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 On more than one occasion, I’ve been told that business and sports just, “Ain’t right.†In other words, the pureness of sports (whatever that is today) is bastardized by rich fat cats and convoluted legalese. And, you can often times, step back, be dispassionate about major league sports, and say, “Never forget that it’s a business first and foremost.â€
Well, I seem to talk a good talk on that last point. You can’t help and look at the case of the, at least for now, Seattle SuperSonics and say that a words like “intent†and “good faith†have been given such a broad definition that you could drive a truck through it. When the embarrassing news was released that minority ownership of the Sonics had been asking to hijack the team to Oklahoma City shortly after Clay Bennett’s group purchased the team from Howard Schultz, it seemed crystal clear that the intent was always to buy the team and either extort the city of Seattle into a new arena, or relocate the team to Oklahoma City, where the ownership group hales from. But, here’s the deal: While it seems pretty clear that the damning emails point to something akin to grand larceny by saying “the spirit of the sale†had been breached, the definition of “good faith†is what will ultimately prevent any case of the NBA’s BOG from not voting to approve the move to OKC. Yes, welcome to the world of kaleidoscope eyes. Now, unless you’ve been under a rock, most everyone that follows sports has read the comments made in emails by minority owners Aubrey McClendon and Tom Ward saying that they wanted to get the team moved, and was there anything Bennett could do to try and avoid any more “lame duck†seasons. But, apparently, the highest ranking official in the NBA hasn’t. When asked about the emails and the whole sordid mess, here’s what David Stern had to say, “I haven't studied them, but my sense of it was that Clay, as the managing partner and driving force of the group, is operating in good faith under the agreement that he made with Howard Schultz. “His straight and narrow path may not have been shared by all of his partners and their views, but Clay was the one making policy for the partnership.†Pardon while I clear my throat after reading “his straight and narrow path.†In other words, Stern points to Bennett looking at arena options around the Seattle area in places like Renton, while keeping an <ahem> open dialog, with the City of Seattle and State of Washington regarding public funding showed that while his underlings were a merry band of idiots, Clay Bennett is the pillar of the ownership group. Here’s where that being “dispassionate†thing goes out the window. David Stern, you must be joking. Seattle, you’re about to get robbed. The best you’re going to get is forcing Bennett and Co. to adhere to the lease agreement till the end of the 2009-2010 season. Howard Schultz? Good try. Commendable that you wish to sue in an effort to keep the Sonics in Seattle. Gov. Gregoire, kudos to you for trying to force the NBA BOG to hold off on the vote. Not going to happen. Too late. The train, at least for the NBA, has left the station. In their eyes (well, at least not in Mark Cuban’s), you should have coughed up that public funding, relocation-as-extortion, or not. You have to “prove†intent. There would have to be evidence (and who knows? maybe there is, if city lawyers get their way and subpoena the NBA for other documents and financial records pertaining to the Sonics) of Bennett leading the charge to relocate, regardless of how transparent it is that that is the case. That’s going to be exceptionally difficult. To Oklahoma City, you look like a cheap tart. Please quit playing the we’re-not-a-town-we’re-a-big-league-city part with such gusto. It’s embarrassing. As for the ownership group of the Sonics… it’s amazing how immature they look when you read through the emails. OKC, this is what you’re getting. MLB, the NFL, and NHL must be looking from across the room and shaking their heads. They haven’t seen ownership this sideways since MLB had Finley and Turner. The bad thing is, when the day is done, and the moving trucks do show up in Seattle (we can all wish that doesn’t happen. Pray for a miracle), the odds seem long for a team to come back to the Emerald City any time soon. Expansion doesn’t seem likely anytime soon (would dilute centralized revenues such as television), and there don’t seem to be any other teams that could relocate due to portability and lease structures. Quick grasping at straws… New Orleans isn’t a possibility due to it being a moral issue. Charlotte? Forget it they just got a team back. Seattle, you’re in my prayers. Bennett and Co., you look like petty thieves. David Stern, you sound like an irresponsible parent. So, when NBA Board of Governors meets Thursday and Friday to vote on Bennett's request to relocate the Sonics to Oklahoma City, get ready to hear that’s been approved. The chances of the Sonics staying are hinging on how the words “good faith†are interpreted. Those words used to be pretty clear. But not for the NBA. They’re passing out the kaleidoscopes to the BOG.
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