SuperSonics
Okay, this is weird. Me, of all people, blogging about sports teams other than the Red Sox? It's literally unheard of, but here goes:
After living in Seattle for two years, I'm not sure why, as a city, they care about their sports teams so much. Frankly, they suck. In 2006, the Seahawks did make it to the Superbowl, which they lost. The Mariners are still waiting to play in the World Series for the first time. Yet tons of Seattlite tax dollars go into funding these fiascoes and the arenas in which they play.
A little background:
In 1976, a comparatively small sports arena, known as the Kingdome, opened south of the Pioneer Square district of downtown Seattle. For 24 years, it faithfully housed all three of Seattle's sports team. In early 2000, the city assassinated the Kingdome:
.
Following the Kingdome's destruction, two new venues were built in the same area: Qwest Field for the Hawks
and Safeco Field for the Mariners.
But what about the Sonics? Where's their shiny new arena?
For a while, the team drifted around the area to the Tacoma Dome and Key Arena in Seattle Center (near the Space Needle). For years, the SuperSonics have talked about leaving the city. Often, these discussions centered around other Northwestern cities, but now it's definite: they are going to Oklahoma City. The locals? Well, I don't live there anymore, but I'd imagine they're not very happy. To paraphrase Roz of Frasier, in a city where it rains eight months a year, we take our indoor sports very seriously. And yet the Sonics rarely got any love from the city. And now they're gone.
So, will the NBA ever return to Seattle? I answer the question thus: will there ever be a good basketball venue in the city? For that to happen, they'd need to spend the money to make it happen, and that's not too likely when the Alaskan Way viaduct is in dire need of repairs or (as is now a near guarantee) replacement, recent costly repairs were made to the metro tunnel running through downtown, and a brand new Lightrail system is going in. Frankly, with the abominable conditions of traffic in the city, those things seem more important regardless. And, of course, money is still being sunk into our athletic underdogs in SoDo.
Until these situations change, my assumption is no, the NBA will not be back anytime soon.
After living in Seattle for two years, I'm not sure why, as a city, they care about their sports teams so much. Frankly, they suck. In 2006, the Seahawks did make it to the Superbowl, which they lost. The Mariners are still waiting to play in the World Series for the first time. Yet tons of Seattlite tax dollars go into funding these fiascoes and the arenas in which they play.
A little background:
In 1976, a comparatively small sports arena, known as the Kingdome, opened south of the Pioneer Square district of downtown Seattle. For 24 years, it faithfully housed all three of Seattle's sports team. In early 2000, the city assassinated the Kingdome:
.
Following the Kingdome's destruction, two new venues were built in the same area: Qwest Field for the Hawks
and Safeco Field for the Mariners.
But what about the Sonics? Where's their shiny new arena?
For a while, the team drifted around the area to the Tacoma Dome and Key Arena in Seattle Center (near the Space Needle). For years, the SuperSonics have talked about leaving the city. Often, these discussions centered around other Northwestern cities, but now it's definite: they are going to Oklahoma City. The locals? Well, I don't live there anymore, but I'd imagine they're not very happy. To paraphrase Roz of Frasier, in a city where it rains eight months a year, we take our indoor sports very seriously. And yet the Sonics rarely got any love from the city. And now they're gone.
So, will the NBA ever return to Seattle? I answer the question thus: will there ever be a good basketball venue in the city? For that to happen, they'd need to spend the money to make it happen, and that's not too likely when the Alaskan Way viaduct is in dire need of repairs or (as is now a near guarantee) replacement, recent costly repairs were made to the metro tunnel running through downtown, and a brand new Lightrail system is going in. Frankly, with the abominable conditions of traffic in the city, those things seem more important regardless. And, of course, money is still being sunk into our athletic underdogs in SoDo.
Until these situations change, my assumption is no, the NBA will not be back anytime soon.