Then why not come out and just admit that? Why not come out and say, "Hey Sacramento, it's our team, and we're taking our talents to Long Beach. Don't like it? F****n screw! Sacramento is nice, but we can make more money in Anaheim. Deal with it!"
Why even carry on with the dog and pony show, pretending to work with the city to get an arena done in earnest. Not waiting to see the results of the Taylor/Icon study. Not even considering selling the team to local investors. Why even bother going to such superficial lengths to avoid being labeled the villain?
If Sacramento had theoretically gotten an arena deal done, I'm not convinced that they wouldn't have tried to find another reason to move the club.
Didn't you know it was their team?
I doubt if there is any fan within the sound of my voice who would think that the Maloofs would sell the team to ANY mythical local group. We don't even know if such a group exists. This is their lifeblood - fame. Being an owner. If they simply wanted to make money they would be distributing beer in New Mexico.
They have been under orders from the NBA not to talk about what is going on. Million dollar fine. So they are quiet. I'll defend them because they brought the only winning team in this area's history. We set a pro sports record for the number of years in a row when the team was below .500.
They actually took part in the community which is more than can be said for Thomas.
They stayed a lot longer than the paranoid people of this area thought. From day one, while they were buiilding homes in Sacramento, people were saying they were buying the team and taking it to Las Vegas. They didn't do it. In a silly manner there are still people who think that this present scenario proves they bought the team so they could take it to another city.
They gave to the community. They are fans and owners. They probably are near broke. They certainly have the right to handle their financial foolishness the best way available.
The city and area has let them down - big time. I doubt if there are many people who think differently.
I think they were loose with their money but then if they hadn't been, that would have been criticized also.
So you think the reasonable thing to do is what?