Which is why I wish more sports teams were actually owned by their municipalities, like the admirable Green Bay Packers.
Good on Seattle for having the balls to finally stand up to these bullies and getting some of their tax money back. People should feel bad for Oklahoma City, we are the ones being forced to pay for this billionaire dick-waving BS. Forget, for a moment, the lies, the propaganda in the local media, the absurdly lopsided deal with OKC, the mountains of real problems the tax money could go towards, and the fact that the burden of the extra sales tax paying for all of this will fall most heavily on the poorest citizens who lack transportation to shop outside of the city. Instead consider this: three of the owners are the CEOs of some of the biggest employers in the OKC. They inflated the Hornets attendance numbers by inducing (ordering) their companies to buy the majority of tickets for every game, and then gave them out to employees for free. The Bombers (I like the sound of that) will have sell-out attendance for exactly as long as the owners deem necessary. When they want more ‘improvements’, they will make it fall and when they want to sell the team to someone who wants to move it to another city, they will stop buying tickets entirely. This entire thing is a sad joke.
I seem to recall that a big part of that was because the group that eventually bought the sonics bought out any unsold tickets (a lot) and gave them away to non-profits to pack the arena and give the impression of big support.
Not exactly a Sonics fan — the last time I went to a game, Jack Sikma was in the lineup — but the thing that I’ve found whimsical about the activities of the last few months is how much the “civic benefit” of having a pro sports team changed. When Clay&Co were making their (halfhearted) pitch to the City Council and the Legislature, the mere presence of the Sonics rained money upon the area like manna from on high; but when it came to settling accounts for leaving . . . nada.
But denizens of the Putrid Sound area can take solace in the fact that it’s not entirely a one-way street: OKC is sending this Sonic back.
I wonder what they will end up calling them. I assume that it can’t be “Sooners” or “Cowboys” since those are used by the college teams.
And there’s only two other things that come from Oklahoma… 
I’m going to call them the “Bombers” regardless
snark
We ought to get a betting pool going as to what the name’s going to be…I’m guessing something weather related, like Twisters or something. I’d love Bombers, but when DC Washington was having a contest for a new name, I submitted Generals (I reckon Abe Pollin doesn’t share my sense of humor).
Also, it’ll be interesting to see how OKC and Memphis will vie for the vast hordes of fanbase from Arkansas, which lies in between. It’ll be like two one-legged men in an ass-kicking contest over a lot lizard.
I thought plural team names were out of fashion, especially in the NBA. There’s already the Magic and the Heat. What odds will you give me that they choose a non-plural name?
The Oklahoma Sky
Here are some suggestions:
The Oklahoma City Deceivers
The Oklahoma City Lying Bastards
The Oklahoma City Greedy Mofos
The Oklahoma City Lawyers
er … maybe I should try to be more reasonable
The Oklahoma City Bovine Flatulence
oops not working just yet … hold on … whack
The Oklahoma City Buggers
The Oklahoma City Smegma
Alright I give up.
Bombers remains the top contestant.
Edit: I hope it’s not too obvious that I’m bitter about this.
The Oklahoma City Cellars - because that’s where they’ll live, between their record and all the tornadoes.
Good call!
The Sonics weren’t late to the greed party. They were early. They got their remodel from 1994-1995. They were first in line for the public teat. Then the Mariners got a stadium in 1997, and the Seahawks got theirs in 2000.
Then the Sonics went back for more, like the city was an all-you-can-eat buffet line, and the taxpayers went, “Huh? You again?”
I can’t blame the city of Seattle, and I can’t blame the taxpayers. I blame the Sonics ownership: that’s right, I blame Clayface Bennett. Why?
Because when the Mariners and the Seahawks were looking for new stadiums, they were winning. The Mariners were in the playoffs in 1995 and again in 1997. The Seahawks in 1999 were also in the playoffs (they lost the Wild Card game).
The Sonics? Three consecutive seasons they posted winning percentages of .427, .383, and .244 (so far). It’s obvious that Bennett doesn’t really want the team to win, because that makes it easier for the team to be moved. I predict that as soon as they move to Oklahoma City, Clay is going to discover enough spare change in his couch to pay for some decent players. Gosh, maybe he had that money all along. Who knew? :rolleyes:
Don’t be dicks guys. It isn’t the fault of the people living there. Calling them the bombers is just throwing a fit because you didn’t get your way. It would have been a good name before 1995, but it is just a jerk move to make at this point. The citizens of OKC (and Tulsa plus a lot of the state) feel invested in finally having their own pro sports team.
And yes - Sooners and Cowboys are out as team names. I’m hearing noise about them being the OKC Thunderbirds or Barons.
When did anyone is this thread bash the fine residents of Oklahoma City?
We’re bashing the duplicitous and deceitful owner, who used borderline unethical tactics to move a franchise that’s been part of Seattle for over 40 years.
Obviously no one sincerely believes you could call them the “Bombers.”
Me, I’m going with “Bovine Flatulence.”
And, yes, I want to see the team suck rancid monkey balls because I want that asswipe owner to fail miserably.
:smack: I’ve been reading this entire thread and just clued in on this. I feel like an idiot.
What I don’t get is that they could have picked up and moved in two years without paying one thin dime.
Looks like it is the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Can you give us a link please?
ESPN is scrolling it along the bottom of the screen. I"m trying to see ifKOCO has news about it, but their web page refuses to load.
OK, I just put it into Google News search: http://news.google.com/news?tab=wn&hl=en&ned=&q=Oklahoma+City+Thunder&btnG=Search+News