A Sonics victory 2 years too late

From the files of under-reported stories, Seattle SuperSonic fans scored a minor victory last week.

The robber baron owners of the Oklahoma City Thunder, Clay Bennett & Co., agreed to pay former Sonics season-ticket holders $1.6 million to essentially go away.

It's now awaiting approval from a federal judge.

Basically, 1,000 former Sonic ticket-holders filed a class-action lawsuit alleging when the team was ripped from the Emerald City and moved to Oklahoma, they reneged a deal to let them renew their tickets at 2006-07 prices through 2010.

The fans argued if they were allowed to transfer tickets to OKC's Ford Center, they could have resold them at higher prices.

Two years after the Sonic fans had their collective hearts crushed, they finally got something. But that's going to be the last basketball-related win for a while.

Even with five or six potential NBA franchises available for sale (Memphis with prior Northwest ties included) Seattle doesn't show up as a blip for a new franchise.

It's a simple reason why. Seattle does not have a modernized arena paid for by taxpayers, and there is no political will to devote public money to such a project.

Enjoy the tiny win Seattle, and get ready, Spring Training starts soon.

Conspiracies, expansion and other awesome stuff

For Pete’s Sake has been lacking in awesomeness (and posts) recently, mostly due to massive writer’s block. So while I go on a mini-sabbatical to recharge here are some links to other sports articles and blogs that you need check out…

In case you need any more evidence that owner Clay Bennett is a lying scum, SuperSonicSoul gives a chilling estimate of the “real” dollar amount it would have taken to keep an NBA team in Seattle.

Staying with basketball, Darren Rovell of CNBC's Sports Biz takes a look at a possible Olympic conspiracy. This potential plot has nothing to do with doping, it has to do with logo and player placement in Team USA’s photo.

Meanwhile, Fox Sports senior baseball writer Ken Rosenthal examines how the CC Sabathia trade is ushering in a new-world order and reshaping baseball’s maligned economic system.

And if you’re getting that early football itch, there were some wild rumors circulating around about the Pac-10 Conference expanding to 12 teams. In a special report to Fox Sports, Greg Welch identifies the best expansion schools for the Pac-10.

Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times responds to the expansion idea, posing the question why the conference should expand? I’m wondering what the conference would call itself if it added more teams. The just Pac-12 doesn’t have a good ring.

Finally, the Bleacher Report tries to rank “The 10 Most Disliked Programs of the Past 25 Years,” also the most successful programs of the past 25 years.

NBA sends booming message

FANS FORGOTTEN AS SONICS DEPART

“The NBA should be banned from using the phrase ‘NBA cares’ in any future public service announcement.” That’s how ESPN columnist J.A. Adande opened his remarks about the sad conclusion to the Seattle SuperSonics saga.

Hours before a federal judge was about to hand down a decision whether a lease would require the Sonics to play two more seasons in the Emerald City, Seattle officials waved the white flag.

The city agreed to let the team immediately pack up and move to Oklahoma City, Okla. in return for $45 million guaranteed and Seattle’s retention of the SuperSonics name, logos, colors and history.

I was disappointed that a ruling wasn’t handed out, because it would have carried some impact as legal precedent for future lease disputes.

Though I rarely rooted for Sonics, watching this franchise get yanked from its home just hurts. Seattle fans had no legal rights as their team got uprooted, although they were central to this business for 41 years. That’s the real travesty. It was the fans’ passion and loyalty that was trampled by owner Clay Bennett, a “man possessed,” for few million dollars of play money.

Commissioner David Stern's inaction speaks volumes for the future of the NBA. The league needs Seattle more than Seattle needs the NBA. Instead of serving the fans, Stern showed he was more interested in helping his buddy (Bennett) and establishing his own precedent and leverage to hold other NBA cities hostage over arena deals.

Seattle P-I columnist Art Thiel summed upped the mess in Northwest well when he wrote “Bennett is still a liar, Stern is still unconscionably remorseless, and the Sonics are gone.”

That’s right, today, basketball fans in Seattle are hoopless and have been left relatively hopeless. This should serve as warning to NBA fans everywhere, watch out, your team could be next.

Northwest hoops hysteria

It’s great a time to be a hoops fan in the Northwest.

On Monday night, Gonzaga thumped Santa Clara clinching their eighth consecutive West Coast Conference title. In the opening five minutes GU harassed Santa Clara and jumped out to a 12-0 lead. It only got uglier from there. The Zags continued an unprecedented string of dominance, now having won 10 of the past 11 WCC titles. Holding rankings in both top 25 polls, the Zags are getting primed for yet another NCAA tournament run.

Just 90 miles south in Pullman, typical Pac-10 doormat Washington State is almost a lock for its second-consecutive NCAA bid. The Cougars hit a rough patch in late January dropping four of five games, but bounced back winning four in a row. A disappointing loss at No. 8 Stanford over the weekend wasn’t a bad thing. Guards Kyle Weaver and Derrick Low will lead the stingy Cougs into March again. It’s a surprise, considering the recruiting mecca the Palouse is.

And yes, even Idaho Vandal fans have reason to smile. Not only has the men’s team doubled its win total from a year ago (four to eight), but the team boasts a two-game win streak heading into their regular season finale. Also, former Vandal women’s star Leilani Mitchell is thriving in her new home in Salt Lake. Mitchell transferred to Utah after her high school and Idaho assistant and her two high school teammates left. The 5-foot-5 guard is fifth in the nation in assists per game (7.2) and paces the No. 15 Utes. Mitchell is garnering national attention, first by SI’s Kelli Anderson and then by ESPN’s Graham Hays. Great to see her playing well and getting credit where credit is do.

Unfortunately, there’s little solace to be found in Seattle. However, ESPN’s Bill Simmons did a fantastic job accumulated nearly 15,000 words of anguished e-mails from Sonics fans finally giving a voice and national publicity to the pending departure of Seattle’s beloved NBA franchise.

Simmons writes “…This isn't a case that you can say, ‘You know, I kind of understand both sides here.’ There is only one side. An NBA team is getting hijacked and there's no way of sugarcoating it, defending it or justifying it. Again, if it happens to the Sonics, it could happen to your team. That’s why you should care.” And that’s why you should read on.

Now, Simmons published a sequel to his "Save The Sonics" piece, including a possible solution David Stern could facilitate – “assuming he cares at all about not murdering the Sonics in Seattle.” That is eerily familiar to another solution brought to light here.

In parting, ESPN’s Jim Caple takes a humorous shot at David Stern and his passive approach to keep Seattle a viable NBA market in this biting piece, which I highly recommend.

Blogger’s Note: How could I leave out my Alma mater. That’s right the Whitworth men’s basketball team, champions of the Northwest Conference, earned a first round bye in the NCAA Division III Tournament. That was a truly shocking development, due to a recent number of snubs by the NCAA for past brilliance. Can someone say make-up call? Anyway, the best of luck to them, go Pirates!