http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2972255
OKLAHOMA CITY -- An Oklahoma City energy tycoon says the group that purchased the Seattle SuperSonics hopes to move the NBA franchise to Oklahoma City, but he acknowledges the team could make more money in the Pacific Northwest.
"But we didn't buy the team to keep it in Seattle; we hoped to come here," Aubrey McClendon, chief executive of Chesapeake Energy, told The Journal Record for a story in Monday's edition. "We know it's a little more difficult financially here in Oklahoma City, but we think it's great for the community and if we could break even, we'd be thrilled."
Majority owner Clay Bennett has set an Oct. 31 deadline for an agreement on a new arena. Otherwise, he has promised to begin relocating the team. Kansas City also is considered an option as relocation; the city is looking for an anchor tenant for its new arena.
"They've got 60 days to make some decisions they haven't been willing to make in the past year," Aubrey McClendon told The Journal Record, "and if they make them in a way that satisfies Clay, then the team will stay there. If they don't meet the requirements he's laid out, the team will move, and Clay has indicated they'll come to Oklahoma City."
McClendon said he, Bennett and others in the ownership group became interested in purchasing an NBA team after the New Orleans Hornets temporarily relocated to Oklahoma City for two seasons after Hurricane Katrina.
"We started to look around, and at that time the Sonics were going through some ownership challenges in Seattle," McClendon told the newspaper. "So Clay, very artfully and skillfully, put himself in the middle of those discussions and to the great amazement and surprise to everyone in Seattle, some rednecks from Oklahoma, which we've been called, made off with the team."
Bennett's group bought the Sonics a year ago, saying the arena at the Seattle Center was outdated as the home for the NBA franchise and the WNBA's Seattle Storm.
In a statement issued earlier this month, Bennett said KeyArena -- the Sonics' current home and the smallest venue in the NBA -- is not an option for the team.
He said the Sonics' ownership group had hoped Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels would rally support to find a solution.
"Instead he focused on unworkable concepts that are not acceptable," Bennett said in his statement, adding that he hopes other civic leaders step up.
This year, the Legislature convened without authorizing any tax money to help build a new arena.
Bennett, an Oklahoma City businessman, issued a "call to action" last month, asking for offers to help save the team.
Nickels said earlier this month that if the Sonics were willing to put $100 million into a new arena or the KeyArena, then the city might be able to match it. Bennett has set an Oct. 31 deadline for an agreement on a new arena. Otherwise, he has promised to begin relocating the team. Kansas City also is considered an option as relocation; the city is looking for an anchor tenant for its new arena.
"They take pride in Seattle not needing an NBA team to be considered a world-class city. That's probably true -- they don't," McClendon told The Journal Record.
"But I think for Oklahoma City to distance itself from other midsize cities, I think enthusiastic support of a well-run, successful NBA team says a lot about the spirit of this community. We've got a can-do spirit, and we've got a fan base that's turned out. This is a sports town; nobody ever knew it was a pro sports town. I think it is."
OKLAHOMA CITY -- An Oklahoma City energy tycoon says the group that purchased the Seattle SuperSonics hopes to move the NBA franchise to Oklahoma City, but he acknowledges the team could make more money in the Pacific Northwest.
"But we didn't buy the team to keep it in Seattle; we hoped to come here," Aubrey McClendon, chief executive of Chesapeake Energy, told The Journal Record for a story in Monday's edition. "We know it's a little more difficult financially here in Oklahoma City, but we think it's great for the community and if we could break even, we'd be thrilled."
Majority owner Clay Bennett has set an Oct. 31 deadline for an agreement on a new arena. Otherwise, he has promised to begin relocating the team. Kansas City also is considered an option as relocation; the city is looking for an anchor tenant for its new arena.
"They've got 60 days to make some decisions they haven't been willing to make in the past year," Aubrey McClendon told The Journal Record, "and if they make them in a way that satisfies Clay, then the team will stay there. If they don't meet the requirements he's laid out, the team will move, and Clay has indicated they'll come to Oklahoma City."
McClendon said he, Bennett and others in the ownership group became interested in purchasing an NBA team after the New Orleans Hornets temporarily relocated to Oklahoma City for two seasons after Hurricane Katrina.
"We started to look around, and at that time the Sonics were going through some ownership challenges in Seattle," McClendon told the newspaper. "So Clay, very artfully and skillfully, put himself in the middle of those discussions and to the great amazement and surprise to everyone in Seattle, some rednecks from Oklahoma, which we've been called, made off with the team."
Bennett's group bought the Sonics a year ago, saying the arena at the Seattle Center was outdated as the home for the NBA franchise and the WNBA's Seattle Storm.
In a statement issued earlier this month, Bennett said KeyArena -- the Sonics' current home and the smallest venue in the NBA -- is not an option for the team.
He said the Sonics' ownership group had hoped Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels would rally support to find a solution.
"Instead he focused on unworkable concepts that are not acceptable," Bennett said in his statement, adding that he hopes other civic leaders step up.
This year, the Legislature convened without authorizing any tax money to help build a new arena.
Bennett, an Oklahoma City businessman, issued a "call to action" last month, asking for offers to help save the team.
Nickels said earlier this month that if the Sonics were willing to put $100 million into a new arena or the KeyArena, then the city might be able to match it. Bennett has set an Oct. 31 deadline for an agreement on a new arena. Otherwise, he has promised to begin relocating the team. Kansas City also is considered an option as relocation; the city is looking for an anchor tenant for its new arena.
"They take pride in Seattle not needing an NBA team to be considered a world-class city. That's probably true -- they don't," McClendon told The Journal Record.
"But I think for Oklahoma City to distance itself from other midsize cities, I think enthusiastic support of a well-run, successful NBA team says a lot about the spirit of this community. We've got a can-do spirit, and we've got a fan base that's turned out. This is a sports town; nobody ever knew it was a pro sports town. I think it is."
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