforts. I agree - - - it’s a dead period which gets everyone on edge and snippy.
Sac fans are more than welcome here as far as I’m concerned. For me, it’s nice to hear their perspective.
Let’s keep it respectful.
looks like the afternoon show on 710 has been renamed “Afternoons with the Go 2 Guy” calabro is officially out.
I thought though Calabro was going to be a daily guest on the show at 3:30 pm, sort of like Clayton coming on at 4:00 pm.
Good post, Brian. Its always bugged me when people here mocked or belittled KJ’s efforts. We’d have loved it if it were us 5 years ago. Just because we have a different perspective and experience doesn’t mean we should be unsympathetic to Sac’s plight.
Exactly!
Make more posts about the game and the players, otherwise if we can’t critique KJ what else are we going to talk about
Working on this now. Going to be working solely on current game product.
It’s going to be a long couple months.
Lakers look old.
Isn’t their starting backcourt a combined 97 years old?
I would take Nash on my team if he was a fossil.
He knows how to play.
They started standing around and the Nets caught up for a bit.
They are. . in basketball years.
I’ll be back when there is a press conference stating the the sale is final and the team is moving north.
Have fun, boys! We may have something to celebrate yet.
Your insight has been good… Do stick around
Old guys are beating the Nets.
Earl Clark has been a surprise for the old guys. Nash seems like he’s picking up steam on the offensive end. There’s still life in the old guys. Don’t know if they’ll make the playoffs but they’ll be competitive.
I’m happy Earl is getting a chance. He was an absolute stud at Louisville! Orlando kept him on the bench for some unknown reason even though they needed front court depth. Never really heard of him being an issue off the court or anything like that.
Really happy for the kid. Would love for him to be an off the bench energy guy for the future Sonics.
is it true that the “old guys” don’t even have a first round draft pick this year? i know it’s not like the lakers to build through the draft but if they’re that lousy, not having that pick could really hurt…
Mitch Kupchak is always thinking — it will be fun to see what he does when the season is over.
They don’t need a pick, they need to win while Kobe is still playing.
PHX received the Lakers 2013 AND 2015 1st rounders, as well as the Lakers 2nd rounders in 13 and 14
So yeah, gonna be awhile before they can add youth, will have to add veterans through free agency the way Miami has the last couple of years. Like Baker said, that’s fine for now, they need to win NOW with Kobe, and it looks like he still has more than enough left in the tank
Looks like I’m glad I worked all day, definitely don’t miss the arguments.
Isnt it conceivable that they could clear cap room in an effort to woo Lebron away from Miami when he can opt out or possibly go after KD? Lakers may falter for a season or two but they will rise again…..the league will make sure of it. Cant have the Lakers being the Clippers sideshow for long
i like the durant to the lakers idea! leave jokelahoma sh*tty in the dust!
I like durant to seattle better. Hahaha
this
I honestly think Westbrook will bolt for LA. He only rents in OKC and as soon as the last game is over he heads to LA to his house. Invites teammates to LA, never goes back to OKC until the season starts or unless he has a function to attend.
I can’t remember the last time the league had this much talent at the Center position - it’s crazy how much this has blossomed over the past few years:
Dwight Howard
Tyson Chandler
Omar Asik
Marcin Gortat
Joakim Noah
Al Horford
Marc Gasol
Andrew Bynum
Roy Hibbert
Brook Lopez
Greg Monroe
Larry Sanders
Kendrick Perkins
Nikola Vucevic
Nikola Pecovic
Andrew Bogut
Andre Drummond
DeMarcus Cousins
JaVale McGee
DeAndre Jordan
Anderson Varejao
The center position is deep but lacking in superstars. Not one of those guys is good enough to be the foundation of a contending team (barring a miraculous Dwight revival). I miss the days of Hakeem, Shaq, Ewing, and Robinson.
and of course Swift.
No. Petro.
Mo sene DA best
Jim McIlvaine.
Olumide Oyedeji
Agreed - not many, if any, superstars in that bunch beyond a healthy Dwight. The depth though is what I find impressive, and there are a ton of quality starters in that bunch - quite a few of them with only a few years experience.
Thats a good point. I think the overall talent level has improved. But the top guys arent nearly as good. I think its a natural evolution of teams finally figuring out that the the prototypical old school type centers dont come around that often. You also dont need to worry about defending a dominant C because they dont exist anymore. I think the new breed of Cs are the more athletic versatile big men like McGee, Jordan, Tyson Chandler, Varejao and Noah types vs the Lopez, Dwight Howard, Bynum, Perkins style.
Outside of Dwight, I think Larry Sanders is going to be a superstar eventually and a multi time defensive player of the year. He’s raw, but improves game to game. Love that kid.
I think if they nix the sale, the NBA will be pretty much forced to find a solution for us to get a team soon, or suffer a HUGE PR hit. Not to mention Ballmer/Hansen have to be kept interested, and if they aren’t, it could go badly.
Well, I for one got a big time WTF, then a good laugh, out of Menace being called a Kings fan & troll. I think that is a first!
^^^^^^
Carmichael Dave’s account
Nay, it was blue reloaded, who since retracted and made good. Fun while it lasted!
I like how quickly I was called a Kings fan. Dude must have been on his “jump to conclusions” mat
We have a lot of anticipation for a team arriving soon now, and if we have to wait 3-4 more years, a lot of that excitement may not come back IMO.
I don’t buy that. We’d be really upset on the very off chance this falls through, but the city would move past it and be just as excited the next time a team was coming to town.
I kind of take a different stance on part of this — if the board gets a bit heated at times, it can make things more interesting. We even had a dbf sighting in the last thread! Whatever happened to all that beloved conflict of yore?
Agreed though, let’s not bash anything Sac-related. We can disagree, but not belittle or denigrate. #respect
I look forward to the next Ridnour vs Watson debate and battling Myk on the merits of PER. I also look forward to non stop complaining about not having a big man after they get rid of Cousins. Or the non stop complaining about Cousins if we decide to keep him.
The NBA created this mess, IF they allow Kings to stay, they have to find us a solution that’ll allow a team to come here in the next few years. That’s why all the SAC conspiracy theories involve either the NBA giving us a E team or brokering us to an another team for sale. It may be wishful thinking for them, but they know the PR hit will be huge if they nix the sale to Hansen.
Who is to be brokered? Maybe the Bucks? They have been there for some time and probably have a groundswell along the lines of Sacramento. Really if we arent going the route of expansion we are going to get a fight.
I think everything like RoFR will get overblown to the max because well we have nothing else to go on. Maybe Adrain @ Yahoo is right and that it is a foregone conclusion. Maybe he knows some of the owners and they are sick of the whole Sacramento saga. I mean the other owners know the Maloofs dont have to listen to Burkle/Mastrov and this could go on for a while.
I think the owners are done gambling and financing that gamble that the Sacramento situation with the Maloofs at the helm will resolve itself. They are going to take a sweetheart deal and wait for Sacramento to get done what the NBA wants them too and have new owners in place like Burkle. I doubt they want to risk more bad PR by keeping the Maloofs in control longer than they have too. Imagine if the Maloofs release a message tomorrow saying that no matter the BoG decision that they will not sell to KJ’s handpicked guys. Then what will the NBA call their bluff or realize this could drag out for a few more seasons. All the NBA has to do is approve sale/relocation and flex its muscles saying if you want another team go do these things and stop any litigation (like 2008). All other scenarios lead down the road to anti-trust or Maloofs maintaining power for at least a while. I guarantee the Maloofs will put in about zero dollars more than they have too if this fall through. The Maloofs hate Burkle and its more than just 2011. I remember reading something about Burkle’s involvement with another of the Maloofs financial investments in the past.
“It may be wishful thinking for them, but they know the PR hit will be huge if they nix the sale to Hansen.”
I’m sorry, but that’s just wishful thinking.
Outside of Seattle and Sacramento hardly anyone gives a damn about what’s going on here and where that team will end up playing next year.
That’s why there won’t be any “PR hit” or whatever if the team does somehow stay in SAC.
If you’d ask people outside of Seattle and Sacramento about this the answer you’d hear would be, great that Seattle gets their team back and too bad for Sacramento.
The reason for that being that they only read the headline which stated, “Kings sold to Seattle”.
I think it would depend on how the league treated us. IF Sac does stay, and the league does something for us this spring, and makes it the highest priority the next team comes here and that we have a team in our 5 yr window, I see the fans coming back when the team comes. But if they say “We’ve got nothing for you, better luck next time”, than the fans and the city as a whole may not come back if and when a team comes back.
You gotta stop being so doom and gloom and hanging on apocalyptic scenarios, man.
Remember before this whole Kings thing? We weren’t sure how we were going to get a team or when we’d get a team, but we had faith in Chris that it’d happen. That should stand even if the Kings fell through (which it’s extremely extremely unlikely, it’s probably not even worth talking about). We were pumped by Stern’s speculation about expansion in 3-5 years, but now that we have the Kings, we think expansion is an absolute non-starter, no chance of it. Chris was pushing full steam ahead even when the Kings had their arena deal approved by the city council and it was looking like they’d be locked in place long term, we were pushing full steam ahead right along with him. Seattle is getting a basketball team, the only question is when and how, and right now we have a good answer for that (from Sac next season).
FWIW, Traven is jhande. He appears to be posting from WA, not NJ. I’m sure he will be banned quickly if he misbehaves here. No worries.
I have to say that travern has been pretty civil when posting here. Maybe the times boards cause people to go all Dr Jekyll and mr Hyde.
I was thinking the same thing. That place is toxic, man!
Not being called a liar by the same ST troll here is always refreshing.
“…the fans and the city as a whole may not come back if and when a team comes back.”
We’ll always come back. There’s no pride in being a fan.
It’s a silly, absurd, absolutely inescapable love.
Exactly, people might kick up a big stink, but if the league comes back to give us some Sonics basketball, we won’t even remember what we were upset about.
If they can get away with stealing our team and we’re still desperate for a team, I don’t think there’s much that is going to change that.
Yeah, that is our curse - we have no shame.
I was going to say, hell yes we have pride, but no shame. :)
Getting screwed twice would be too much for a lot of people.
So we’re screwed if our team gets stolen and screwed if we’re stopped from stealing another? Let’s just let things unfold.
you mean you
No, he means a lot of people.
Well I think it would be too much also. But I don’t think it’s going to happen. 95% chance we get the Kings, 5% chance we get the E word.
There’ll be a PR hit no matter the outcome. Either Sacramento gets screwed or Seattle gets screwed for the second time in five years. Of course, the NBA deals with a lot of (self-inflicted) PR hits-players brawling with fans, relocations, lockouts, “The Decision,” referee scandals, and so on-and doesn’t seem to suffer any long-term repercussions.
If they give Sac the E word, they ameliorate the damage right off.
Spurning a city for the second time in five years would be a way bigger PR hit, especially that we did everything that was asked of us when the team left. Best thing to do to limit PR damage is let SAC give an offer, then reject it no matter what they come up with, and tell them to work for the next available team.
Telling a city “next available team” 5 years ago, than have said city to everything you asked them for, and still undo a binding deal would be way worse than letting Kings go and promising them next available team if they get arena figured out. I may sound crazy, but as long as we get a team in our 5 year window, I’m glad the team left when it did. It was the catalyst needed to get our $hit together and give us this wonderful opportunity, with a brand new arena and the NHL as a possibility. I would prefer that than the original Sonics staying in a renovated key. If we would have renovated the key, we would have been In the same situation in 10 years as when the team left.
When did the NBA promise us the next available team? I believe that it was conveyed that the NBA COULD return to Seattle IF we got a new arena, etc., but it’s not like we’ve been in line for a long time. We just got our crap together through 2012. It’s not like we’ve been used as leverage ever before.
Speaking of villainy in Seattle sports….
did anyone see that Steve Hutchinson signed up for twitter under the username poisonpill76?
” @GuyFieri
Follow my brutha Steve Hutchinson, NFL legend, @poisonpill76 … “
I just don’t see where the team comes from if not the Kings. If people are gonna dismiss expansion, I don’t see how we get a team in our 5 years if this doesn’t go through. Milwaukee would be a possibility, but they 3 more years to work out an arena, as their lease runs to 2016 and is designed to provide room for arena talks. doesn’t matter what team it is, if you announce their team is sold, and they have time to prevent it, most cities will.
Expansion has not been 100% ruled out yet. It may cling to life support, but it ain’t dead.
Expansion isnt happening before the new national TV contracts IMO
probably true. The behind the scenes promises can go on all day though.
I’m still waiting to find out what Stein meant when he said there would be more clarity into the situation ASG weekend.
He probably meant that things would be much clearer after All Star Weekend. :)
Or one of the national reporters will be able to squeeze something out of one of the owners on whats going on
ha!
There’s always a press conference of David Stern during the ASG, in which he talks about “the state of the NBA” or something like that.
Given that and KJ’s quotes about going to the ASG to talk to the owners, there’ll certainly be questions asked by the reporters during that press conference.
It’s also only two months before the official BOG meeting and not even two weeks before the official relocation deadline.
Therefore Stein(and almost everyone else interested in this topic) certainly thinks that this could lead to indications at which direction the owners are leaning.
Remember during sonicsgate, when Chris Daniels and Stern got into over all-star weekend? Classic.
totally! CD is tha man!
long time reader on SonicsCentral, since the days when McMillan started headcoaching.
Now that the Sonics are close to reality once again I’m looking forward to participate actively in the site but I’ll keep my comments just in the basketball front.
Really hoping this dream comes true and we can see the Sonics back, good luck people
Welcome. There is a new thread above, all about rosters/trades/free agency/cap room/luxury tax, yadda yadda, if you’re into that stuff. :)
already did, stopped following the NBA after the Sonics disappeared but got hooked back when Greivis Vasquez (I’m from Venezuela too) got traded to the Hornets, now known as the Hornicans soon to be Pelicans
Thanks Litos, just got a good laugh from “Hornicans”. People in McDonalds wondering what I’m laughing at. How fun is that!