The Kings owners, the Vegas-based Maloof brothers, have been trying to get a new arena for a while, and the NBA vowed to help. But the league got pissed this week and pulled its support, and the arena's naming sponsor, Arco, is pulling out of that deal. That left some NBA observers once again convinced that the Kings aren't long for Sacramento.
Such talk has always inspired KC sports fans to daydream about the Kings returning to Kansas City, where they played from 1975 to 1982. It last came up a couple of months ago, but Kings co-owner George Maloof shot down the idea, saying he and his brother didn't want to be flying back and forth from Vegas to KC.
The most recent developments in Sacramento re-stoked the fires of NBA desire. 610 AM's drive-time morning show devoted a decent chunk of time to the topic this morning. But it's not likely to happen. There are too many bigger markets closer to Vegas that would love an NBA team -- including two, San Jose and Anaheim, with NBA-ready arenas.
Ric Bucher, ESPN NBA analyst and quality Tweeter, explains.
"I've always heard OC was their first choice because it also has a ready-made arena (where the Ducks play) and a proven audience (the Clips sell out every exhibition they play down there)," he tells Plog by e-mail. "I've heard KC mentioned, but never as a first option in conjunction with the Kings. I believe it has been more in connection with the Grizzlies or Hornets possibly being sold/relocated."
So, there you have it, as plain as can be: The Kings aren't coming. Unless they are. And if not, maybe someone else is. But probably not. But you never know!
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San Jose makes the most sense as SVSE (Silicon Valley Sports and Entertainment) who owns the HP Pavilion and the Sharks have spoken to the Kings in September 2009.
They proposed a revenue sharing model where they would buy a minority stake in the Kings and put in $50 million to renovate the HP Pavilion for basketball.
The Kings liked the offer but instructed San Jose to wait out their efforts in Sacramento before anything would happen.
Also if you look at this link http://www.portfolio.com/resou...
It details which cities in the country are viable for a sports teams in all 4 major sports who don't have one already.
Las Vegas and San Jose get a 100 while KC gets a 0 even with a new arena.
San Jose makes the most sense because of the vast corporate base which will allow both teams (Kings/Sharks) to privately get things done without public money down the line.
An Anaheim move would require the Kings to pay off two teams while in San Jose just one team would need to be paid off.
KC is over saturated with sports and the document shows that. Las Vegas has the gambling issue. Seattle does not have an adequate arena. Anaheim if LA was a one team market is perfect but it is not because of the Clippers.
San Jose Kings in 2012.
Really? If the Clippers sell out every exhibition game in Anaheim, I seriously doubt they will allow the Kings in. San Jose is Warriors territory and already has the Sharks. No pro sports league wants to take the Vegas risk. Plus a group of Elvis impersonators already trademarked the name "The Las Vegas Kings" (j/k). Seattle or KC in my opinion. The Maloofs also didn't directly shoot down KC, they were trying to avoid a relocation discussion altogether.
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