The Sacramento Kings still can't figure out if they're going to be the Sacramento Kings. The owners seem to be backtracking, the NBA is listening, fans of the team are seething, and everyone is a bit on edge about what's going on.
The Maloofs were in New York City today, discussing how the current deal forced them to pay too much of the original pre-development costs. So many mixed messages being sent here.
On one hand, the family has said that they remain committed to Sacramento, and on the other they have unleashed a full-court legal press designed to disrupt the arena funding process.
The family’s newly hired ‘crisis consultant’ Eric Rose started feeding the family’s narrative to the press a few weeks ago, saying they don’t believe the city can deliver on a new arena in time for the 2015-16 season, and that Anaheim was still an option on the table.
Of course, if the city of Sacramento has any holes in its plans to build an arena by 2015-16, we now know that they will be cited by the Maloofs in today’s meetings as a reason the league should allow them to move to Anaheim, where they could make more money whether they keep the team or not.
The city is not happy with what the Maloofs are doing, and say as much (check out the PDF of the official response courtesy of the Sac Bee by clicking here)!
City officials said this week that a massive records request submitted by the Maloof family has created a perception that the Kings' owners are trying to derail the arena process.
In a letter from the city attorney's office, the Maloofs' attorneys were told the records request created a "perception that this is an attempt to undermine the good faith efforts of so many people and organizations, including the Kings' fans."
So it appears Kevin Johnson is coming to New York City tonight, as the Sacramento Mayor will try to represent the interests of the city tomorrow. It also might be a ploy by David Stern to get both the Maloofs and the Mayor at the same table and get to hear both sides of the issue.
To add to NY drama: Meeting tomorrow between Maloofs, Mayor KJ and NBA to happen at "undisclosed location" Maloof spokesman says. #nbakings
— Tony Bizjak (@TonyBizjak) April 12, 2012
Good news for Kings fans? They aren't talking about relocation. Yet.
Per @dakasler: Issue of #NBAKings relocation did not come up in Maloof presentation to #NBA owners.
— Ryan Lillis (@Ryan_Lillis) April 12, 2012
To discuss the tough situation with Kings fans, head on over to Sactown Royalty.
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