March 6, 2012, was huge at that time. Basically, the Sacramento City Council needed 5 votes to accept a financing plan to help build an arena. Thanks to a 7-2 vote by the council, they accepted a nonbinding "term sheet" in which city officials, the Sacramento Kings, arena operator AEG and the development firm were slated to build the arena.
If there were 4 yes votes or less the Kings would be in Anaheim or some other city that the Maloofs could have asked to relocate to.
I don't know how much of a difference we made, but we attended council meetings using facts to educate the council and anyone who attended the council meetings, watched it from home or read about it in the paper or online or whatever the media reported on.
We attended the following council meetings and other events (not including greeting the mayor at the airport all four times, Kings viewing party, etc.):
1. December 13, 2011 (debut as #FANS)
2. January 17, 2012
3. February 14, 2012
4. February 28, 2012 for Sacramento County Council
5. March 3, 2012 for Darrell Fong Town Hall
5. March 6, 2012
6. March 27, 2012
7. March 29, 2012 for Jay Schenirer Town Hall
8. April 3, 2012
9. April 10, 2012
10. April 17, 2012
11. May 8, 2012
12. November 13, 2012 (as Crown Downtown)
13. February 5, 2013
14. February 12, 2013
15. February 19, 2013
16. February 26, 2013
17. February 28 for State of the City
The only problem I had was this kind of reporting from the March 6th vote:
We had a name and it was #FANS (Fund Arena Now Sacramento). Today we are now known as Crown Downtown but we still have white shirts.
What we do only works if people believe in it. I am just one person. But together it is strength in numbers kind of like an army of one.
I don't consider ourselves heroes or saving our team. All we can do is show our support, have our voice be heard, be the voice of the voiceless by representing the people who want to keep the Kings in Sacramento, build a downtown arena, have a reuse of Natomas, and other reasons that are #BiggerThanBasketball
If anyone deserves the credit it is Mayor Johnson because without him the Kings are gone. It is that simple.
I have no political ambition. I love my career in higher education. When this all said and done, I'll go back into my cave and be just a normal Kings fan again while attending some concerts, WWE, UFC, taking my kids (don't have any right now or as the military told me "none that you know of") to Disney on Ice, enjoying lunch or dinner by the arena just for the fun of it, etc.
Pretty insightful piece by David Aldridge. To me this whole situation is unprecedented and very complex. I don't believe it's a black and white issue like Ric Bucher or Carmichael Dave try to make it out to be for either side. We don't know all the action going on behind the scenes, but to me this feels like it has truth to it. Sac is officially back in the game with 6 weeks to go. Game On!
http://www.nba.com/2013/news/featur...holiday-contract-tyson-chandler-qa/index.html
Pretty insightful piece by David Aldridge. To me this whole situation is unprecedented and very complex. I don't believe it's a black and white issue like Ric Bucher or Carmichael Dave try to make it out to be for either side. We don't know all the action going on behind the scenes, but to me this feels like it has truth to it. Sac is officially back in the game with 6 weeks to go. Game On!
http://www.nba.com/2013/news/featur...holiday-contract-tyson-chandler-qa/index.html
Can the Maloofs still come out of this as decent guys? I think so...
Look, the Kings weren't "for sale" per se until somebody came along with a gigantic above-market offer. What if Hansen Ballmer said "look George, I really really mean business BUT... you gotta clam up, you gotta give me exclusivity, and in return I'll give you a price to blow your mind and a $30M deposit".
Could anyone fault the Maloofs for entering such discussions? Before the Hansen Ballmer story broke... if the Maloofs had said "we'll sell but only for a value of $525M" they might have risked embarrassment.. and weakened their bargaining position.
I know this is maybe a little far-fetched and I have done more than my share of Maloof bashing. But... now... if the Maloofs are offered a face-saving way to accept a void of the Seattle deal, get bigger dollars in return for "saving the Kings for Sacramento".... well maybe there is some diplomacy to be done on that front.
I guess I have just found a way to empathize with the Maloof position... I mean nobody would have dreamed of a $525M valuation six months ago. And a commitment to negotiate secretly and exclusively with Seattle... well.... it worked - it blew the price out of the water.
Maybe Mark Mastrov can figure out a way to actually talk this out with the Maloofs without rancor.
I think I'm in a minority but if the Kings stay, all Maloof transgressions real and imaginary... are forgiven and replaced with THANKS for a favorable Sacramento decision. Maybe we ougtta stop pissing on them from now till April 19 just in case their feelings DO in fact matter.
I have been inclined to think this way about the Maloofs situation for some time. Personally iCan the Maloofs still come out of this as decent guys? I think so...
Look, the Kings weren't "for sale" per se until somebody came along with a gigantic above-market offer. What if Hansen Ballmer said "look George, I really really mean business BUT... you gotta clam up, you gotta give me exclusivity, and in return I'll give you a price to blow your mind and a $30M deposit".
Could anyone fault the Maloofs for entering such discussions? Before the Hansen Ballmer story broke... if the Maloofs had said "we'll sell but only for a value of $525M" they might have risked embarrassment.. and weakened their bargaining position.
I know this is maybe a little far-fetched and I have done more than my share of Maloof bashing. But... now... if the Maloofs are offered a face-saving way to accept a void of the Seattle deal, get bigger dollars in return for "saving the Kings for Sacramento".... well maybe there is some diplomacy to be done on that front.
I guess I have just found a way to empathize with the Maloof position... I mean nobody would have dreamed of a $525M valuation six months ago. And a commitment to negotiate secretly and exclusively with Seattle... well.... it worked - it blew the price out of the water.
Maybe Mark Mastrov can figure out a way to actually talk this out with the Maloofs without rancor.
I think I'm in a minority but if the Kings stay, all Maloof transgressions real and imaginary... are forgiven and replaced with THANKS for a favorable Sacramento decision. Maybe we ougtta stop pissing on them from il 19 just in case their feelings DO in fact matter.
How 'bout some speculation on the votes for the approval of the sale? We need 10 nays...
Maloof family?
They're idiots. They realise they ultimately get more money with the Sacramento deal, so they try to back out of their deal
Paul Allen?
Is owner of the Seattle Seahawks, part owner of the Seattle Sounders, maybe he doesn't want to share the Seattle market.
Apparantly has a beef with Steve Ballmer (http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/...-allen-have-a-beef-with-ballmer.html?page=all)
AEG angle? (10 teams)
Per AEG's (http://aegworldwide.com/facilities/arenas/arenas ) the Spurs, Timberwolves, Nets, Grizzlies, Warriors, Blazers, Lakers, Clippers, Heat and Bobcats are teams playing in AEG arenas.
Seattle's Key Arena is AEG operated, the possible new arena isn't.
NHL Angle? (4 teams) These owners also own an NHL team and therefore know Burkle. I have no idea how that influences them.
Ted Leonsis (Wizards, Capitals)
Dolan (Knicks, Rangers)
Stan and Josh Kroenke (Nuggets, Avalanche)
Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment (Raptors, Maple Leafs)
Owners with business links to Mastrov or Burkle?
Any known grudges with Hansen or Ballmer?
Any other possible angles like the reallignment of the divisions?
Look, the Kings weren't "for sale" per se until somebody came along with a gigantic above-market offer. What if Hansen Ballmer said "look George, I really really mean business BUT... you gotta clam up, you gotta give me exclusivity, and in return I'll give you a price to blow your mind and a $30M deposit".
Could anyone fault the Maloofs for entering such discussions?
Before the Hansen Ballmer story broke... if the Maloofs had said "we'll sell but only for a value of $525M" they might have risked embarrassment.. and weakened their bargaining position.
I know this is maybe a little far-fetched and I have done more than my share of Maloof bashing. But... now... if the Maloofs are offered a face-saving way to accept a void of the Seattle deal, get bigger dollars in return for "saving the Kings for Sacramento".... well maybe there is some diplomacy to be done on that front.
I guess I have just found a way to empathize with the Maloof position... I mean nobody would have dreamed of a $525M valuation six months ago. And a commitment to negotiate secretly and exclusively with Seattle... well.... it worked - it blew the price out of the water.
Maybe Mark Mastrov can figure out a way to actually talk this out with the Maloofs without rancor.
I think I'm in a minority but if the Kings stay, all Maloof transgressions real and imaginary... are forgiven and replaced with THANKS for a favorable Sacramento decision. Maybe we ougtta stop pissing on them from now till April 19 just in case their feelings DO in fact matter.
The decision for each owner will be coming down to a combination of the following factors for them to weigh (assuming Sac gets it's arena term sheet finalized). I know it's not this simple, but as sports fans we love rankings.
- Freedom of owners to sell franchise vs. Uprooting an existing franchise (Adv. Seattle)
- New privately funded arena vs. New heavily publicly funded arena (Adv. Sacramento)
- #12 ranked TV market vs. #20 ranked TV market (Adv. Seattle)
- Shared market vs. Sole market (Adv. Sacramento)
- Billionaire investor with $15.2B vs. Billionaire investor with $3.1B (How much money do you really need?)
- Quality fan base vs. Quality fan base (Even)
Too close to call. Unfortunately, the emotions of the fans don't really count. I'm trying to think of how this is going to play out without getting emotions involved. I was born and raised in Sac and have always been a die hard Kings fan. I've lived in Seattle for a long period of time (during the Payton/Kemp years) which made the Sonics my 2nd team. I'd love for the Sonics to come back some day (Seattle fans deserve it), but not at the expense of losing the Kings.
Can the Maloofs still come out of this as decent guys? I think so...
Look, the Kings weren't "for sale" per se until somebody came along with a gigantic above-market offer. What if Hansen Ballmer said "look George, I really really mean business BUT... you gotta clam up, you gotta give me exclusivity, and in return I'll give you a price to blow your mind and a $30M deposit".
Could anyone fault the Maloofs for entering such discussions? Before the Hansen Ballmer story broke... if the Maloofs had said "we'll sell but only for a value of $525M" they might have risked embarrassment.. and weakened their bargaining position.
I know this is maybe a little far-fetched and I have done more than my share of Maloof bashing. But... now... if the Maloofs are offered a face-saving way to accept a void of the Seattle deal, get bigger dollars in return for "saving the Kings for Sacramento".... well maybe there is some diplomacy to be done on that front.
I guess I have just found a way to empathize with the Maloof position... I mean nobody would have dreamed of a $525M valuation six months ago. And a commitment to negotiate secretly and exclusively with Seattle... well.... it worked - it blew the price out of the water.
Maybe Mark Mastrov can figure out a way to actually talk this out with the Maloofs without rancor.
I think I'm in a minority but if the Kings stay, all Maloof transgressions real and imaginary... are forgiven and replaced with THANKS for a favorable Sacramento decision. Maybe we ougtta stop pissing on them from now till April 19 just in case their feelings DO in fact matter.
The decision for each owner will be coming down to a combination of the following factors for them to weigh (assuming Sac gets it's arena term sheet finalized). I know it's not this simple, but as sports fans we love rankings.
- Freedom of owners to sell franchise vs. Uprooting an existing franchise (Adv. Seattle)
- New privately funded arena vs. New heavily publicly funded arena (Adv. Sacramento)
- #12 ranked TV market vs. #20 ranked TV market (Adv. Seattle)
- Shared market vs. Sole market (Adv. Sacramento)
- Billionaire investor with $15.2B vs. Billionaire investor with $3.1B (How much money do you really need?)
- Quality fan base vs. Quality fan base (Even)
Too close to call. Unfortunately, the emotions of the fans don't really count. I'm trying to think of how this is going to play out without getting emotions involved. I was born and raised in Sac and have always been a die hard Kings fan. I've lived in Seattle for a long period of time (during the Payton/Kemp years) which made the Sonics my 2nd team. I'd love for the Sonics to come back some day (Seattle fans deserve it), but not at the expense of losing the Kings.
The thing is, this would not be the Sonics "returning" - it would be the wiping out of one of the original basketball franchises (one of the oldest basketball clubs still in existence - since the 1920's!) in order to move the team to a city that didn't put forth any effort (not the fans, the CITY) to keep the NBA team it had. Sacramento wouldn't be just "losing" a team.
The fans in both cities deserve a team.
I think from now on I am just not going to read/watch national media or fan boards. Proper respect just isn't there, although I know a few respected members on this board feel otherwise. Proper respect hasn't been there from the point the Maloofs weaseled out of the arena deal until now when a quality fanbase is threatened with losing its team. That the Maloofs unprecedentedly (if thats a word) backed out of that signed agreement made little national headway, still few understand it, and many still had held the city accountable for not getting something done arena wise. Now, when we are in the throws of losing our team, I know if I were an outsider looking in, I would only feel pity for a 20th media market who has whole heartedly supported this team losing its team in the face of Seattle getting another team, but as you see with Isaiah Thomas in that piece, no mention from Sacramento's point of view. I just need to not pay attention to that anymore
John Shirey, Sac City manager on right now talking about arena deals.
http://tunein.com/radio/CBS-Sports-1140-s33038/
They did just that.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...rcus-cousins-sacramento-kings-maloof/1798287/
Dec. 30th, 2012:
"According to people with knowledge of the situation, the Maloofs continue to discuss their preferred option of relocation with several cities and have let it be known in all the appropriate circles that bidding for the unlikely sale of the club should begin at an astounding $500 million."
Recap anyone?
Thanks Hammer
They did just that.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/sport...rcus-cousins-sacramento-kings-maloof/1798287/
Dec. 30th, 2012:
"According to people with knowledge of the situation, the Maloofs continue to discuss their preferred option of relocation with several cities and have let it be known in all the appropriate circles that bidding for the unlikely sale of the club should begin at an astounding $500 million."
But they really didn't. They always said the team was not for sale. They refused to sit with KJ or Burkle to discuss a possible sale. They talked about renovating STA. They talked about wanting to stay in Sacramento. They talked about being committed to keeping the Kings here. All lies. "Read my lips, we're not selling"...
The above is basically saying "we're not selling the team" and throwing out there an outrageous number to see if it sticks. And everyone laughed (except Hansen, I guess) because at the time it was way more than the team was valued at. But they NEVER came forward and officially declared that the team was for sale. It took a desperate billionaire to fall for their Virginia Beach bluff and offer them an amount so ridiculous that they had no choice but to accept.