Kings to Virginia Beach?!

[Wolfpackbobcat]

http://insidebiz.com/news/sources-sacramento-kings-may-move-virginia-beach-arena-deal-works


Uh Oh. Not good news for us. Further shrinking our fan base area.

[cltblkhscoach]

Wow.....shocked they would move here instead of Seattle. But this hurts the Wizards more than us, Virginia Beach is further away than ATL-6 hours

[Chef]

there is no way they move there. not only would it cut into the wizards market, the bobcats market (which stern made clear would not be contracted) but it is such a tiny tiny market. the cities of seattle, st louis, pittsburgh and about 20 other cities would be far better places than virginia beach.

[CableBoxCat]

That's a shame, and not for selfish Bobcats fan reasons. I hate to read about any city losing its pro team (especially a city that only has one). Stinks for people in Sacramento.

[isguros]

this would mean they're going to play more games at 7:00 CET, right? I feel sorry for Kevin Johnson and all the other people in Sac-town though.

[skratch]

That story was bait, VA cant support any professional team

[Scottley Crue]

Perhaps the Kings move, but I can't see Virginia Beach being the place. I think there's too much going against it, namely lack of an arena or a plan to fully fund one, market size smaller than Sacramento and the relocation fee that they'd have to pay to go to a place that's smaller and doesn't have an NBA ready arena or plans to fund one. Seattle and Kanas City would be More likely choices if a move is made at all. But Virginia Beach? Nah...can't see that.

[wend28]

IMO, the Maloofs and Kings are just trying to create leverage with either Sacramento or some place like Seattle or KC. I think we can name at least 10 different places that are a better fit than VA Beach. Not to mention VA Beach doesn't have the necessary corporate support for sponsorships, luxury suites, etc. I think the one local Fortune 500 company that is HQ'd there is getting bought.

[SWedd523]

The Kings will likely be moving sometime soon anyway. Whether it be to Seattle (where they have OK'd a new arena project), Anaheim, or even a place like Kansas City.


I don't think I believe the VA Beach rumors, but I guess we'll see sooner or later

[Dcarnys]

No way this happens. They will go to Seattle if they go anywhere. Then again the Maloofs might just be crazy or desperate enough to go through with it.

[ND22]

Yeah this was debunked pretty quickly, but made for a quick laugh.

[Scottley Crue]

This does remind me of the time people were SWEARING the Hornets were going to move to Norfolk, VA.

[TheBeagle]

The league is worse for not having a team in Seattle. Like others here, having been through losing a team, I hope it doesn't happen to Sacramento, but if there is any relocation it has to be to Seattle.

[westbrook08]

Well i can tell you all for a fact that the maloofs will never go away from the west coast. I used to work for them at the palms as well working for phil on a few other side projects, and i know them quite well. Their first choice would be vegas all the way. Most of the players already live there and have condos at palms place right near the casino and train at las vegas athletic club. The problem is that they've been trying to wait for stern's tenure to be over because he will not allow them to be in vegas or to put a 3rd team in the L.A. market.And oscar goodman,who was the longtime mayor in vegas and who was really driving the bus on trying to win stern over, is no longer in office. I know that they have alot of family in San Diego and george as well as joe have mentioned that as somewhere they wouldn't mind being. I think ultimately they're gonna get forced in to seattle, which they are not really big on, but which would be good for the league. You can hang up K.C.,Norfolk, or anywhere that's not in close proximity to the west coast. They have too much time and money invested in vegas to go anywhere that's not an extremely quick jet flight away. Hey, and does anyone remember when shinn supposedly had a deal to move the hornets to Louisville,KY and the new arena was gonna be called the KFC bucket? Priceless! lol.

[BlockParty]

The Vegas thing is not just about Stern. None of the major sports have a team in Vegas, where the NBA may seem to be the natural fit (because so many of the players enjoy the Vegas experience, USA basketball trains there, tons of bball camps/tournaments are held there), the NBA has to distance itself even more from the city due to the Referee scandal a couple of years ago.

The irony is, it's just as easy to place a bet online from anywhere you have a reliable connection as it is to place a bet online in Vegas.

[westbrook08]

The Vegas thing is not just about Stern. None of the major sports have a team in Vegas, where the NBA may seem to be the natural fit (because so many of the players enjoy the Vegas experience, USA basketball trains there, tons of bball camps/tournaments are held there), the NBA has to distance itself even more from the city due to the Referee scandal a couple of years ago.

The irony is, it's just as easy to place a bet online from anywhere you have a reliable connection as it is to place a bet online in Vegas.

placing a bet in a casino is legal. Betting on sports on the internet is illegal. If you start to make enough money by gambling online the feds will come after you with a vegance. I've had it happen to friends of mine.

[lol]

That would have been such a great idea, I am deeply saddened that it isn't true. /Sarcasm

[adam187]

Just thought I'd add, I grew up and currently live in Virginia, and VA has the most fickle sports fans. I think a team here would struggle to attain loyal followers unless they were an instant success. I really hate all the Patriots, Steelers, Lakers, Cowboys, Yankees, and Red Sox fans crawling around here, something I'm sure everyone from this message board can relate to.

[westbrook08]

Just thought I'd add, I grew up and currently live in Virginia, and VA has the most fickle sports fans. I think a team here would struggle to attain loyal followers unless they were an instant success. I really hate all the Patriots, Steelers, Lakers, Cowboys, Yankees, and Red Sox fans crawling around here, something I'm sure everyone from this message board can relate to.

I certainly don't disagree that the fans suck around there but i still think atlanta is hands down the worst sports town ever. If there own teams lose more than 3 in a row the facilities are half full by the next week. I've never seen more fair weather fans. Even the journal constitution hammers on the teams and the fans just about every sunday. It's pathetic! And before anyone piles on me, yes i have lived there!