The NBA's worst nightmare

It is clearly devastating for the NBA that one of their referees appears to be a mob-connected game fixer. Ouch.

For me, though, that wasn't the worst NBA news of today. No. The worst news was that the (Oklahoma City) Sonics traded for Kurt Thomas.

Man.

Too bad they aren't Seattle's team! Holy cow, Sam Presti is a superhero. It is almost impossible for me to imagine how good this franchise is going to be in 5 years. Kevin Durant? Jeff Green? OJ Mayo? (Because we're clearly going to have the first pick in next year's draft, too, so bad will we suck in 2007-2008). And then four first round picks in the following two drafts?

Insane. Sam Presti has been outright robbing other NBA franchises. He's already my favorite Sonic. Crazy, right? Too bad he's moving, too. Ugh. I could cry you a river.

For the sake of a quick update, Clay Bennett (Sonics owner) said yesterday that he wanted to meet with the mayor of Seattle to discuss arena options, even though a ballot initiative last fall essentially handcuffed the mayor completely. So, like, that's going nowhere. Today, Bennett came on Seattle sports radio and acted like a spoiled child. His position is that the city and the state should pursue him, and bring him stadium solutions, and let him pick the best option. That is soooooooooo not going to happen I could vomit. There are three groups trying to please the Sonics, and none of them is Seattle or Washington state: Instead, Bennett needs to be working with the cities of Renton, Bellevue, and the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe. They are all trying to come up with stadium plans. The city of Seattle and the state of Washington are not going to help. Please. Learn that. Work with it.

"The reality is, we own the team," Bennett said this morning. "We are dependent on the community to find a way to get the building done."

Hardly. You have a building that the city built 10 years ago. You have a building. You have a lease. But, you want a new building. So, the community owes you nothing. You are holding the community hostage. It is not the other way around. At the very least you could remember that.

Sonics fans in pain

While this post is specifically about the Seattle Sonics, and I'm trying to stay away from those, I think it also I think it also tells a wider story. So, indulge me.

When the Oilers left Houston, only 8 people showed up to that now infamous "Keep Our Oilers" rally. As the Sonics leave, there's a sense of desperation. But that isn't to say there is apathy, or a lack of action. Here, more than 8 people care, so to speak.

Today's Seattle Times has a piece by Danny Westneat in the wake of comments by new Sonics owner Clay Bennett. Bennett has been touring Kansas City, and listening to what that city is offering the team. As part of his visit, Bennett told the Starr newspaper that nobody in Seattle is helping him build an arena.

"(There has been) no hue and cry, no letters to the editor, nothing by the media or talk on the call-in shows, or no new ideas on how to get it done. No private ideas on the table," Bennett said.

That isn't at all true. Nevermind my personal position, there are plenty of things cooking. The cities of Bellevue and Renton have separate plans. A third plan is gestating in Tukwila. The governor has signed on to at least one stadium package. Multiple state senators have put their necks on the line. Sports radio is full of keep-the-Sonics talk. Etc. To suggest that the community doesn't care is disingenous.

But there's more. The story isn't just about Seattle caring or not caring. I think it's also about Bennett actively trying to leave. Read on.

In his article, Westneat spoke to the presidents of some fan organizations -- some of them with 5,000 members. On one of the organization Web sites, a president expanded on Westneat's column, and said a few things I had never heard before or understood.

My frustration comes from the fact that ownership has taken virtually no steps to address these issues before judging our community. Despite repeated pleas they have chosen not to reach out in any meaninful way to the media nor really engage the fans whatsoever.

For all the claims of money spent on the arena quest there has been no Advertising firm hired, no significant effort whatsoever to educate the public or release information. No real effort to pass a vision onto the community. In a real nutshell they have continued to have dialogue with the government without stopping for a second to talk with their customers.

The city of Renton along with our organization actually made more of a sales pitch than the team iteself. Furthermore all public commentary is, at this point indicating that he has given up 6 months into a 1 year due dilligence and without having taking any effort to adjust to the situation. He took one shot at legistlature and now is simply sitting back waiting to see what they bring to him.

This is not acceptable.

Isn't that crazy? The Sonics haven't even hired anybody to sell their message? I think that's whack.

When the Oilers left Houston, I had the definite sense that the community did not care. Right? Did everybody feel that way? If Clay Bennett can somehow convince the world that Seattle doesn't care about the Sonics, I'm going to be furious. We might not build him an arena, but to suggest that we haven't tried is absurd. Particularly if the community is trying harder than he is.

Screw you, Sonics.