“Sonicsgate” Books Week Long Theatrical Run at SIFF — Dec. 11-17
Posted on Thursday, November 5th, 2009 at 1:20 pm by Adam Brown
Looks like we needed a new thread, so here’s some news to continue the discussion since we still don’t know who will be mayor and probably won’t for a few days… here’s a press release we put out today for Sonicsgate:
“Sonicsgate – Requiem For A Team,” the feature film profiling the true story of the Seattle Sonics tragic exodus from Seattle, today announced a milestone of more than 54,000 online views since the film’s release on October 12, 2009.
Streaming free at www.sonicsgate.org, the documentary film chronicles the heartbreaking and political removal of a champion pro sports team from the Emerald City. As ESPN’s Bill Simmons recently wrote: “The Sonics were stolen from Seattle — literally, STOLEN, and if you don’t believe me, watch this movie.” (Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009, espn.com).
Due to high demand after two sold out preview screenings in October, “Sonicsgate” is proud to announce a one-week theatrical run at SIFF Cinema (321 Mercer Street) in Seattle from Dec. 11 to Dec. 17. Tickets and showtimes are available at SIFF.net
We’re working on some cool things to make these screenings a celebration, hopefully with some special guests, tributes, etc. Stay tuned.
November 5th, 2009 at 1:22 pm
here’s the direct link to get tickets for the SIFF screenings:
http://www.siff.net/cinema/detail.aspx?id=29288&FID=112
November 5th, 2009 at 3:04 pm
Nice work again Sonicsgate folks. You’ve done a great job.
Simmon’s new book is practically 1/2 off on Amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/Book-Basketball-NBA-According-Sports/dp/034551176X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257458613&sr=8-1
November 5th, 2009 at 3:22 pm
hoping for good news in 2 hours…should be a good day.
November 5th, 2009 at 4:02 pm
what time zone is this site on? i saw BR’s comment and then looked at the clock and apparently it was posted 20 minutes in the future. my clock says 3:02
November 5th, 2009 at 4:03 pm
i mainly posted that to see what time came up. did someone forget to change their clocks?
November 5th, 2009 at 4:24 pm
and one more thing; damn you and your cryptic posts, Brian!
November 5th, 2009 at 4:49 pm
two more things:
1) You can now download Sir Mix-A-Lot’s “Not In Our House” and the Presidents of the USA’s “Supersonics” on the Sonicsgate Soundtrack page –> http://www.sonicsgate.org/music
2) We are 68% to our Kickstarter Fundraising goal for Sonicsgate to keep the site up and running so people can watch the movie for free. Every little bit helps, so please spread the word and help us hit our goal in the next 24 days!! We will keep adding new free content to the site as long as we are able.
Thanks for the support and encouragement Sonics faithful!
November 5th, 2009 at 5:17 pm
I’m pretty sure the good news Brian is referring to is the updated Mayoral race vote count that will be released at 4:30 (and he hopes Mallahan pulls in front).
November 5th, 2009 at 5:19 pm
I’m pretty sure the good news Brian is referring to is the updated Mayoral race vote count that will be released at 4:30 (and he hopes Mallahan pulls in front).
that dawned on me shortly after i entered my post and realized what time 2 hours would be.
November 5th, 2009 at 5:29 pm
Is today’s count the last count?
November 5th, 2009 at 5:40 pm
Mike McGinn 65172 49.78%
Joe Mallahan 64657 49.38%
November 5th, 2009 at 5:40 pm
McGinn ahead by 515 votes
November 5th, 2009 at 5:45 pm
I forget, is that less or more than it was yesterday?
November 5th, 2009 at 5:46 pm
about 50 more than yesterday Yoon. Still trends well for Mallahan, IMO.
November 5th, 2009 at 5:50 pm
How do you figure, Xteve?
November 5th, 2009 at 6:33 pm
The clock should be right again in March, at least that’s the way it worked out last year.
November 5th, 2009 at 6:48 pm
If the mayor’s race stays so close won’t there be a recount?
We might not know who won for weeks, right?
November 5th, 2009 at 7:01 pm
hey adam, this may not be to efficient, but if you are looking for a littler extra in $$ for sonicsgate, have oyu thought about setting up donation booths outside husky stadium or qwest? i think most sports fans would get on board for this. i’ve thought that if there was a booth at the apple cup you’d get dawg fans and cougar fans possibly pitching in. if you need before/after game volunteers, i’m sure many of us sonics fans on the blog would be glad to help. (i undestnd accountability could be an issue with volunteers.) but if you get in contact with 60,00+ people at any given hawks/dawgs game that could generate some money. thoughts??
November 5th, 2009 at 7:53 pm
“How do you figure, Xteve?”
Because McGinn isn’t pulling away, and elections usually (but not always) trend toward the center. Only picking up a total of 50 votes over yesterday’s total isn’t that big an advantage, and regardless of outcome it’s going to show that whoever wins this race will be pretty fuckin’ far away from being able to claim a mandate of any kind.
November 5th, 2009 at 9:24 pm
I sure the F hope you all voted!!!! I did
November 5th, 2009 at 9:25 pm
What a great job on Sonicsgate!! I have only watched about 1/2 of the movie so far but wow does it bring back a lot of memories. But it’s hard to watch too cause it makes me miss the Sonics even more.
November 5th, 2009 at 10:07 pm
great thought 206er. the only issue aside from coordinating the manpower would be that we need people to donate online for it to count for the Kickstarter. how that thing works is if we don’t hit our goal, we get nothing and the money stays in the pockets of those generous enough to donate. if we could coordinate the manpower i’m all for it, but i feel like an e-mail and word of mouth campaign should get us over the top in the next three weeks. every little bit helps, so those $1 donations will be huge as we get closer!
November 5th, 2009 at 10:14 pm
I hardly watched the NBA at all last year, mostly out of pure disgust after the Sonics departure. I’ve caught a few games this season, and I’m disappointed. Is it me or has the overall quality of the game deteriorated that sharply? It seems all but 5 or 6 teams out of 30 are fundamentally lacking. With ticket prices what they are, I have to ask myself if this product is something I would invest that much to see for a few hours, with my family no less. The best thing for the overall quality of the league would be to contract to 20-24 teams. The talent level seems like it’s spread too thin. A team with depth and good coaching like the ‘85 Lakers would crush any of these pretenders handily.
November 5th, 2009 at 10:27 pm
I loved SonicsGate. The story sucked but it was true and very well done. I really wish I had a Seattle address so I could have voted for Mallahan.
November 5th, 2009 at 10:43 pm
“Because McGinn isn’t pulling away, and elections usually (but not always) trend toward the center.”
what does xteve mean by this?
November 5th, 2009 at 10:50 pm
I agree with xteve, the voters moderate.
Election day results are early voters.
November 5th, 2009 at 11:37 pm
I agree with Steve’s oveall premise on voting patterns. However, there is that whole thing where apparently McGinn “supporters” were collecting votes last minute and mailing them for pepole…people who had conveniently been called by prepaid cell phones given to other voters by the McGinn camp.
Could lead to a larger then normal chunk of votes for McGinn…
No one has explained why this is an acceptable way to gather votes…the chance for fraud is insanely overwhelming…
November 6th, 2009 at 12:22 am
From today’s Times story:
Even on Election Night, McGinn supporters turned their Capitol Hill party into a makeshift phone bank after results were posted. They passed out cellphones and call sheets to partygoers and began calling undecided voters.
The campaign posted volunteers in five QFC parking lots to collect last-minute ballots and drive them to a late-night post office. Campaign volunteer Aaron Pickus said 200 ballots were delivered to the post office just before midnight Tuesday.
The tactic drew criticism Wednesday from Secretary of State Sam Reed.
“It kind of violates the sense of fair play to wait until after the results are announced and then launch an effort to manipulate the outcome,” Reed said. “It just doesn’t sit right with me.”
The effort was legal but troubling, he said.
Reed has been pushing legislation that would require all ballots to be in hand by 8 p.m. The proposal didn’t get much traction last year, but Reed said he hopes the Legislature will take action next session.
By law, ballots have to be postmarked by Election Day. This was King County’s first all-mail general election. Polls used to close at 8 p.m.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/politics/2010204958_mayor05m.html
November 6th, 2009 at 9:20 am
you know what would drive voter turnout way up? if we didn’t have to pay for own postage.
November 6th, 2009 at 11:14 am
The tactic drew criticism Wednesday from Secretary of State Sam Reed.
“It kind of violates the sense of fair play to wait until after the results are announced and then launch an effort to manipulate the outcome,” Reed said. “It just doesn’t sit right with me.”
The effort was legal but troubling, he said
- Its total BS if you ask me…I enjoy the convenience of mail in voting. But, if you can’t guarantee that the the person who voted is the one who mailed it in…then you should go back to regular run of the mill voting.
Taylor Made: I agree….
November 6th, 2009 at 11:18 am
How is this for a scenario:
A guy sees people in QFC collecting votes to “take them to get post marked” and asks if he can drop his off with them. They casually ask who they are voting for…the guy says Mallahan. That vote suddenly ends up in the garbage.
The cell phone thing is more just weird…
November 6th, 2009 at 11:32 am
Voting fraud in Seattle/King County?
Shocker.
November 6th, 2009 at 11:39 am
I agree DBF…but at least they usually try and make it look like its legit. One of the best bits from Curb Your Enthusiasm is contains this quote:
Larry David: [to Cheryl, while they are sitting, waiting for the Dansons to call] They could at least lie to us. You know, call us and lie! We don’t want to sit here like schmucks. A lie is a gesture, it’s a courtesy, it’s a little respect. This is very disrespectful.
November 6th, 2009 at 11:54 am
Comedian Andrew Sleighter on KZOK about his Starbucks boycott, his voting based entirely on the Sonics departure, plus props for Sonicsgate!
http://www.kzok.com/topic/play_window.php?audioType=Episode&audioId=4145242
if this link doesn’t work, just go to Kzok.com and go to the Bob Rivers Show and look for the Podcast on Nov 4.
November 6th, 2009 at 11:58 am
the comedian is hilarious, btw. it starts about after the halfway point in the podcast; you can move the navigation bar to get there if you don’t wanna listen to the rest of the show.
November 6th, 2009 at 12:56 pm
“you know what would drive voter turnout way up? if we didn’t have to pay for own postage.”
Aren’t there drop off points at most Seattle libraries or neighborhood service centers?
I don’t think paper ballot or voting in person seems to have much if any effect on turnout in off-year elections.
“How is this for a scenario:
A guy sees people in QFC collecting votes to “take them to get post marked” and asks if he can drop his off with them. They casually ask who they are voting for…the guy says Mallahan. That vote suddenly ends up in the garbage.
The cell phone thing is more just weird…”
It’s bizarre, for sure.
November 6th, 2009 at 1:38 pm
Aren’t there drop off points at most Seattle libraries or neighborhood service centers?
Probably. but i still think numbers would increase if people could just drop it in their mailbox without cost. free and easy; two of any American’s favorite words.
November 6th, 2009 at 1:53 pm
So, has anyone gotten through Bill Simmons’ Book of Basketball? He’s my favorite sports writer, but Ive read about 60 pages…most of which is based on:
1) Defining what he calls “The Secret”…or how teams win championships. For example, the 2007-08 Celtics had “The Secret” and went from a lotto team to the Championship. Not because they traded scraps for two All-Stars and had their third All-Star come back from injury…but because they hung out together afte games.
2) I’ve just started his chapter on why Bill Russell is better then Wilt Chamberlin. Shockingly enough, he considers Russell better and I’ve read the part that tries to prove that Russel’s teams weren’t more talented. There is actually a footnote in that part, which kind of made me laught:
“At one point the teams started 10-34. Would a team led by MJ, Bird or Magic ever let that happen to their team?”
Of course, I find it mildly amusing since this is the same guy who has gone on national TV and said that KD might have a better career then LeBron….and has had similar starts to his career. This has nothing to do with KD…I just find it amsuing that this book is supposed to be the end all/be all of basketball, but at this point just consists of Simmons giving his arguments of why the players he likes are better then the ones he doesn’t like…without any sort of consistent method behind his argument. 750 pages is a pretty big committment.
November 6th, 2009 at 2:21 pm
http://blogs.seattleweekly.com/dailyweekly/2009/11/election_09_jessie_israel_says.php
interesting article about the Licata / Israel race. BR you’d probably like this one if you haven’t read it yet.
November 6th, 2009 at 2:27 pm
http://www.swishappeal.com/2009/10/26/1101324/sports-are-a-waste-of-human
There’s quite a few supporting articles out there nationally for Sonicsgate. Great work guys!
November 6th, 2009 at 2:30 pm
…and some love for SonicsCentral and SuperSonicSoul, plus Sonicsgate, here:
http://www.goldenstateofmind.com/2009/10/15/1087148/sonicsgate-now-playing-in-web
November 6th, 2009 at 2:39 pm
more Sonicsgate love. Damn but does the list go on.
http://elevationradio.com/2009/10/27/the-seattle-chronicles-searching-for-teams-to-root-for-when-none-are-to-be-had/
November 6th, 2009 at 2:51 pm
Happy to see Pete Holmes beat out Tom Carr. For more reasons than just the Sonics departure. Apparently so were 62% of the voters in that race.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010195999_elexseaatty04m.html
November 6th, 2009 at 3:38 pm
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=simmons/booktour2009
Bill Simmons coming to Seattle!
November 6th, 2009 at 4:18 pm
something surreal about seeing a funeral held in the Key Arena…
November 6th, 2009 at 4:18 pm
“I’ve just started his chapter on why Bill Russell is better then Wilt Chamberlin. Shockingly enough, he considers Russell better and I’ve read the part that tries to prove that Russel’s teams weren’t more talented.”
Myk - I would have guessed that you’d agree based on Russell’s D. I have no idea who was better honestly.
“I just find it amsuing that this book is supposed to be the end all/be all of basketball, but at this point just consists of Simmons giving his arguments of why the players he likes are better then the ones he doesn’t like…without any sort of consistent method behind his argument.”
Not a stats book? I’m definitely going to buy this. LOL. Who is saying this is the end all be all?
Simmons is an entertainment writer. We’ve all read his articles before. Remember his AK-esque trades that he proposes all the time? They hardly ever take into account things like salary.
Is it worth the $16.50 on Amazon?
November 6th, 2009 at 4:28 pm
Myk - I would have guessed that you’d agree based on Russell’s D. I have no idea who was better honestly.
- I never saw either of them play. I can’t
Not a stats book? I’m definitely going to buy this. LOL. Who is saying this is the end all be all?
Simmons is an entertainment writer. We’ve all read his articles before. Remember his AK-esque trades that he proposes all the time? They hardly ever take into account things like salary.
- Menace…you confuse me for being a stat person when I am much more a consistency/pattern person. In fact, I believe I’ve even used the exact footnote about KD that he used against Wilt. That is what is frustrating about Simmons’ first 70 pages. He comes off as if he is really an expert in basketball, but really he’s just someone with a favorite team and favorite players and will use whatever argument (even if it counters an argument he uses for a different player) to make him think he is right.
Like I said…he is one of my top 3 favorite writers…Im sure I will finish the book. I read an entire book on the Red Sox…Im sure I can get through this.
His comment about The Secret is silly though…The Secret is that magical thing that everyone uses to prove a team was successful. Since it has no ability to be quantified or reproduced you can’t really argue against it.
For example. here is his suggestion to build a great team:
- Get a star player. Someone who is highly competitive and kills himself on a dialy basis to set a good example.
- Flank tha start player with one or two great players who doesnt care about stats and basically does whatever is necessary (that the star player doesnt do) to help the team win.
- Fill the rest with top notch role players.
I dunno…but that basically sounds exactly like the Utah Jazz of the 90s to me…yet he wouldn’t say they had The Secret. Good teams win because they have really good players and they get a little luck. There isn’t some secret unidentifiable trait.
BTW, I think most people understand that it isn’t the end all be all…but if you read his introduction where he tries to basically prove that he should be an authority I think you’d come away that there is one person who does consider it an end all be all type of book: Bill Simmons
November 6th, 2009 at 4:37 pm
Shinn has prostate cancer, best wishes for his recovery.
http://www.seattlepi.com/basketball/2030ap_bkn_hornets_owner_cancer.html
———-
Myk Says:
November 6th, 2009 at 4:18 pm
“something surreal about seeing a funeral held in the Key Arena…”
Yes - we needed one of those. IMO Sonicsgate provided one, but in a different venue.
November 6th, 2009 at 5:34 pm
McGinn’s lead grown to 1209. Sigh.
Not good for a number of reasons even though it’s far from over.
If this trend holds the Seattle electorate just shot itself in the foot again - forget about getting ANYTHING out of Olympia if that 2ssclown gets in.
I swear this town never learns. McGinn’s incompetence is going to be nothing short of comical.
November 6th, 2009 at 6:12 pm
Ugh, this sucks. I consider myself to be pretty liberal, but I have a feeling this guy will be just like Nickels, if not worse. I was really excited about Mallahan…oh well.
November 6th, 2009 at 6:14 pm
here’s a poll from the warriors website about how long they think we’ll have to wait for a new team:
29%Within the next 5 years
147 votes.
27%6-10 years
133 votes.
9%11-15 years
49 votes.
33%15+ years
163 votes.
November 6th, 2009 at 6:21 pm
you can read that poll two ways:
1 56 percent think it’ll be 10 years or less
or, sadly
2. 33 percent think it’ll be 15+ years
November 6th, 2009 at 6:43 pm
<>
Shows you that people in Seattle are still DUMB! This guy is worse then Nickels. This guy can’t be trusted! We better hope and pray for a 100% privately funded arena as I’ve said all along.
November 6th, 2009 at 7:18 pm
Gah…two posts easten…basically the Region has no one to blame but themselves. Our neighbors are ignorant voters and are the true cause nothing ever gets done here. At this point, it doesn’t really even matter to care about political happenings. None of it matters as long as they are thought of as intelligent, funny or just a heck of a nice guy.
November 6th, 2009 at 9:59 pm
This is from the ESPN recap of the Plundered game from Nov.1 game v. Blazers
Game notes
Portland was called for traveling four times in just over 3 minutes in the second quarter, including on three straight possessions. … McMillan was whistled for a technical foul for arguing a call after Roy came up empty on a drive into traffic with 38 seconds left before halftime. … Westbrook had four turnovers with no assists in the first 6 minutes. … Attendance was 16,920, about 1,100 less than capacity, for the first non-sellout in the renovated Ford Center.
So in the first week of the season, and just the 3rd home game they didn’t sell out by over 1000 seats! What a joke this whole thing was.
As I have posted, I have a chinese company who is willing to discuss ownership share in new Sonics team/ new arena. Had extensive conversations with key execs this week in Beijing. I will wait to see how politics and other things Brian has been reporting on to proceed before I move further.
November 6th, 2009 at 10:02 pm
I really don’t think having McGinn as mayor will hinder our efforts to get an NBA team. If he can manage a good rapport with King David that’s what matters the most. McGinn knows what negative effect a sour relationship with the NBA czar can have on his re-election prospects. The key is finding the right ownership group to work with him. Who cares what what some random Golden State Warrior fans think? They have no skin in this game. The last time the Warriors were relevant Keith Wilkes was rookie of the year, Gerald Ford was President and the Kentucky Colonels were ABA champs.
November 6th, 2009 at 10:29 pm
if mcginn wins, and it looks like he will, will SOS reach out to him after the election?
November 6th, 2009 at 10:57 pm
the first non-sellout in the renovated Ford Center
I call bullshit
November 7th, 2009 at 1:11 am
I was concerned about McGinn because his tunnel stance was basically an “f-u” to the state and all the local governments and leaders who had worked for 10 years to come up with the tunnel plan. I felt this meant he would not work well with state leadership, and we all know what that would get us. But it’s true that McGinn took pains to reframe his approach to the tunnel, and for basically these very reasons - need to honor the process and the participants and not step on the state’s and everyone else’s toes and potentially lose billions of federal dollars too.
That said, I’m not a tunnel supporter. They’re cutting the # of lanes in half, and there are no downtown exits. Street traffic is supposed to pick up the remainder. What a crock. If I had been involved during the 10 years of discussions on this, I would have argued for a rebuild of the viaduct. But se la vie. It’s done, and I hope it works. I have serious doubts.
November 7th, 2009 at 1:15 am
I really don’t think having McGinn as mayor will hinder our efforts to get an NBA team. If he can manage a good rapport with King David that’s what matters the most. McGinn knows what negative effect a sour relationship with the NBA czar can have on his re-election prospects. The
- The sad thing is that no one knows what McGinn really thinks. Not even the majority of Seattle that voted for him. Well..its not sad…its down right pathetic
November 7th, 2009 at 1:17 am
That said, I’m not a tunnel supporter. They’re cutting the # of lanes in half, and there are no downtown exits. Street traffic is supposed to pick up the remainder. What a crock
- Ummmm…McGinn’s solution is to cut those lanes into zero…so take what you beleive could happen and times it by 20 and that is what McGinn will be pushing. Of course, i dont think McGinn’s plan will actually happen…it defies common sense…instead…nothing will happen. Woo hoo!!!!!
November 7th, 2009 at 3:44 am
Anybody who doesn’t think that McGinn’s election just set us back another few years from even having a snowball’s chance in hell of getting a new team is smoking the same thing as McGinn’s staffers. Myk nailed it. Pathetic.
November 7th, 2009 at 4:32 am
Will there be a closed captioning or subtitle on the Sonicsgate?!?! I have sent an E-mail to the the group who made the movie. Got a response that they are working on it. But I don’t see anything happening! I watched the Sonicsgate movie as I understood maybe 10 percent of what is being said. Would be nice to have it closed captioned or subtitled soon!
November 7th, 2009 at 10:35 am
I agree with Cruiser, McGinn severly hurts our chances. The only thing that metters to Stern, the NBA and an ownership group is a viable arena. I can see the excuses now. Nickels, Gregoire, McGinn. They’re all the same on this issue. Tell us what we want to hear then do the opposite.
Mallahan was our man.
November 7th, 2009 at 10:39 am
Well it hurts the chances of a new arena in Seattle proper. But does it hurt the chances for an Eastside or Renton arena?
November 7th, 2009 at 10:50 am
Well I guess McGinn got his payoff somehow.
November 7th, 2009 at 11:16 am
Ok. I think this does it for me. We can no longer blame OKC or David Stern for our team being gone. We have to blame the people of Seattle. Not the normal ones who have common sense and whose families lived in this area for years and years, but the nut jobs who were imported here and keep voting in Lunatics who don’t have any sense at all. It’s not a conservative vs liberal thing. Mallahan was a former “community organizer” from chicago!!! It’s a nut job, shoot yourself in the foot because your foot might inconvenience a spotted owl thing. Seattle just elected and environmentalist wacko for its mayor.
If the NBA ever does return to Seattle, I am firmly convinced now that a new arena will have to be completely financed with private dollars. Even if the state calls a special session and does what we need them to do this year, do we really believe this moron is going to do his part? Look at his comments on this website. This guy is worse than Nickels!!!
For the first time since this saga began, I am seriously considering rooting for the Blazers. Because the voting majority of Seattle will never offer me the chance to root for the Sonics.
Our only hope is the Balmer group and Chinese investors.
November 7th, 2009 at 11:20 am
hang tight, we’re working on it right now Paul! it costs a couple thou$and to make it happen depending on which company we use but it is currently in process… yet another reason to help us hit our Kickstarter goal!
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/533844276/sonicsgate-the-documentary-film
45 Backers
$3,480 pledged (out of $5K)
23 days to go
November 7th, 2009 at 11:54 am
McGinn is skeptical of public financing for sports arenas, but he has not shut the door completely on a viable public-private arena deal. McGinn as Mayor will probably not be great for the SOS line, but there is at least some hope that McGinn could be more proactive on this issue. McGinn certainly scaled back his postion on the tunnel, he could come around on the arena situation as well. McGinn plays basketball and he has been a basketball fan-at least he has some understanding of the concept.
In the big picture, the odds now of a King County based arena plan have probably increased again. Perhaps Bellevue is back in the picture again. Maybe even Federal Way. Dow wants to bring the NBA back and perhaps Dow and the King County Council can work on this issue in a partnership with the Ballmer group. Overall, there may be more hope right now with Dow and the King County Council to get something done-compared to McGinn and the Seattle City Council.
McGinn though is interested in this NBA issue. He does not dismiss the significance of the issue.
November 7th, 2009 at 12:13 pm
just had a long conversation with Paul S about the McGinn thing, and we agree that it’s not the end of the world since this is really a King County issue. as long as McGinn doesn’t rescind the Nickels offer of $75M in tickets taxes, we’re still good there. Mallahan would have certainly been more proactive on the issue, but McGinn won’t be a deal-breaker like Chopp or them.
The money has to come from the County anyway. Dow is strong on our issue and we just have to keep up the phone calls/emails/letters to his office. If McGinn wants to lose this to Bellevue, that will be a problem he’ll have to deal with.
November 7th, 2009 at 12:50 pm
Sene suspended 3 games
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/news/story?id=4632140
November 7th, 2009 at 1:19 pm
That’s a different Sene bro. I’m sure Mo Sene didn’t enroll at Virginia.
This McGinn thing scares me, but I’ll give the man the benefit of the doubt. He hasn’t even officially been in the office yet. We gotta work WITH them.
on the other hand. Why the hell would the Grizzles sign Allen Iverson and NOT start him? You pretty much know you HAVE TO START AI if you sign AI. That franchise is driving itself to the ground.
November 7th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
totally agree on AI. as a marketing move alone, you get ticket sales off having one of the greatest ever on the court. you can play him 20 minutes but make them mostly in the first quarter.
November 7th, 2009 at 1:57 pm
I wonder if that’s Sene’s brother. Both from Senegal.
Agree on AI. He wouldn’t have signed there, or retired, knowing he wasn’t going to start. I can see this ending badly.
At the same time Iverson should suck it up and be a team player. Come off the bench and just kill it. Its better to do that then complain to the press. With his talent he’d end up starting sooner than later anyway.
They should start him at PG. He has to be better than Mike Conley.
McGinn or Mallahan…..honestly I don’t know much about either. At this point isn’t it all speculation? We won’t really know anything until they get in there and take, or don’t take, action. We all know talk is cheap either way.
November 7th, 2009 at 2:32 pm
“Ok. I think this does it for me. We can no longer blame OKC or David Stern for our team being gone. We have to blame the people of Seattle. Not the normal ones who have common sense and whose families lived in this area for years and years, but the nut jobs who were imported here and keep voting in Lunatics who don’t have any sense at all.”
I don’t think it’s really an either/or thing. Bennett, Stern, and Schultz certainly deserve a share of the blame, as do the local pols and their supporters. One side’s culpability does not absolve the other’s. They’re all sh*theels to me.
November 7th, 2009 at 3:49 pm
“In the big picture, the odds now of a King County based arena plan have probably increased again”
this would be great if dow mentioned a new arena even once. from what i hear, dow is tied to a renovated keyarena. i haven’t heard even suggest that a new arena is something he would support. hutchison was the only one who even brought a new arena up.
November 7th, 2009 at 6:48 pm
I’m sorry guys but hoping for some King County miracle doesn’t make me feel any better. Has there been any private interest shown in building an arena elsewhere in King County? Has there been any public offer to build an arena outside of Seattle? I’m trying to be hopeful but my gut’s telling me the NBA is not to be in the Puget Sound for a long time. Unless Gregoire and McGinn come through on the arena deal, I won’t be holding my breath, I don’t see anything happening. I hope wrong!
November 7th, 2009 at 7:09 pm
Has there been any private interest shown in building an arena elsewhere in King County?
- I’ve gotta ask…at this point has there been any investigation on if the whole B3 thing announcement was legitmate or some secret ploy to distract everyone and basically the most important moment in the whole last minute attempt at fund by Ballmer. It is flat out amazing that anyone took them seriously, and then they’ve literally disappered. Not one other thing was ever mentioned after the fact.
November 7th, 2009 at 7:26 pm
“I’ve gotta ask…at this point has there been any investigation on if the whole B3 thing announcement was legitmate”
i know. i went on B2’s website and they haven’t updated it since july 2008. they probably aren’t, but we won’t know if they are legit until january, at least. coming out with an update while the city’s settlement agreement is still in effect could get them in trouble. btw, i tried to contact them last summer but never got a response.
November 7th, 2009 at 8:27 pm
I always thought B2 was pie in the sky bullsh-t. You’re absolutely right, their announcement was a horrible distraction at the absolute wrong moment for keeping the Sonics here. The fact there has been no updates is no surprise. I wonder if someone paid them to come up with that pipe-smoke trash.
November 7th, 2009 at 8:34 pm
i attempted to contact B2 for an interview and the plan basically no longer exists. they had switched PR firms and nobody ever got back to me.
November 7th, 2009 at 8:36 pm
“- Ummmm…McGinn’s solution is to cut those lanes into zero…so take what you beleive could happen and times it by 20 and that is what McGinn will be pushing. Of course, i dont think McGinn’s plan will actually happen…it defies common sense…instead…nothing will happen. Woo hoo!!!!!”
I was aware of McGinn’s even crazier plan. I’m pretty sure he’s backed off that already. But the fact he proposed that to begin with does not bode well for those of us who demand rational leadership from our electeds.
November 7th, 2009 at 8:59 pm
“i attempted to contact B2 for an interview and the plan basically no longer exists. they had switched PR firms and nobody ever got back to me.”
Thank goodness…that high school on steroids of their’s was a complete joke, and as everyone was saying..not only a distraction, but a huge depot of ammo for the Anti-Subsidy crowd.
November 7th, 2009 at 9:02 pm
sounds like whether the sonics return or not is all on ballmer and dow now.
November 7th, 2009 at 9:12 pm
That is the big question…was the proposal supposed to be real or was it a pretty smart thing for a group of people to do to ensure an Arena would never be built??
November 7th, 2009 at 9:52 pm
Yes, the B2 arena “plan” was really pie-in-the-sky. The idea of putting together a one billion dollar plus private sports arena facilty in Seattle, even in what seemed like a good econony, was a stretch.
I agree that this arena issue could be bounced back to King County government, one way or the other. Although Key Arena is city run, I think it is still possible to have King County government play a role in a Key Arena remodel plan. I know the City of Seattle considered setting up a separate stadium facilities district to run Key Arena, as a way to get around I-91.
Dow went to testify in favor of the Ballmer plan in front of the Washington State legislature. Dow also supported the Mariners and Seahawks stadium plans when he served in the legislature. Dow is a sports fan too.
Dow’s delivery and follow through we will all be watching on this issue, he does though have a respectable history in supporting public/private stadium plans. There is hope with Dow on this issue. Dow is smart, Dow knows that if he wants to run for Governor (various county Execs have become Governor in Washington State) or Senate one day, being known as a politician who played a role in bringing the NBA back can help him.
November 7th, 2009 at 11:28 pm
B2 was a joke from the start. Bill Russell was Clay’s buddy. He was also the supposed mediator between Clay and the Muckleshoots. Just a ruse to shut us all up for a while. Am I the only one to make that connection?
November 8th, 2009 at 3:06 am
I don’t think the B2 rollout really distracted anyone. From the start nobody took it seriously. And I don’t know why Fred Brown would have wanted to aid Bennett’s getaway. The fact that the franchise moved and essentially took on a completely different identity means that people are less likely to remember him as a player. I know Bill Russell sat with Clay in the owner’s box a couple of times, but do we know how chummy they really were?
I have always assumed that it was just a crazy idea by people who meant well but didn’t really understand things as well as they thought they did.
November 8th, 2009 at 12:54 pm
How about Brandon Jennings as starting PG for the Bucks - nearly a trip dub in his first game, then 24 pts, then 25 pts. Anomaly, sign of greatness, or something in between?
November 8th, 2009 at 4:06 pm
I don’t know man. I remember Flip Murray was sick in his first 20 games of the season too. We’ll see (or won’t since I haven’t watched an NBA game in awhile)
November 8th, 2009 at 5:30 pm
Though I think McGinn is second best, the situation is far better with Constantine in place of Ron Sims, and McGinn in place of Nickels.
The Nickels vs Sims battle over who was the decider was no help in this, and many other, situations.
An early move by the state legislature in January is the best chance for anything meaningful from the state. After a few months of McGinn battling to return Seattle to 1920 everybody will get pissed off at him and he will slowly become isolated.
Richard Conlin will be running the show for the next two years.
Watching who ends up on the council sub-committees will be the thing to keep an eye on.
We need a Seattle Center bill from the city, that has to come out of that sub-committee.
November 8th, 2009 at 10:16 pm
“An early move by the state legislature in January is the best chance for anything meaningful from the state.”
there’s too many unkowns there. first of all, we don’t how proactive dow or especially mcginn will be next year with the state. mcginn is still an unknown. second, we all like to think dow can keep ballmer in, but dow never addressed what he would do if ballmer leaves in the kjr interview. we’ll probably still have champions in murray and kohl-welles, but by next year, the key arena renovation plan could be dead.
November 9th, 2009 at 1:29 am
I don’t trust mcginn at getting. Anything done. I do mean anything.
Winning half the battle isn’t really winning at all.
November 9th, 2009 at 3:12 am
Very impressive win by the Thunder tonight
November 9th, 2009 at 7:11 am
Both Vince Carter and Rashard Lewis did not play.
November 9th, 2009 at 12:16 pm
They were still 5-1 before that game regardless of their injuries. You may hate it, but the Thunder are getting better.
B Jennings has looked pretty good this far. The kid has talent. I wonder if his success will have an impact on more players taking the route he took to the NBA vs college.
November 9th, 2009 at 12:20 pm
Love that the Thunder are getting better. OKC will embrace them for a number of years before they break their hearts and BOLT for greener pastures in another town.
November 9th, 2009 at 2:59 pm
I’m kind of with you RmcD. I don’t think the team will be leaving anytime soon……but I’m hoping the players do in FA.
November 9th, 2009 at 5:11 pm
does anyone know when the dow and mcginn will take office?
November 9th, 2009 at 5:14 pm
btw, SOS reaching out to mcginn and especially dow after the election would make alot of sense. i a really curious about dow’s future plans for a NBA return. i kind of agree with the earlier post, as long as mcginn isn’t a obstructionist with whatever deal dow makes, it’ll be OK.
November 9th, 2009 at 5:24 pm
Dow takes office as soon as his victory is certified, since this is a special election to replace Sims. I think the new mayor takes office Jan. 1.
November 9th, 2009 at 5:39 pm
McGinn’s lead has increased to nearly 5,000 votes. Mallahan has a press conference scheduled at 5.
Darn.
November 9th, 2009 at 6:10 pm
They were still 5-1 before that game regardless of their injuries. You may hate it, but the Thunder are getting better.
- Still not sure why you’d think I’d “hate” it…
- Looking at some attendance numbers…Philly is at 11500 average…that is pathetic. How come that isn’t a bigger story nationally…how can the attendance in a city that is supposedly full of “great fans” basically being turning their back on the NBA?
November 9th, 2009 at 7:28 pm
mallhan kust conceded at 5 pm. mcginn won.
November 9th, 2009 at 7:29 pm
i meant “just” not “kust”.
November 9th, 2009 at 7:41 pm
Well McGinn and Dow should be much better than Nickels and Sims lets just hope Sonics fans
November 9th, 2009 at 8:38 pm
Seattle Sports Fan is on the money: Mike is indeed a fanatical basketball fan, and whatever he may have said in the campaign, I am certain he’d want to see an NBA team in Seattle.
I recently watched SonicsGate, and, while I have nothing personal against the guy, watch Brad Keller’s callous self-congratulations was no surprise.
Incidentally, Stern is at it again down here, recently chiding the Maloof brothers for not pushing harder to extort a new stadium from my nearly bankrupt city.
November 9th, 2009 at 9:01 pm
i just wrote a letter to mcginn’s campaign:
hello,
my name is Peter Graef and i would like to pass a message on to Seattle’s new mayor, Mike Mcginn. i am wondering what mike’s plans are to bring an NBA team back to seattle, while still staying fiscally responsible. in the past few years, i have been educated on this issue, and i share mike’s concern about any deal having to work for the City of Seattle. i would appreciate any insight, because in my view, a major tenant like an NBA team at key arena is an absolute must long term .i don’t see the arena surviving without a major tenant. i understand and support that any deal will have to make sense, but i want to let mike know that i will support any effort to renovate key arena as long as it makes financial sense and it brings a NBA team back. i encourage him to work with Dow Constantine, the new King County Executive, to come up with a plan that brings back an NBA team to seattle that is not solely on the backs of taxpayers. Dow is very proactive on this issue, and he even appeared on KJR radio to discuss it. again, congratulations on a good campaign, and i hope to get a response soon.
thank you for your time,
peter graef
November 9th, 2009 at 9:04 pm
“B Jennings has looked pretty good this far. The kid has talent. I wonder if his success will have an impact on more players taking the route he took to the NBA vs college.” I wouldn’t doubt that kids would take the money they can make in Euro league versus going to college, assuming of course that they had little chance of being drafted directly into the NBA out of high school.
“Incidentally, Stern is at it again down here, recently chiding the Maloof brothers for not pushing harder to extort a new stadium from my nearly bankrupt city.” Thanks for sharing that Rich. Keep us posted. What a f-hole Stern is. I guess he sees this as “his job”… WTF, his job should be to protect the long term economic viability of the league, at which IMO he has measurably failed.
November 9th, 2009 at 10:58 pm
“Still not sure why you’d think I’d “hate” it…”
Not everything I post if pointed towards you. I thought the win was impressive too.
November 10th, 2009 at 12:03 am
Will do, Speedcat. The Kings may be dull, and their announcer, Jerry Reynolds (the former coach, not the former Sonic) makes me pine for Kevin and Marques, but the Maloofs are sincerely trying to work something out w/o looking like fools, and then Stern, like some nerdy Lucky Luciano, swoops into town and implicitly criticizes them for not demanding protection money.
And, colored as i may be by personal feelings, I’d urge Brian et al to give McGinn a chance.
November 10th, 2009 at 12:20 am
“And, colored as i may be by personal feelings, I’d urge Brian et al to give McGinn a chance.”
along those lines, maybe it would be a good idea to try to get mcginn to sit down with KJR for a interview. if he’s truely the basketball fan he says he is, he’ll do it. if he won’t, we know his true colors. btw, will brian or sos meet with mcginn again before he takes office?
November 10th, 2009 at 12:31 am
McGinn’s a tool. I’ve met him twice now and came away unimpressed each time. He’s got some good ideas on paper which play well to the Will in Seattles of this region, however I don’t think he’s got any clue how to pragmatically or realistically implement them and he doesn’t collaborate well enough with others to put forth a platform that will work for everyone. Bad combination in a mayor.
I think he’s gonna be a guy who’s gonna -talk- about a lot of things, blame them on other people when they don’t get done, and in the end will accomplish jack squat. But that’s apparently what the electorate wants. All talk, no action. You asked for it, you got it Seattle.
November 10th, 2009 at 12:44 am
i just got the impession mallahan was pandering, just like rossi. how do we know he wasn’t just gonna turn his back on us and do nothing if he got elected? it is what it is, and if we want a team, we can just sit around and wait for a 100% private arena, or work with the people that were elected. my money’s on the latter.
November 10th, 2009 at 3:13 am
“What a f-hole Stern is. I guess he sees this as “his job”… WTF, his job should be to protect the long term economic viability of the league, at which IMO he has measurably failed.”
I’m biased, but I agree. The NBA has a labor deal which limits how much money a player can make. Meanwhile it supposedly rakes it in from around the globe and is a shameless corporate shill (the “Nestle Crunch Slam Dunk Contest”?). And yet Stern himself admits that more than half of the teams lose money (I’m guessing it’s a lot more than half, knowing that Stern would be the type to try and downplay the damage) under the league’s current screwed-up system. How is that even possible? And isn’t that a reflection on Stern?
Our guy Bill Simmons compares Stern to Pete Rozelle in his new book. I don’t want to rip Simmons, but that’s a ridiculous thing to say. The most important thing Rozelle did during his 30 years as NFL commissioner was put in place a financial system that is generally considered by far the best of the major sports leagues. Despite several labor-management dustups over the years, Stern has not come close to doing that during a 25-year tenure. This upcoming labor battle may be his last chance. Bully for him if he does it, but what took him so long? And why does the press give him a pass for that, as well as for looking the other way when the owners misbehave?
Tommy Craggs is my new hero. He is the only guy I have read who actually calls Stern out for his major faults. I’ve posted this before, but here it is again if you missed it the first time:
http://www.slate.com/id/2211157/
November 10th, 2009 at 3:17 am
Here’s a shorter thing he wrote about Stern:
http://deadspin.com/5386922/david-stern-peels-his-scabs
November 10th, 2009 at 8:07 am
“The Kings may be dull, and their announcer, Jerry Reynolds (the former coach, not the former Sonic) makes me pine for Kevin and Marques,”….HAVE YOU HEARD JIM WALDEN DO COUG GAMES?!?!? “WE need to do this WE need to do that”!!..
November 10th, 2009 at 11:50 am
so BR, what’s the good news?
November 10th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
“i just got the impession mallahan was pandering, just like rossi. how do we know he wasn’t just gonna turn his back on us and do nothing if he got elected?”
Who knows. All speculation. Some people assume Rossi would have done more than Gregoire but nobody will ever really now. They all talk the talk. We never really know until they get into office. If they don’t win they can say anything they want, promise the moon, and we’ll never know if it was going to be true or not.
November 10th, 2009 at 9:37 pm
Sonicsgate got a little pub for the return to Siff
http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattlesports/archives/184686.asp?source=pimail
November 10th, 2009 at 9:47 pm
This is what I have written at the SeattlePI, I think it is worth repeating here:
What is unusual about the theater experience is that you are seated with many Sonics fans, kind of like being at a Sonics game, only there is no game. There is a groupviewing experience that is more like a sporting event, and much less like the solitary feeling of watching a movie with 200 complete strangers. There is a shared experience, and history, beyond the singular movie event.
Even for that, you should go. It is unusual.
November 11th, 2009 at 2:59 pm
“What is unusual about the theater experience is that you are seated with many Sonics fans, kind of like being at a Sonics game, only there is no game. There is a groupviewing experience that is more like a sporting event, and much less like the solitary feeling of watching a movie with 200 complete strangers.”
I would attend, but I won’t be in Seattle until a few days after the end of the theatrical run. But you are right about the value of a live, shared, group experience. It’s something that gets increasingly lost as people hole up in their homes to watch DVDs instead of going to a cinema. Maybe driving themselves to a gated community to boot. As a society we’re getting increasingly afraid of each other (how many of you remember when it was considered perfectly okay to spend Halloween wandering for miles taking candy from strangers, instead of going to a community-approved neighborhood Halloween-fest?).
Where I disagree is that even watching a movie can provide some of that communal experience. It helps if it’s a movie with a specific focus and a group of fans, especially if it’s a special screening, compared to some mass-market flick aimed at a bunch of Saw VI fans. Actually come to think of it, the people who like watching Saw probably have a lot in common with each other and so even they get more out of seeing it in a large group instead of by themselves — it’s like the difference between riding a full roller coaster vs riding it alone.
November 11th, 2009 at 4:12 pm
JAS, nice Slate article, thanks for sharing.
November 11th, 2009 at 6:56 pm
http://www.ideasforseattle.org/pages/27772-general/filter/recent?days=14
i don’t know if anyone wants to vote for my idea on mcginn’s idea bank to bring a anchor tenant back to key arena (NBA), but if there are a lot of votes, mcginn might consider it. c’mon, it can’t hurt anything for people to vote for it, can it? btw, you have to register.
November 11th, 2009 at 7:05 pm
you can also vote for my idea three times. cmon, stuff the polls, it won’t hurt anything!
November 11th, 2009 at 9:02 pm
Vote for Peter’s whacky idea:
“bring an anchor tenant back to key arena”
here:
http://www.ideasforseattle.org/pages/27772-general/filter/recent?days=14
Peter’s idea is among many ideas here:
Ideas for Seattle
On behalf of the McGinn for Mayor campaign, welcome to Ideas for Seattle. The strength of our city comes from our talented citizens. With our passion, creativity and commitment, we can make Seattle a better place for all of us. Join in the conversation.
November 11th, 2009 at 11:17 pm
I like the idea about using stadiums as a tent city during non-game nights.
November 11th, 2009 at 11:19 pm
Voted, I don’t care if it looks cheesy or whatnot. We didn’t make noise about this issue when we needed to, thanks to the brilliant people that were giving Brian political advice. Time to make some noise in any public venue possible. Make it so loud people’s ears bleed.
Also, we need to start doing some organized service projects for the community and start hitting the pavement with organized, easy to digest info about getting the Sonics back. Gotta begin to win and direct the hearts of the people…those two things are the quickest way to do so.
November 11th, 2009 at 11:55 pm
McGinn says:
“the health of key arena is very important to me. that said, if we can find a fair, fiscally responsible deal that is not overwhelmingly on the backs of taxpayers to renovate key arena and bring an anchor tenant like an NBA team back to seattle center., we should consider it. working with the new KC exec, Dow Constantine to come up with a fair deal with a significant amount of private dollars would seem like the best course of action.”
He keeps saying things like “if we can find a fair deal … with a significant amount of private dollars.” Isn’t that type of deal already on the table from the Ballmer group? Even Van Dyk and Licata supported that proposal. Why does McGinn talk as though no real proposal currently exists? Is he assuming that the Ballmer group’s offer expires at the end of this year?
November 12th, 2009 at 12:22 am
Ballmer’s offer (whether or not still on the table) was contingent on landing a team first.
November 12th, 2009 at 12:29 am
Ballmer and Company want to be collaborators. There is going to need to be someone in an executive position who also holds some political influence…before, regardless of what you all think about Joe, and whether or not he was a genuine dude….that was Mallahan. Now, it’s Dow. He has to step up like Gary did with the ‘Hawks. Ballmer and Co. have already defined their role.
More and more I just don’t see the pieces in the right spot for a Seattle solution, I keep coming to the same conclusion….Eastside.
November 12th, 2009 at 1:16 am
Potential good news that Dow has appointed Sen. Fred Jarett to be deputy exec. Jarrett has sponsored NBA arena legislation in the legislature. Jarrett knows Olympia. I am sure Dow has multiple other reasons to bring Jarrett into his adminastration, it is nice though that one of the top guys in his adminastration is good on the arena issue.
November 12th, 2009 at 8:04 am
JAS, where, when did McGinn say your quote?
November 12th, 2009 at 12:50 pm
It is from the “Ideas for Seattle” site Peter linked to.
November 12th, 2009 at 12:55 pm
Here is a similar McGinn quote from a previous thread:
I need to know more about the proposal before committing to supporting it. My key issue here is ensuring that we’re making a wise investment of public resources into the arena and not finding our self in a position where the city ends up on the hook, these are pretty serious budget times. I’m open to a renovation of Key Arena, but I have to see what the payoff is.
We have to be careful with taxpayers and we have to make sure we’re doing the right thing for the surrounding business district, the arena, and Seattle Center. But I’m certainly open to people making the case.
http://sonicscentral.com/blog/?p=2614
November 12th, 2009 at 1:02 pm
Byron Scott fired, Hornets continue free fall?
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/sports/2010259118_apbknhornetscoachfired.html
November 12th, 2009 at 2:40 pm
I think the writing is on the wall for the NBA in New Orleans.
November 12th, 2009 at 3:41 pm
Send them back to Charlotte, we will take the Bobcats and Coach Brown for a year followed by George Karl.
November 12th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
Kevin what makes you say that?? last I seen they had to average x-amount of ticket sales to get out of dodge, was that only last year? anything else I am missing?? I WANT MY SONICS BACK THIS IS KILLING ME!!
November 12th, 2009 at 6:09 pm
From what I’ve read they told CP3 to make it work with what they have. Basically they weren’t looking to add payroll/players to help the team. If they keep losing its only a matter of time before he wants out of there.
I’ll take any team. But with Shinn as an owner they aren’t that cool. I know we’d like to have Ballmer buy them……but the last time I checked they weren’t for sale.
November 12th, 2009 at 6:18 pm
Its also pretty crazy that they moved the GM in as the coach and hired Tim Floyd.
Speaking of Floyd. Its pretty funny how far he’s fallen. Pretty sure he regrets turning down the AZ job only to resign at SC and now be an assistant to his former assistant for the Hornets.
November 12th, 2009 at 6:49 pm
Its also pretty crazy that they moved the GM in as the coach
Gregg Popovich and Pat Riley did the same thing and won titles. Crazy like a fox.
-*-*-*-
Hey, do y’all remember the good ol’ days when everyone fixated on the Hornets attendance?
On second thought, there wasn’t much good about those ol’ days unless you were one of the ones who were silly enough to believe that the Hornets were going to magically end up in Okieville instead of the Sonics.
November 12th, 2009 at 7:37 pm
Thanks for the link Peter! I voted for yours 3 times. If we get a team I hope the city and the new owner work with Clay Bennett to get the Supersonics name and history back to Seattle and NOT shared with OKC. I would NOT want to root for the Seattle Pacers or something like that.
November 12th, 2009 at 8:33 pm
I think due to their combination of arena, lease and ownership situations, the next likely team to play in Seattle will be the Bucks. Maybe Howie can buy them and call them the StarBucks.
On that mention of the evil one… I finally got around to watching Sonicsgate this week (My emotions have still been running hot & cold and I didn’t want to watch it while I was hot. This week I finally fell into a cold period and felt I could take it).
Job well done by all involved. It was excellent. I had been worried that Howie was going to be let off too easy by suggesting he was duped but that wasn’t the case at all. The movie let him have it right between the eyes and for that I am thankful.
The only guy I thought got off the hook way too easy was Steve Ballmer. People forget he was part of the settlement agreement. Also, right after the sale, Kemper Freeman was talking about how enthusiastic he was about putting together a privately funded arena deal in Bellevue but Ballmer squashed it and Freeman was never heard from again.
I made a thread about the Ballmer-Nickels conspiracy about 16 months ago.
http://www.sonicscentral.com/bboard/viewtopic.php?t=6791
I understand why quite a few folks feel the need to kiss Ballmer’s a$$, seeing that he’s currently our best bet for bringing another team back. However, I’ll never think highly of him for his roll in sending OUR team out of town. No matter what team eventually (if ever) comes back and whether or not they’ll be called the Sonics, they’ll never be OUR team. They’ll be stolen goods. Some folks think getting our history back and imposing it over the history of the team we get would make all of that go away. I don’t.
November 12th, 2009 at 8:47 pm
I don’t think getting the name back will make anything go away but I also know there’s no way to reverse what happened. The team’s gone, imo the next best thing is a new team with the Sonics name and history.
November 12th, 2009 at 9:01 pm
thanks Peter, voted 3X for your idea
November 12th, 2009 at 9:15 pm
Dick, I don’t fall in for all this “he said she said” crap about Ballmer’s connection to this. Where’s the proof, man?
LOL that post you linked had Heavy on it. Man that seems like longer ago than you said it was.
November 12th, 2009 at 9:31 pm
If Ballmer wanted to control the market why didn’t he just buy the team from Howard back in 2006?
November 12th, 2009 at 10:02 pm
I hear some of what Dead ball is saying. I’m not one for the Ballmer conspriracies, though. What’s the point? He’s got enough money to buy his own league if he wants. Actually, that’s not a bad idea. Ballmer can start a new rival league! Like the ABA was, only this time the rival league will actually be about basketball and not “other revenue opportunities”. All the former NBA and ABA cities like Seattle who got shafted can be the first teams: Buffalo, Cincinnati, Kansas City, San Diego, Baltimore, Kentucky, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, San Francisco, Vancouver. I bet some NBA players would defect to the new league just to feel like real players again. Also, I’ve had my eyes on the Bucks all along. I believe they will be the next Sonics in two years after the nasty lockout rocks the league. Jennings and Bogut will look good in yellow and green. I’m not so sure that Ballmer will be the owner.
November 12th, 2009 at 10:49 pm
Traffic was/is enough of a reason to nix an arena idea in Bellevue. I used to work at Microsoft and live in Seattle. Trust me if there was an arena in that area it would be a complete and total nightmare.
When there are Mariners games………..It can take as long as 1.5-2 hours to get from Redmond-Seattle. Imagine what that would be like with an arena in Bellevue which arguably has the worst traffic in all of King County.
“Gregg Popovich and Pat Riley did the same thing and won titles. Crazy like a fox.”
Considering Jeff Bower has never been a head coach at any level……yeah thats kind of crazy. Its even crazier that he hired Floyd who he served as an assistant for.
November 13th, 2009 at 12:19 am
Kemper is a pleasant enough fellow, but not somebody to spearhead a deal, especially one involving his beloved Bellvue/Kirkland
November 13th, 2009 at 8:28 am
as someone who lived in baltimore on march 28, 1984, i wouldn’t want to see indianapolis go thru the experience of seeing ‘their’ pacer unis worn elsewhere. . . even though the irony doesn’t escape me. whatever team comes in, wherever they’re from, they simply MUST be the supersonics. cleveland’s browns were ‘on hold’ for a few years (nobody in baltimore wanted them to be the ‘baltimore browns,’ anyway) and now — although they stink — the continuity of cleveland football isn’t totally wrecked.
seattle supersonics2, and let the old name/uniforms/records remain w/the old town. that’s my formula, no doubt about it. the bucks? sure, bring ‘em on. but don’t expect me to pretend that lew alcindor won a championship for ‘us.’ that ‘79 memory belongs to seattle alone, and milwaukee — or indy, or whomever — can keep their memories themselves.
November 13th, 2009 at 10:18 am
Speaking of Floyd. Its pretty funny how far he’s fallen. Pretty sure he regrets turning down the AZ job only to resign at SC and now be an assistant to his former assistant for the Hornets.
- Ya…but, wasn’t the theory about not taking the AZ job was that he knew he was gonna be banned from the NCAA (a’la Kelvin Sampson). As a UW fan (and Im sure you as a WSU fan)….it would’ve made me very, very happy if Floyd had gone to Arizona. Too bad…
Hey, do y’all remember the good ol’ days when everyone fixated on the Hornets attendance?
- Well their attendance is still pretty bad. Their average attendance this year is lower then the first year Clay bought the team. How is this for the “good old days”…
In 2005-06…the lowest attendance was Portland with 15,049 and there were fiveteams under 16k. This year…the lowest is Philadelphia (great sports town and all) with 11,537 (23% less then Portland) and NINE (almost 33% of the league) are below 16k. Goodness…
November 13th, 2009 at 10:20 am
Steve Kelly giving Bill Simmons some love!
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/stevekelley/2010264128_kelley13.html
November 13th, 2009 at 2:40 pm
I don’t think I’d want the Hornets to move here. I’d feel like we’d be taking advantage of what happened to that city four years ago.
Right now I’m in the Sherman Alexie camp. I just wouldn’t want to be the beneficiary of another fanbase going through what we did. OKC is the obvious exception, but I don’t expect that opportunity to come up.
November 13th, 2009 at 3:37 pm
http://www.forbes.com/lists/2008/32/nba08_NBA-Team-Valuations_Rank.html
some interesting numbers
November 13th, 2009 at 3:48 pm
Those are from a year ago.
November 13th, 2009 at 5:19 pm
“the health of key arena is very important to me. that said, if we can find a fair, fiscally responsible deal that is not overwhelmingly on the backs of taxpayers to renovate key arena and bring an anchor tenant like an NBA team back to seattle center., we should consider it. working with the new KC exec, Dow Constantine to come up with a fair deal with a significant amount of private dollars would seem like the best course of action.”
that was actually the text i wrote for my idea. people put their own ideas on the site and people vote for them. my idea has 39 votes currently. sorry for any confusion, but i wrote the text for my idea in order to appeal to a broader group of people.
November 13th, 2009 at 5:23 pm
if you read down from my idea it will say my name, peter.
November 13th, 2009 at 6:15 pm
Oh, okay. Thanks Peter. I thought that was something McGinn had said.
Sorry for the confusion, everyone.
November 13th, 2009 at 6:41 pm
sherman alexie and anyone else who thinks that another fan base won’t be going thru what seattle went thru probably wasn’t paying attention to pro sports for most all of the 20th century and what we’ve seen of the 21st. teams move: some fans rejoice, some mourn. over. and over. and over. and over again.
seattle will be back in the nba, another city will be out, and it won’t stop there. i’ll take no pleasure in another city’s pain, but won’t stint on my happiness when the sonics are reborn.
November 13th, 2009 at 8:26 pm
Just tuned into Houston @ Sacramento. There were literally 2 empty sections next each other in the corner of the lower bowl, the first section up from court side.
http://www.atdhe.net/10229/watch-houston-rockets-vs-sacramento-kings
November 14th, 2009 at 1:58 am
Where did Sherman Alexie say that? I remember him saying the exact opposite in “Sonicsgate”. That he’d feel bad for the fans whose team we steal, because he knows the feeling.
Have some of Ty Lawson. 5′11″
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xOMOkZYq3jY
November 14th, 2009 at 9:23 am
charliesonic 6:41 pm: You got it right. The cycle of moving franchises is nothing new. Our case is a bit different because moving a 41 year old team is unusual in the grand scheme. Those of us who mourn the loss of the history/legacy qualities must understand that it will never be the same again. Still, getting someone else’s former franchise beats the heck out of not having one at all. That truly is the choice. I want a team called the Seattle SuperSonics here in Seattle, even if they used to be the Bucks or Pacers or whomever. I’m willing to settle for less than perfect to get it. Downtown, Lenny, Jack, Gus, Nate & Spencer’s jerseys will still hang from the rafters, along our Championship, Conference and Division banners. GP, Shawn & Det can have theirs retired too. We’re (kind of) home again. Then we spend eternity guarding the gate to thwart someone else taking our team away. So it goes.
November 14th, 2009 at 11:08 am
“sherman alexie and anyone else who thinks that another fan base won’t be going thru what seattle went thru probably wasn’t paying attention to pro sports for most all of the 20th century and what we’ve seen of the 21st.”
I don’t think you were paying attention to the movie, because he says exactly the opposite at the very end.
November 14th, 2009 at 1:33 pm
that was actually the text i wrote for my idea. people put their own ideas on the site and people vote for them. my idea has 39 votes currently. sorry for any confusion, but i wrote the text for my idea in order to appeal to a broader group of people
- You know in theory it seems like a good thing that McGinn has this little website out there to get feedback from citizens. On the other hand…this is just a perfect example of McGinn getting elected without having any sort of platform for change. He has no idea what he wants to do (or better yet WE dont)…relying on the electorate to give him feedback is just another piece that pushes me in the direction that we’ll get nothing done during his tenure as mayor.
November 14th, 2009 at 2:35 pm
I think y’all may be misinterpreting chaliesonics comment - I think he meant that Alexie felt there will be difficult feelings around taking a team from another city, and that those feelings are misplaced, not that Alexie thought such an event would not occur.
But LOL - not all of us were around for the entirety of last century.
November 14th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
Not so Soecial, not yet, anyway.
http://seattlecenterarenareboot.blogspot.com/2009/11/joe-zarelli-washington-lawmakers-should.html
November 14th, 2009 at 9:14 pm
Brandon Jennings put up 55 tonight. 29 in the third. Still can’t believe he beat out Ridnour for the starting spot. jk
November 14th, 2009 at 9:17 pm
Spurs lose to the Zombies?
November 14th, 2009 at 9:38 pm
i am trying to find the forum where people sent questions to the mayoral candidiates on seattletimes.com to post mcginn’s response on my idea page. i believe it it the same one q and a where br posted “big joe ups the ante”. i don’t know if that page was taken down, buta actual quote would be nice.
November 14th, 2009 at 11:11 pm
Brandon Jennings put up 55 tonight. 29 in the third. Still can’t believe he beat out Ridnour for the starting spot. jk
Wow, pretty impressive. I thought it was a mistake when they let Ramon Sessions walk, but tough to argue with it now.
I feel a little bad for Ridnour though, I thought he’d have a legit shot at starting - figuring it would take Jennings a while longer to work into the role.
November 15th, 2009 at 11:47 am
Looks like our friends the SEIU are up to their old tricks again. They want Hans Dunshee to challenge his fellow Deomocrat Steve Hobbs for Hobbs’ Senate seat.
Hobbs has been a supporter of both the Renton Arena and the Key Arena upgrade though that is not the reason they want Hobbs out.
http://tinyurl.com/y8lo2rp
November 15th, 2009 at 1:00 pm
I believe Jennings also has the single game scoring record at Oak Hill Academy. That is pretty impressive considering the players who have come out of there.
I love it when another straight from HS kid, or in this case one year in Europe to get around the age limit, shows promise. Too early to say he’ll be good/great……but so far so good. It has to make Stern squirm a little bit. At one end its probably good for the league to have a young potential star. At the other end, how can Stern continue to fight for an age limit or adding another year? Especially since so many of the stars of this league didn’t go to college, or were one and done.
Kobe
Lebron
Howard
Melo
Garnet
Bosh
Durant
Think about it. One of the poster boys of why not to come out early, Rashard Lewis crying in the green room, makes sick sick money now.
November 15th, 2009 at 2:36 pm
Think about it. One of the poster boys of why not to come out early, Rashard Lewis crying in the green room, makes sick sick money now.
- Sure…where is Robert Swift and Kwame Brown on that list??
November 15th, 2009 at 2:39 pm
To add…besides…are you going to argue that if there was a 2 year age limit that they wouldn’t still have been great players? The age limit might not be good for the players…but being able to weed out the bad “potential” players is much better for the teams (who Stern works for). Everyone remember when coming out of HS Josh McRoberts was gonna be a top 5 pick? He goes to Duke and is basically average. Im sure dumb team x is very happy they didnt draft the guy.
November 15th, 2009 at 4:18 pm
I’m with Myk - too many players who haven’t panned out to only focus on the ones who did, regardless of how succesful those who have became.
Considering the financial situation of many teams in the league, it behooves the whole NBA to at a minimum maintain the one year rule. The less money and guaranteed contracts going to upside-only players the better.
November 15th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
I love that players aren’t allowed to enter the league right out of high school. Forget Jermaine O’neal claiming it’s racist, it’s not, it’s so teams won’t be hindered by Robert Swift signings.
November 15th, 2009 at 6:45 pm
“Brandon Jennings put up 55 tonight. 29 in the third. Still can’t believe he beat out Ridnour for the starting spot. jk”
Wow that kid is blazing. I agree, at least at this point, Rid does not hold a candle to this kid.
November 15th, 2009 at 7:21 pm
speedcat, yyou read me right. fans are born to suffer the pangs of franchise relocations — we weren’t the first, won’t be the last. as for not being alive throughout the whole 20th c, that’s no bar to knowledge of what happened. ask the students in my history classes! although they always think the world began the day they showed up. ha!
November 15th, 2009 at 8:15 pm
November 16th, 2009 at 12:11 am
“Sure…where is Robert Swift and Kwame Brown on that list?”
Not on the list. But they are millionaires and probably don’t care.
“The age limit might not be good for the players…but being able to weed out the bad “potential” players is much better for the teams (who Stern works for). Everyone remember when coming out of HS Josh McRoberts was gonna be a top 5 pick? He goes to Duke and is basically average. Im sure dumb team x is very happy they didnt draft the guy.”
Don’t get me wrong there are plenty of HS busts. But there are plenty of college graduate busts too. Isn’t it the scouts/gms job to make those evaluations and decisions? Its risk a reward proposition. In the real world people make those decisions all the time. In the real world there generally isn’t an age limit.
If team x is dumb enough to draft hs player x or college player x……then that should be their fault.
Age limit might be good for the league and teams and owners. No doubt. But its bad for the player, and the players are what make the league. I just think the message is a little muddled when the NBA promotes education, has an age limit……..yet it pushes its many stars who didn’t go that route at all.
November 16th, 2009 at 1:37 pm
I’m going to side with Myk on this one.
Before the age restriction, HS kids were declaring left and right. They’d hire an agent, not get drafted and be ineligible for college athletics. It was a complete disaster for those kids. And for every Kobe, there was 20 busts. It not only ruined the kids, it was hurting college hoops. Of course there are the Robert Swifts, that play out (or sit out) their entire rookie contract, make $9mil and try to prove to the world for the rest of their life that they’re a basketball player. But what would have happened if he went to college and got a degree? Sure, he wouldn’t have $9mil, but he’d have a degree, and he’d have a good shot at being proud of whatever he eventually accomplished. Unlike now.. he has $9 million and sucks at basketball. He’s going to go back to college and be the laughing stock of wherever he goes.
November 16th, 2009 at 1:48 pm
Actually, Robert Swift is playing for the NBDL in his hometown of Bakersfield and is being heralded as a hero. God knows why. I come from the same town as Brian Scalabrine but he could still probably walk down the street unnoticed. AND HE’S GOT A CHAMPIONSHIP RING!
November 16th, 2009 at 2:44 pm
That was my point. He will always be a failed-NBA player for the rest of his basketball career. That’s a pretty hard fact to swallow every day - not to mention the target on your back from the other team.
November 16th, 2009 at 3:20 pm
I guess I’m just not sold on the idea that this keeps teams from drafting busts or there is a higher washout rate from HS to the pros players. You just as easily draft the next Shelden Williams, Marcus Fizer, or Candyman from college.
I actually wonder if the chance of drafting a bust is higher for a college player vs a HS palyer. It might be.
“Before the age restriction, HS kids were declaring left and right. They’d hire an agent, not get drafted and be ineligible for college athletics. It was a complete disaster for those kids. And for every Kobe, there was 20 busts.
20 for every Kobe? No way. Name them. I can think of two. Korleone Young and Lenny Cooke who declared out of HS and didn’t get drafted.
November 16th, 2009 at 3:25 pm
“That was my point. He will always be a failed-NBA player for the rest of his basketball career. That’s a pretty hard fact to swallow every day”
Not really. I’d just look at the bank statement and would get over it pretty fast. He was good enough to make it to the L which is something a small percentage of the world can do.
You can’t honestly say that you’d trade a degree for millions.
November 16th, 2009 at 3:31 pm
oddity in the ncaa is that a kid can be pro in another sport, if i read the newspaper properly, some former mls player just won a football game w/a late field goal. . . i think i have this right. the ncaa is a racket.
November 16th, 2009 at 3:35 pm
The one thing I never got is people saying “well, what’s he going to do if he busts or breaks both his legs?” Um… go to college? He’s got $9 million now, he can pay his tuition up front.
November 16th, 2009 at 4:11 pm
As long as you don’t pull an Antoine Walker and support a bunch of people/gamble it away……..you can sit on your couch and live off the interest.
I’ve got a degree, and to be honest its a piece of paper. I really learned everything I need to know about my job…..on the job. I’m sure a alot of people could say the same thing, unless of course your in a truly specialized career.
NCAA is a strange deal. Especially when you consider how much money they make off these kids. Greg Paulus used up his hoops eligibility and now is at Syracuse playing football. But shouldn’t he have 4 years of football eligibility? Why does he only get one year?
November 16th, 2009 at 4:18 pm
I’m with Myk on this one. For every Kobe and Garnett, there’s probably 20 busts. you just don’t hear/remember them because they never went anywhere. but you def. hear about the successes.
November 16th, 2009 at 4:19 pm
successes = the successful ones.
November 16th, 2009 at 5:24 pm
You never hear about them because not many don’t get drafted. From 1995-2004 only 6:37 didn’t get drafted.
Deangelo Collins
Lenny Cooke
Giedrius Rinkevicius
Ellis Richardson
Taj McDavid
Tony Key
http://tinyurl.com/ya9tyj7
November 16th, 2009 at 5:39 pm
Make that 7:37. Jackie Butler didn’t get drafted in 04, but eventually went on to play for the Knicks and Spurs.
November 16th, 2009 at 5:54 pm
Regarding Robert Swift:
Of the $9 mil he made, I wonder how much he has left. Of the money he has left, it better last him a lifetime because he’ll most likely never make a significant amount of money playing basketball again. Of that money he has, I’d bet it’s GONE in the next 5-10 years.
And if I was a college student, and washed up Robert Swift was in a class of mine - I’d bust on the kid until he either quit, or gave me $1mil. I’m sorry, but to trying to argue that Robert Swift is “set for life” because he made $9 million won’t cut it for me. He could prove me wrong, especially since I remember the hoopla about him coming from a fairly successful family - but if I were to bet on failed NBA players success after the NBA, it’s going to be on the unsuccessful side.
Here’s an interesting article about ridiculous these athletes are…
http://www.thestar.com/Sports/article/299119
November 16th, 2009 at 6:24 pm
It all depends on the lifestyle you live. Give me one or two million and I’d be good. Rob’s biggest vice was clearly tattoos…….and it would be hard to spend all the cash on those.
November 16th, 2009 at 7:16 pm
New thread
November 17th, 2009 at 12:26 am
Nice link John, sad but true. Thanks for sharing.
December 13th, 2009 at 11:04 am
last report on Swift is he left the Jam after avg 2pts and a couple boards…
http://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/?id=3936774
December 13th, 2009 at 11:05 am
ok, 6 boards