Charlotte Hornets and the Arena

[hokiehigh]

I hope it is local too. I wonder if someone like Bruton Smith would ever be interested? I know he is in NASCAR but he could do both. I like MJ the best but he won't live in Charlotte. I think he lives mainly in Miami and Chicago's north burbs. If they leave town again I would just ditch basketball and focus on MLB.

[HopHead]

I hope it is local too. I wonder if someone like Bruton Smith would ever be interested? I know he is in NASCAR but he could do both. I like MJ the best but he won't live in Charlotte. I think he lives mainly in Miami and Chicago's north burbs. If they leave town again I would just ditch basketball and focus on MLB.

It's very doubtful they could leave town. TWC arena has a clause that the owner would need to pay something in the neighborhood of $250 - $300 million to terminate the lease. So it's almost like buying the team twice. Nobody would be able to afford that. And they would also need NBA owner approval. No city with the exception to Kansas City has an en empty arena that's in the same league at TWC Arena. Most potential suitors would see our venue as an incentive b/c it could bring in more $$ if managed correctly.

Edited May 22, 2009 by dbull75

[hokiehigh]

That's good news. I remember the Hornets drama and I hope that doesn't happen again. I think basketball could do well in CLT with the right owners. I think KC may be going for a NHL relo, so I hope they keep their hands off us.

[Charlotte_native]

I wonder if someone like Bruton Smith would ever be interested?

Lord lets hope not. Nothing like a temper tantrum from a billionaire when he doesn't get his way. Let Concord keep him.

[SmellyCat]

I wonder if a new owner would consider rebranding the team with a new nickname. I don't think the Bobcats name has ever really caught on here and, with Bob Johnson supposedly naming the team after himself, perhaps it would be time to wipe the slate clean and start fresh. I know it's a longshot, but one can hope. At least there is some precedent for it in the NBA, with the Washington Bullets becoming the Wizards some years ago.

Edited May 23, 2009 by SmellyCat

[HopHead]

I wonder if a new owner would consider rebranding the team with a new nickname. I don't think the Bobcats name has ever really caught on here and, with Bob Johnson supposedly naming the team after himself, perhaps it would be time to wipe the slate clean and start fresh. I know it's a longshot, but one can hope. At least there is some precedent for it in the NBA, with the Washington Bullets becoming the Wizards some years ago.

I could get behind the Carolina Cougars idea... Bring back the old ABA franchise name. Larry Brown actually did coach this team back in the 70s. To me having Carolina Cougars would be in the Panthers/Hurricanes mold. A team name that can bring the NC and SC together. I think one of the other reasons that the Bobcats may not of caught on too is that it's the "Charlotte Bobcats". Some people in other parts of the state don't like to associate themselves with the city (esp on the eastern side of the state). Though, I do like the new Bobcats logo (hence my avatar).

Also, rumor has it that MJ is in talks to become the majority owner. A few other outsiders have inquired about the team.

[monsoon]

Charlotte should be very glad that it will cost Johnson $200M in fines if he were to move this team to another city. I fully believe that if he could have sold it to another city in a second, if he could have done so. IMO, he got the team as a status symbol and not because he was that interested in CLT.

The paper seems to suggest the biggest hold up for anyone taking over this team is that he wants them to pay him back the $300M that he payed the NBA to get the team in the first place. You might remember there were several other groups that wanted this team but the NBA jacked the price of the franchise up so high, that Johnson was the only one willing to pay.

It would be nice if someone local could own this franchise, but I am thinking the price is too high for anyone local to take it unless they are willing to absorb a lot of losses over the next few years.

I agree about the Bobcats name. It never caught on and reminds me of a high school name. No bearing at all on CLT's history or area.

[nonillogical]

i'm just kind of sick of big cat names in general. that genre encompasses every team name i've ever been associated with educationally and locally except for one.

[Batou]

It's too bad we can't just get the hornets name back where it belongs.

[HopHead]

What's funny about the Lakers winning the NBA Championship is that we can say that our Bobcats swept the World Champs this past year... The only other team to do that in the regular season was Orlando who ended up losing to them in the Finals.

[cltcardfan]

The only thing funnier than that is that Adam Morrison is getting an NBA championship ring. And JJ Redick lost to him.

[krazeeboi]

It's too bad we can't just get the hornets name back where it belongs.

It just irks me to no end when a team moves and it keeps the nickname that was specific to the city they moved from. The Lakers moved from Minneapolis to LA, the Jazz moved from New Orleans to Utah, the Grizzlies moved from Vancouver to Memphis, the Hornets moved from Charlotte to New Orleans, etc. but where are the plethora of lakes in the LA area? Where are grizzlies in Memphis? What connection does Utah have with Jazz? The hornets nickname has nothing to do with the history of New Orleans, but everything to do with the history of Charlotte.

[HopHead]

The only thing funnier than that is that Adam Morrison is getting an NBA championship ring. And JJ Redick lost to him.

LOL... forgot about that.

[swh1972]

Has anyone noticed that the Dunkin Donuts on Trade Street (in the Arena) has been closed for about a month? There is a sign on the window that says "Opening Soon". I wonder what that is about? New ownership, perhaps. I used to stop in there for coffee on the way into the office, and I was never really impressed with their efficiency.

[HopHead]

Has anyone noticed that the Dunkin Donuts on Trade Street (in the Arena) has been closed for about a month? There is a sign on the window that says "Opening Soon". I wonder what that is about? New ownership, perhaps. I used to stop in there for coffee on the way into the office, and I was never really impressed with their efficiency.

It's probably b/c they realized Sean May won't be back next year! LOL...

Ok, that was bad. I saw another DD around town that had an "owernship change" sign as well... I wonder if it's the same owner.

[Guest]

It sounds like the city may be giving Pursuit Group a two-year reprieve on financing options.

News 14's clip has some video of the interior - I wonder, how many did the Carolina Theater seat?

My Father was teeing off at Myers Park CC this weekend for the Annual Member Pro-Am tournament, and he was paired up with none other than Michael Jordan. Good to see MJ still in town, he has been making more and more appearances around town lately.

[New Name]

I saw another DD around town that had an "owernship change" sign as well... I wonder if it's the same owner.

The same guy owned the 3 DDs in center city (Graham, Bobcats, and one inside a bank building. He sold the Bobcats one to another guy. The other guy has yet to reopen it.

[SmellyCat]

Has anyone noticed that the Dunkin Donuts on Trade Street (in the Arena) has been closed for about a month? There is a sign on the window that says "Opening Soon". I wonder what that is about? New ownership, perhaps. I used to stop in there for coffee on the way into the office, and I was never really impressed with their efficiency.

I went to that DD a couple of times and was extremely underwhelmed by their service. I wonder how that Italian/pizza joint next to DD is doing. Every time I walked past it, it appears to be pretty empty.

[HopHead]

I went to that DD a couple of times and was extremely underwhelmed by their service. I wonder how that Italian/pizza joint next to DD is doing. Every time I walked past it, it appears to be pretty empty.

I can't say I've ever been overly impressed by service at a DD... Even the ones I've gone to in Boston left a lot to be desired. Though, I do love their coffee!

On topic: NBA draft is going on right now. Can't wait to see who the 'Cats draft!

[krazeeboi]

OK, I'm almost convinced that the Bobcats have a state loyalty clause or something.

[HopHead]

OK, I'm almost convinced that the Bobcats have a state loyalty clause or something.

I think they would've taken Terrence Williams from Louisville had he not gone in the prior pick...

[HopHead]

In other Bobcats related news... Michael Jordan is looking to get a group together to buy the team from Bob Johnson. No word on how far along this process is at the moment. But he did make these comments this evening. I view this as potentially positive...

[New Name]

I always thought that the Bobcats were sure that they could translate some of the fans from NC college basketball into NBA fans. I thought that's why they draft so heavily from NC teams. But it obviously hasn't worked out - I wonder that they haven't learned that yet, or still think this tact is the right way to steal fans. Either way - it's no surprise to me.

[monsoon]

I went to that DD a couple of times and was extremely underwhelmed by their service. ...

This is getting back off topic, but I was looking the other day and discovered there are no Krispy Kreme stores left in the city of Charlotte. This is so odd for a city that had them all over the place for decades before they became a world status symbol of cities. (I do realize the company has had recent issues)

Seems to me that a KK in this area would do much better than a DD. KK is a North Carolina company and one that has gotten down making hot donuts in small stores. It seems to me this would be no brainer.

[Guest]

This is getting back off topic, but I was looking the other day and discovered there are no Krispy Kreme stores left in the city of Charlotte. This is so odd for a city that had them all over the place for decades before they became a world status symbol of cities. (I do realize the company has had recent issues)

Seems to me that a KK in this area would do much better than a DD. KK is a North Carolina company and one that has gotten down making hot donuts in small stores. It seems to me this would be no brainer.

Not to drag this further off topic, but KK filed for Chapter 12 five years ago which lead to the closing of all of its Charlotte Stores, and many more. KK was always a staple of my childhood, and I don't understand why they had to skip town. I have fond memories of going down woodlawn and hitting the krispe kreme with mom and dad.