I think to a certain extent you are right. Obviously there are bandwagon fans in every city, that's simply a part of sports. It will never go away. But what happened to the 17,317 who were responsible for some of the longest sellout streaks in the nba? This team wasn't a playoff team for more than a decade, yet would still sellout. I would have thought the majority of the fans which once packed arco weren't bandwagon fans, and would understand better than most what a rebuild entails. Apparently not.
If the Kings go the same way the Thunder left Seattle, fans will regret not showing up. There seems to be more and more similarities between what happend in seattle and what is happening in sac. If the Kings do leave, in a season or two, they will be on the brink of being a competitive playoff team, if not better, and the fans of the new city will have a good team from the start. Seattle wasn't a playoff team the year they left, or the following, but then last year made the huge jump. Seattle fans didn't show up because of the rumors about an imminent move and the lousy pruduct on the court, but little did they know things were about take a turn in a positive way. If that happens in sac, and fans who once packed the building don't show up because they don't think the product is good enough, then by all means the Maloofs should move. The fans and city officials will regret it once they move and the Kings blow up into a contender within a year or two, and they will have nobody to blame but themselves.
The attendence will speak for itself this year. If the sac area fans want the Kings to stay, they will show up. If not, they're gone. If they don't take the time to realize how this team is turning the corner, and they can't get excited, they don't deserve a team. Educated, diehard fans who love their team no matter what deserve a franchise to root for. Fair weather, bandwagon fans who only show up when their team is contending for the playoffs don't deserve a team. 15 years ago I never would have thought arco would have a problem selling out, especially with such a talented young team. But it fans aren't in tune with what's happening, then they don't really care in the first place, and don't deserve the team or the economic benefit it brings.
I hate the assumption by some that some fans simply aren't excited because they aren't in tune with the team, and that's why they aren't showing up, and that when the team starts winning and there are more positive things said in the press, they will show up again. A fan doesn't sit on their hands, clueless, waiting for someone to tell them how their team is doing and when to go to a game. If you live in sac and aren't aware of the upside of this young team, you're not a kings fan in the first place. You shouldn't have to tell a "Kings fan" to get excited about the team, or even fill them in on what is happening. They should know. Real fans know. Real fans follow. Real fans don't dissapear.
