Comcast & Universal might join to help fund an Arena?

[Glenn]

There are a few crucial people that have to provide a little energy, vision, and money. I think plenty have showed the energy. I don't know how what the fans have done here compares with Seattle for instance but this has been pretty darn good. To really get things done you need Luckenbill and more money. I was thrilled to see Luckenbill at the rally as he got the original deal done and has friends with money. Kick in the possibility of Comcast perhaps for valuable signage and you just may have something to rival Honda and the like. I do not understand the absolute laziness of this area in uniting as one legal entity to facilitate the building of an arena. My suspicion is that the City has shut the other people (who buy 75% of the season tickets) out from having much say.

Small markets can get bigger and after more than a decade we just haven't united, not even as a county. You can't get anywhere by thinking small and this area thinks very small except for a few isolated people/entities.

Not casting any criticism at anyone here but I get a sense that in the area there is a "thank goodness, Comcast will save OUR Kings and I can go back and work in my garden" type attitude. Or play video games. Whatever.

Sorry. This is frustrating.

 

[Circa_1985_Fan]

In the SI thread it says the Clippers TV deal is $22.5 mil. If comcast can do around $20 mil for the Kings in Sacramento I think that would be huge for them staying.

Yes, but we STILL need an arena...big TV deal or not.

 

[The Hammer]

Yes, but we STILL need an arena...big TV deal or not.

Hopefully Comcast is being engaged as a funder of the arena deal in some way. **** they're big enough they could even finance it. Something like a TV deal, arena naming rights, financing of some sort.... from my very limited perspective of the situation... why in the hell would they not be all over that? They would be viewed as heroes in the community... donchya think that would get them more subscribers too?

The way I see it, this is a HUGE opportunity for Comcast to step up... and in a way, the worse it gets, the more it looks like the Kings will leave, the better they look. Maybe they've had this idea all along, and they've been waiting for it to get desperate to jump in to capitalize as much as possible on the positive PR.

Also, I do agree they've got a huge amount to lose if the Kings leave. Those two factors combined make them a very motivated party.

 

[Gary]

There are a few crucial people that have to provide a little energy, vision, and money. I think plenty have showed the energy. I don't know how what the fans have done here compares with Seattle for instance but this has been pretty darn good. To really get things done you need Luckenbill and more money. I was thrilled to see Luckenbill at the rally as he got the original deal done and has friends with money. Kick in the possibility of Comcast perhaps for valuable signage and you just may have something to rival Honda and the like. I do not understand the absolute laziness of this area in uniting as one legal entity to facilitate the building of an arena. My suspicion is that the City has shut the other people (who buy 75% of the season tickets) out from having much say.

Small markets can get bigger and after more than a decade we just haven't united, not even as a county. You can't get anywhere by thinking small and this area thinks very small except for a few isolated people/entities.

Not casting any criticism at anyone here but I get a sense that in the area there is a "thank goodness, Comcast will save OUR Kings and I can go back and work in my garden" type attitude. Or play video games. Whatever.

Sorry. This is frustrating.

Seriously though, how in the day and age can anything be called "small market" with the internet and everything. Not to mention we have millions of people in this TV market which should also prove that we aren't small market as well. Comcast, Give the Maloofs an "LA" type deal on their TV so they stay ffs! Comcast is raking in the dough now with the purchase of NBC and the decent programs they are finally giving us. Remember, the Kings are what started your "sports network" now pay the people!

 

[Arena Skeptic]

The problem is that if Comcast had a $20M deal with the Kings in Sac, I believe Comcast would lose plenty of money.

Just look at the advertisers the Kings have now. I'm not gonna name current names, but... Last year, they had the Palms and Roni Deutch. We all loved those ads, right? Yeah, me neither.

How much money do you think RD was forking over?

You can picture the current ads in your own mind, and draw your own conclusions. The TV ratings simply are not there to support a $20M committment from anyone. They'd be insane to do that. Just how much would the ads have to cost to ensure a profit for Comcast at $20M? Pretty dinkin' high, that's how high.

We're dealing with funding gaps all over the place here.

I just don't think we can exclude the contraction option at this point in time. If the NBA rejects this move, I think that forces the Maloofs into a very ugly financial corner. We may not want to know what that corner looks like.

When Stern first mentioned this in public around the All Star Break, I believe their minds were already made up. Had it been an "unnamed source", then maybe it's just an unfounded rumor from the LA media. But it wasn't -- it was Stern. There's no way Stern would have made his statement in an off-the-cuff or accidental way. That was calculated, all the way.

 

[SacTownKid]

The problem is that if Comcast had a $20M deal with the Kings in Sac, I believe Comcast would lose plenty of money.

Just look at the advertisers the Kings have now. I'm not gonna name current names, but... Last year, they had the Palms and Roni Deutch. We all loved those ads, right? Yeah, me neither.

How much money do you think RD was forking over?

You can picture the current ads in your own mind, and draw your own conclusions. The TV ratings simply are not there to support a $20M committment from anyone. They'd be insane to do that. Just how much would the ads have to cost to ensure a profit for Comcast at $20M? Pretty dinkin' high, that's how high.

We're dealing with funding gaps all over the place here.

I just don't think we can exclude the contraction option at this point in time. If the NBA rejects this move, I think that forces the Maloofs into a very ugly financial corner. We may not want to know what that corner looks like.

When Stern first mentioned this in public around the All Star Break, I believe their minds were already made up. Had it been an "unnamed source", then maybe it's just an unfounded rumor from the LA media. But it wasn't -- it was Stern. There's no way Stern would have made his statement in an off-the-cuff or accidental way. That was calculated, all the way.

Eh, are you talking about when Stern mentioned Anaheim? Ailene Voisin specifically asked him about the talks between the Kings and Anaheim, so unless she was in on it too.....

But I do agree to an extent, I think when Sac didn't get something done when he was at the helm he developed a forget it attitude and will shed no tears if the Kings bolt.

 

[Gary]

The problem is that if Comcast had a $20M deal with the Kings in Sac, I believe Comcast would lose plenty of money.

Just look at the advertisers the Kings have now. I'm not gonna name current names, but... Last year, they had the Palms and Roni Deutch. We all loved those ads, right? Yeah, me neither.

How much money do you think RD was forking over?

You can picture the current ads in your own mind, and draw your own conclusions. The TV ratings simply are not there to support a $20M committment from anyone. They'd be insane to do that. Just how much would the ads have to cost to ensure a profit for Comcast at $20M? Pretty dinkin' high, that's how high.

We're dealing with funding gaps all over the place here.

I just don't think we can exclude the contraction option at this point in time. If the NBA rejects this move, I think that forces the Maloofs into a very ugly financial corner. We may not want to know what that corner looks like.

When Stern first mentioned this in public around the All Star Break, I believe their minds were already made up. Had it been an "unnamed source", then maybe it's just an unfounded rumor from the LA media. But it wasn't -- it was Stern. There's no way Stern would have made his statement in an off-the-cuff or accidental way. That was calculated, all the way.

Who are they going to get in LA? Some car dealership, or a furnature store? It's all going to be the same.

Wghat needs to happen is that the businesses here need to step up and buy some space. It's hard though because who really watches commercials anymore anyway?

 

[Section 101]

I just don't think we can exclude the contraction option at this point in time. If the NBA rejects this move, I think that forces the Maloofs into a very ugly financial corner. We may not want to know what that corner looks like.

When Stern first mentioned this in public around the All Star Break, I believe their minds were already made up. Had it been an "unnamed source", then maybe it's just an unfounded rumor from the LA media. But it wasn't -- it was Stern. There's no way Stern would have made his statement in an off-the-cuff or accidental way. That was calculated, all the way.

Contraction was a threat to the players union about the upcoming CBA. He also said he wants to expand teams into Europe. Besides the Hornets would be the first team contracted since the league already has majority share. They wont want to purchase another team.

 

[Tetsujin]

The problem is that if Comcast had a $20M deal with the Kings in Sac, I believe Comcast would lose plenty of money.

Just look at the advertisers the Kings have now. I'm not gonna name current names, but... Last year, they had the Palms and Roni Deutch. We all loved those ads, right? Yeah, me neither.

Maloofs bought the entire time slot from Comcast in that deal so they could have soon the Tootsie Pop commercial from thirty years ago and the heads at Universal and Comcast wouldn't have cared.

 

[kennadog]

Seriously though, how in the day and age can anything be called "small market" with the internet and everything. Not to mention we have millions of people in this TV market which should also prove that we aren't small market as well. Comcast, Give the Maloofs an "LA" type deal on their TV so they stay ffs! Comcast is raking in the dough now with the purchase of NBC and the decent programs they are finally giving us. Remember, the Kings are what started your "sports network" now pay the people!

Actually to call Sacramento small market is probably wrong. Sacramento is the 20th biggest market in the US and there are plenty of teams playing in smaller markets. On the other hand, we do have a serious lack of corporate presence. No Fortune 500 business has its headquarters here in Sacramento. In that context we do come up "small."

The TV contract the Maloofs ionherited from Thomas was the worst in the NBA according to some sources. By the time that contract ended and it was time to negotiate a new one, the Kings weren't very good any more and likely not drawing big ratings. The Kings held out for a while one year trying to get a better deal, but I don't kow if that was successful or not in getting them more. That's the contract they're under now. I had to buy League Pass to get Kings game broadcasts that year, while we waited for the current contract to get inked.

 

[Trueblood]

Contraction was a threat to the players union about the upcoming CBA. He also said he wants to expand teams into Europe. Besides the Hornets would be the first team contracted since the league already has majority share. They wont want to purchase another team.

While I hope they never expand past 30 teams and especially not if it's to Europe, I do agree that contraction is NOT a threat. In fact, that may be one of many reasons they had for purchasing the Hornets. It's almost like they were saying, "you don't believe us, watch what happens to the Hornets....". It's a threat and a form of leverage but at the end of the day, it's nothing more than that.

If it gets to the point where the Maloofs have to sell, it makes more sense for them to sell to Ellison and have him move to San Jose. That way, we at least have the team 120 miles away. When you contract a team, nobody wins. With relocation, you at least have a new fanbase (preferably SJ to Anaheim) as opposed to nobody getting to root for a team.

 

[Löwenherz]

I'm sorry to drudge up an old and otherwise dead thread, but at this point is it safe to consider this rumor debunked or has there been any concrete news about it? I would think it would have been part of KJ's presentation along with the Burkle news if it had legs.