Dear Mayor Kevin Johnson,
I feel your pain.
It sucks to see the Sacramento Kings, an enterprise on which your entire city stakes its identity, a team with countless playoff runs as well as memories and heartbreaks, and thousands of diehards as devoted as any other franchise, this institution you’ve invested hours and hours watching, reading about, thinking about, just up and leave in the middle of the night like a deadbeat dad.
You know how I know?
Because I’m a Sonics fan.
And it’s pretty apparent which franchise got the shorter end of the stick.
The Sonics’ previous owner, Howard Schultz, was a Seattle icon, famous for founding the international conglomerate Starbucks at Pike Place Market. When Schultz knowingly sold the team to an owner he knew would move the team to Oklahoma, it came as a shock to every single Sonics fan. Why would someone with a substantial investment in the city so willingly betray it?
Conversely, Kings fans would probably be shocked if the Maloof brothers didn’t try to screw over Sacramento. The inept owners are Las Vegas casino-owning slimebags who’ve been bankrupt for years. The Kings represent one of their last valuable assets, and their financial situations are apparently as dire as ever.
If Kings fans say they didn’t see this one coming, they’re lying.
Unfortunately, business is King. If Sacramento doesn’t have an owner willing to plop down the cash to keep the team, the team isn’t going to stay. If you love something, give it away, right?
Chris Hansen and Steve Ballmer are ready to bring the Sonics back home. As of this writing, no one in Sacramento can say the same.
Simply put, Seattle deserves this team now. They’ve done their time in NBA purgatory. It’s time for David Stern to right his wrongs.
But hope isn’t lost for Sacramento. After all, the Sonics came back, so why can’t the Kings?
But for that to happen, the city must prove that it deserves another chance.
When the Sonics left, the whole state of Washington was outraged. Protests were organized, documentaries were made, Facebook pages were liked. The city coalesced into a united cry of disgust. And that cry rang out for years and years, until some rich white dudes were convinced that they could make some money if they moved a team back there.
That’s the blueprint Sacramento ought to follow. It’s not like Northern California is devoid of entrepreneurs. Billionaire Ron Burkle and 24 Hour Fitness owner Mark Mastrov have been tossed around as potential financiers. They just need to be convinced that the investment will be worth it.
That’s where you’ll come in, KJ. Channel some of that Berkeley rebellion spirit, and get Sacramento fired up. Get them angry.
Remember, Kevin, I feel your pain.
Now your town is going to know what it’s like to feel mine.
Contact Michael Rosen at [email protected]