OKC Sports

[Clobber]

OKC has proven itself well and clearly deserves a team in the future, but it would be best to let the Hornets go and wait for the next team. Trust me, you do not want a team owned by Shinn. If you had seen how he bungled a great thing here in Charlotte, you would understand.

Friendly word of caution . . . Don't bank on what you "deserve." Hopefully, you'll get it, but if you bank on it, you might end up with what happened to Memphis and the NFL (other four cities end up getting teams eventually, and another city in your state gets state funding for a new stadium when they denied funding to refurbish your 1960s stadium). We won't even get into Bud Adams. Hopefully, Shinn won't be your Bud Adams. But I digress. In other words, Tulsa might end up with the team.

Seize opportunities, don't wait, and don't trust league commissioners and the owners. Learn lessons available from other cities, learn when it's appropriate to be subtle and courteous (which often is the greater key to success than the outright bending over that many cities engage in), while behind the scenes doing your due diligence and securing deals. Don't be complacent with what you've done, other aspiring cities, perhaps within your own state, don't respect that, and, truth be told, neither do the leagues. Never settle.

I have respect for OKC. Second-best ballpark in the minors Hopefully you won't have to wait as long as cities like Memphis or god forbid Louisville and Birmingham to land a major franchise.

Go Grizz.

[mcheiss]

Friendly word of caution . . . Don't bank on what you "deserve." Hopefully, you'll get it, but if you bank on it, you might end up with what happened to Memphis and the NFL (other four cities end up getting teams eventually, and another city in your state gets state funding for a new stadium when they denied funding to refurbish your 1960s stadium). We won't even get into Bud Adams. Hopefully, Shinn won't be your Bud Adams. But I digress. In other words, Tulsa might end up with the team.

Go Grizz.

I doubt Tulsa will get the Hornets. Tulsa just got a NBDL team recently and are building a stadium of only around 20,000.

OKC is a good market, the Hornet may decide to stay there. Of course, there are other markets larger than OKC, such as Las Vegas and Hartford-Springfield that don't have any pro sports teams.

[NCB]

OKC is a good market, the Hornet may decide to stay there. Of course, there are other markets larger than OKC, such as Las Vegas and Hartford-Springfield that don't have any pro sports teams.

That's the thing though, they can't just stay. If they could, I would not at all expect to see them back in New Orleans. But, they have a lease with the city and the arena that runs through 2012, and NBA commissioner David Stern has said that he will not allow that lease to be broken by Shinn. Honestly though, I would expect to see OKC get an NBA team of its own sometime between 2007-12, which is when we know the Hornets will be in New Orleans.

[richyb83]

Kansas City is also hoping to land a NBA franchise with their new arena.

It would seem like Oklahoma(OKC) would be a prime candidate since thier are no Professional sports teams.

[swake]

Both New Orleans and OKC are getting played by the most shameless and slimy owner in the NBA. You can't trust anything that comes from that man.

That said, and due to slimyshin, it's all about the money, so, with so many fewer hotel rooms now in New Orleans, is the city going to be able to pay the fees that come from hotel taxes to both the Saints and Hornets that are required in those "iron clad" leases. If New Orleans (which is already broke) can't pay the agreed fees to Shin, then it's going to be New Orleans that breaks the contract and Shin is gone, fast. The NBA is NOT going to force an owner to lose money, period.

Sorry, but that's my prediction, the man is slime and not wealthy enough anyway to wait the 5-10 years for New Orleans to recover and see if they might support a team that had little support before Katrina. Maybe with all the new Hispanic immigrants New Orleans should be like Tulsa and try for an MLS team.

Now the million dollar question is after a year (2008) of not getting fans or paid in New Orleans where does Shin take the team? OKC where there are proven fans, or Kansas City where there are big companies for sponsors? Hello Kansas City Sprinters!

[richyb83]

Kansas City Sprinters sounds about right ! Spinters might not be too bad a name.

Corporate sponsors are ruining Bowl games too. The Peach Bowl is now the Chick-fil-A Bowl. How stupid does that sound ? And the PC.Com Bowl,etc.....

[jbrown84]

Bob Funk, founder of Express Personnel, is attempting to bring the NHL Pittsburgh Penguins to OKC (or maybe Tulsa), however there is a lot of sentiment that we should focus on the NBA for now. Also, KC is going hard after the Penguins to anchor their new arena. It's much more likely they will go there.