Sunday, July 6, 2008

Hang down your head and cry.

Well its not over yet but I'm preparing for the worst. My beloved Seattle Supersonics, the first team I ever remember following as a kid, could soon be on their way to the Sooner state, Oklahoma.

The whole thing is quite tragic really. If you haven't been following the events that lead up to this, here's out it basically played out. Two wealthy investors from Oklahoma City bought the Seattle Supersonics from former owner and CEO of Starbucks, Howard Schultz. In doing so they signed a contract promising to make every effort they could make toward keeping the team in Seattle. Not too long after, in which being fair to Clay Bennett (one of the current majority owners) they a couple times to pitch ideas of keeping the team in Seattle, which consisted of a multi-zillion dollar new stadium fully funded by tax payers who just spent zillions only a decade prior to rennovate the teams current arena, Key Arena. After the city declined such an idea, Clay and Co. announced they were taking the team to their hometown, OKC. Soon after reports surfaced that even before they bought the Sonics Clay and Co.'s intentions all along were to take the team to OKC once it was purchased.

In the end you have a team that has had incrediable fan support for 41 years leaving the city that loves it without any word or action taken by the NBA's commissioner only because the city had refused to let the NBA have full profit of all concessions and proposed high end seating the past few years. To commissioner David Stern and Clay Bennet 41 years is nothing, because in the end they wouldn't be able to make loads of money on top of the zillions of dollars they all ready have made.

Ok, I realize professional sports is way more a money making machine than just sporting leagues, but something's wrong with this picture. You have ravid fan support for around 41 years, you are the only city team to ever win a league championship, and in the end it all doesn't matter. Shame on you Daivd Stern.

I leave you with some shots from the past...


Parade in downtown Seattle after the Sonics won the 1979 NBA Championship


Shawn Kemp dunking over Dennis Rodman in the '96 Finals.


The Glove and Air Jordan jawin' at the '96 Finals.


Another classic Kemp shot. I love the shot of Jordan gazing up at "The Reignman".

2 comments:

benjamindavidbrown said...

Dude, with a title like that I expected something super intense and depressing. While I guess the Sonics leaving seattle is depressing, i was thinking more along the lines of world disaster. It is sad that we care so much more about money than loyalty etc though.

carsonbelmont said...

Dude, I am so upset and I am not even a Sonics fan.