Out of towners - what will you do?

[Dime Dropper]

Don't know if this should be here, or in the main forum.

I'm curious about this. Since I'm not from the US, I don't have geographical ties to Sacramento. But the thought of them leaving makes me feel sick, and I've been sending emails off left, right and centre trying to influence people who may have some power. I feel like a Sacramentan, but I digress.

What will you do if the Kings move? Support the Royals in Anaheim? Change allegiance altogether? And to make things interesting, if Sacramento were to get another franchise in the next couple years, would you switch back to supporting the team in Sacramento or stay with the Royals in Anaheim?

Personally, if the Kings move to Anaheim I will probably follow. However, I would lose alot of passion for the franchise. I can't imagine posting regularly on any Royals site. I can't imagine interacting or building relationships with Royals fans. And I can't imagine getting as excited about winning a championship as I would if it were in Sacramento. If Sacramento were to get another franchise in a few years, I think I may just switch again. I know it seems backward, but I feel as connected to the city and the history here as much as I do to the team. The team in constantly changing. It might be hard to get used to seeing different players/staff in Sacramento, but I would get used to it.

Hopefully this is moot. The Kings staying here is absolute best case scenario.

Sorry if this seems hollow to some of you who reside in Sacramento, I'm just curious as to how other international fans feel about this.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

I'll quit following for a few years and eventually probably get sucked into following the local team here.

If Sacramento gets a new team I would be happy for everyone in Sac but I don't think it would be the same trying to follow a new team from afar (though I'd probably fly down to see the first new vs. old game). If there is any kind of dual move going on the NBA really needs to force the Maloofs to trade for the other team. It isn't fair. They may own their business but it's still a franchise operation. We've put up with a crap product for too long and are finally seeing the light and deserve to see it come to fruition.

I really hope all this business going on with our new BFF is for real, it is a game changer, and I can't imagine that it won't at least buy Sacramento one more year. We all know that the City of Sacramento has missed some opportunities along the way, and that's putting it mildly, but the public revelation of the move came pretty suddenly and with little time to prepare an adequate response and yet they were able to render Stern momentarily speechless at yesterday's meeting. That's got to be a good thing.

 

[est.1999]

Wait, so let me get this straight. You have no ties to Sacramento, and you're a kings fan? I get that; I'm the same way. But if they leave, and then sac gets another team, you'd follow that new team? So you're pretty much saying you're a fan of Sacramento? Just sounds weird to me, I'm not trying to sound like a a**hole.

 

[Glenn]

If there is no team in Sacto, I will follow the players to Anaheim. I suspect this forum will stay but may be renamed. The people who follow the team to Anaheim willl still be here. Same fans with an influx of newbies. The ones that leave the forum will simply mean that the core that stays are more homogeneous.

If another team comes here, I will have two allegiances for the immediate future.

I suspect that Dime Dropper is saying that his friends are in Sacramento and not Anaheim. Not sure why a personal opinion needs justifying.

 

[Dime Dropper]

Wait, so let me get this straight. You have no ties to Sacramento, and you're a kings fan? I get that; I'm the same way. But if they leave, and then sac gets another team, you'd follow that new team? So you're pretty much saying you're a fan of Sacramento? Just sounds weird to me, I'm not trying to sound like a a**hole.

Possibly. I wouldn't really know until it happened. It does seem weird, so no offense taken. I just feel like being a fan of a team from another city would be... cheating, and like all my support for all my life was for nothing. I am part of this fanbase now. I'd find it hard to support a team from another city, especially Anaheim. I really don't know, though.

 

[RookieOfTheDay]

Wait, so let me get this straight. You have no ties to Sacramento, and you're a kings fan? I get that; I'm the same way. But if they leave, and then sac gets another team, you'd follow that new team? So you're pretty much saying you're a fan of Sacramento? Just sounds weird to me, I'm not trying to sound like a a**hole.

It sounds like part of why they're a Kings is because of how exiting it would be for Sacramento to win a title. If that's the case then it makes sense that they'd follow another team here.

 

[Jechtsphere]

I'd most likely follow them still as the Royals, I was born in L.A. but grew up in NorCal...don't have love for the south but don't hate it either. Of course I believe Sacramento is the place they should be, it's a basketball town and it's the best place for them.

 

[Geoff]

Very good question. Before yesterday and before I went through the first BOG thread, I would have supported the Kings/Royals if they left. I would have felt badly for the Sacto fans since they didn't deserve it, but in my opinion the key plank for the Maloofs moving was the lack of a new arena and the city's lack of vision in past years.

Now? It's all become very muddied. I applaud KJ's Burkle Bomb, and the way things are going seems to address the Maloof's main reasons for leaving. If the Maloofs seem to be more for leaving than for finding viable ways to stay even after viable ways are coming up, I'd be less likely to support them or their team.

I'd probably follow both the Royals and the Sac team for a while, and see where my spirit takes me...but you are right, it would not be the same. My passion would be diluted.

 

[Arkitect]

I would follow the Anaheim team. I am too emotionally invested in this group of players now to root for another team + they would be the closest team geographically for me down in San Diego.

 

[NK64]

I would still follow the team, considering that i have been a follower of the team when they were the KC-Omaha Kings. I grew up in KC and was there when they left. When they left KC there was no advanced warning, the new owner simply up and moved..i was not mad because i was still a bit on the young side. but i can sense the pain and anger that a lot have here. i would equate it to how i would feel if the chiefs or royals left town. i don't live there anymore but i would still be Pissed. As far as getting another team, my opinion would be that it would be hard to see it happening since the NBA will remember the lack of cooperation between the maloofs and the city..Seattle still has no team, KC Has an arena but no team. I just can't see Stern rushing to put another team back in Sac before Seattle

 

[ArcoKings]

I don't live in Sacramento. I live in Fontana (San Bernardino County). I'm about 35 minutes or so from Honda Center. I will continue to follow the Kings/Royals wherever they go. Will I go see them play in Anaheim? Yes. If the Hornets end up moving to Sacramento and are renamed the Kings it won't mean anything to me. The REAL Kings will be in Anaheim or wherever they may end up. If you think about it, this team basically is the 'offspring' from the very first team ever of the franchise (Rochester). This current team evolved from many many many years from the original franchise: through years, decades, trades. Its a constant evolution.

 

[Oskor]

Undecided at this point. I lived most my life in Sac, only left 5 years ago and still consider myself a Sactown Boy. If they move I'm sure I'll follow the Anaheim team for at least a year or 2 but I'll also try to get into my local team the Jazz. If Sac gets a new team that'll really throw me into a tailspin. I'll just have to see...

 

[Jim Les]

I wrote this in another thread, but the response is more pertinent to this thread, so I'll answer here:

I left Sacramento when I was 13, the same year Mitch was traded for Webber. I left the summer before all the fun started. So, as a teenager, watching the Kings on TV and on the League Pass during the golden years was a great way for me to feel the connection to my home town. I'd stay up until 1 in the morning in the East coast just to watch the post game interviews. I wore my Brian Grant jersey and my powder blue Kings hat with pride to school after a win, even though my friends were college hoops fans and uninterested in the NBA. I'd chuckle every time Jerry Reynolds referred to a Peja 3 pt shot as a "Serbian layup," or when he called it a "Beno-drano." Hell, even my roommates in college would shout "Put it in the book, and send him to the line" along side a red-headed announcer whom they had no earthly connection with. I once got a phone call from some buddies who had their car towed and needed a ride home in the middle of the night, but I made them wait until a Kings-Lakers game that had gone into overtime finished before I got them (awful friend, or dedicated fan? You decide). My passion for the team never wavered.

I'm 26 now, and should the Kings leave, I think the largest connection I have with my hometown would leave with them, and that makes me really depressed. I've lived half my life away from Sacramento, and should the Hornets move to Sacramento, I would feel bad for New Orleans fans (and Charlotte fans, really). I'd be happy for those basketball fans still in Sac, but the passion would never be the same for me. When I was younger, our dog died, and we got a new one a few years later. It was the same breed and looked identical, but it was never the same dog. Maybe it would be different if I still lived in Sac, but I don't know if I could put forth the same emotional investment into a new team.

 

[SacTownKid]

I live in central Cali, I was pretty sure I was going to follow them to Anaheim but with the way the Maloofs have been recently I'm not so sure anymore.

I will certainly never look at them the same at the very least.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

JL, you are in the same boat I am in although I'm a little older. I left town for a year when I was 14 and permanently when I was 18. I spent a good chunk of my mid 20s on the road for work and I'd often bond with people over basketball and the Kings. It was the extension of my home town I carried with me wherever I went. As the years have passed my ties to Sacramento have withered to the point that the Kings are pretty much it. I weep at the prospect of losing that just like I would a loved one. No replacement would work for me, but I will be really happy for the good fans of Sacramento that they would have a choice to follow from afar or choose their new local team.

 

[SacTownKid]

I don't live in Sacramento. I live in Fontana (San Bernardino County). I'm about 35 minutes or so from Honda Center. I will continue to follow the Kings/Royals wherever they go. Will I go see them play in Anaheim? Yes. If the Hornets end up moving to Sacramento and are renamed the Kings it won't mean anything to me. The REAL Kings will be in Anaheim or wherever they may end up. If you think about it, this team basically is the 'offspring' from the very first team ever of the franchise (Rochester). This current team evolved from many many many years from the original franchise: through years, decades, trades. Its a constant evolution.

It all brings up that awkward question, what is the team? Who is the team? The players? The location? The owners? I'm sure if it were my local team all my life like some here it would be entirely different but I would defnitely hate to not see the development of this current team. But when they are gone, what then? Strange all the way around. I guess each individual makes that decision on their own.

 

[Gary]

It all brings up that awkward question, what is the team? Who is the team? The players? The location? The owners? I'm sure if it were my local team all my life like some here it would be entirely different but I would defnitely hate to not see the development of this current team. But when they are gone, what then? Strange all the way around. I guess each individual makes that decision on their own.

Yah, and Webber doesn't agree either. His Jersey will remain in Sac, as well as the 6th man, Richmond, Vlade ect ect. If Sacramento got a new team and renamed them the Kings then I would think of the "royals" as just a bump in the road when Sac didn't have the Kings. Sacramento is the Kings, and the Kings are Sacramento. Along with the history.. So basically Anaheim gets an expansion team. Maloofs were looking to re-brand so let them start fresh if they want. Leave the history here in Sac.

 

[iowamcnabb]

Still going to follow them. I love the NBA and this is the team I chose to start following 13/14 years ago.

 

[SacTownKid]

Yah, and Webber doesn't agree either. His Jersey will remain in Sac, as well as the 6th man, Richmond, Vlade ect ect. If Sacramento got a new team and renamed them the Kings then I would think of the "royals" as just a bump in the road when Sac didn't have the Kings. Sacramento is the Kings, and the Kings are Sacramento. Along with the history.. So basically Anaheim gets an expansion team. Maloofs were looking to re-brand so let them start fresh if they want. Leave the history here in Sac.

Well, if the "Kings" move to Anaheim, all that stuff goes with them. Just like Oscar Robertson's jersey hangs in Sacramento, it will then hang next to Webber, Vlade, Richmond, etc. in Anaheim. Disgusting thought, but it's the way it's done.

 

[Gary]

Well, if the "Kings" move to Anaheim, all that stuff goes with them. Just like Oscar Robertson's jersey hangs in Sacramento, it will then hang next to Webber, Vlade, Richmond, etc. in Anaheim. Disgusting thought, but it's the way it's done.

Well if we got another team and named them the Kings Webber's jersey will definitely be here in Sac as well then.. just saying.. He's part of Sac, not Anaheim, and I wouldn't mind them taking down any other banner that didn't have to do with Sacramento as well like Robertson ect ect. I understand that he was not part of this team. Anaheim is for all intents and purposes getting a re-branded expansion team as it should be (if the Kings move). I would hope we would get a sweetheart Seattle type deal if this happens which means history and stuff.

 

[kingsboi]

I'm going to follow them to Anaheim. When they move out of Anaheim probably in 10 or so years, I'll follow that team then. As long as the Maloofs are owners of the team, that team will be destined to never have a official home.

 

[twosomeca]

I'll quit following for a few years and eventually probably get sucked into following the local team here.

If Sacramento gets a new team I would be happy for everyone in Sac but I don't think it would be the same trying to follow a new team from afar (though I'd probably fly down to see the first new vs. old game). If there is any kind of dual move going on the NBA really needs to force the Maloofs to trade for the other team. It isn't fair. They may own their business but it's still a franchise operation. We've put up with a crap product for too long and are finally seeing the light and deserve to see it come to fruition.

I really hope all this business going on with our new BFF is for real, it is a game changer, and I can't imagine that it won't at least buy Sacramento one more year. We all know that the City of Sacramento has missed some opportunities along the way, and that's putting it mildly, but the public revelation of the move came pretty suddenly and with little time to prepare an adequate response and yet they were able to render Stern momentarily speechless at yesterday's meeting. That's got to be a good thing.

To me, this is all a red herring. Ellison could have come to the meeting and said he would buy the Kings and keep them in Sac and even play at Arco, unless and until a new arena was agreed upon. Then when/if that didn't happen, he'd move them to HP Pavillion. I don't see the Burkle bomb, as you call it. I just don't see it.

 

[Trueblood]

To me, this is all a red herring. Ellison could have come to the meeting and said he would buy the Kings and keep them in Sac and even play at Arco, unless and until a new arena was agreed upon. Then when/if that didn't happen, he'd move them to HP Pavillion. I don't see the Burkle bomb, as you call it. I just don't see it.

But the Ellison angle that you outline is all Sac is asking of the Maloofs. Give them another year to see if the ICON/Taylor thing comes to fruition and if not, then they wouldn't have as much of a problem with the Maloofs leaving. Sure, Burkle taking over is what everyone wants but the Maloofs giving the city one last chance beats the garbage that they're pulling right now.

As for me, I'll have a hard time rooting for them even though they'll be a lot closer to me. I like the idea of watching the NBA at Honda Center as it's sightlines beat the heck out of Staples but I'd most likely be a neutral observer.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

To me, this is all a red herring. Ellison could have come to the meeting and said he would buy the Kings and keep them in Sac and even play at Arco, unless and until a new arena was agreed upon. Then when/if that didn't happen, he'd move them to HP Pavillion. I don't see the Burkle bomb, as you call it. I just don't see it.

We don't know what Burkle is going to do but it is obviously significant, I don't think KJ is just name dropping to try to impress Stern.