For those like me that had to look it up:

RICO = Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act

If this does end up blowing up and the Sonics stay in Seattle, you have to seriously question if you would ever want any of these people invovled in a future OKC ownership gruop, hell even if they win this was all still a MAJOR screwup.

What does that say about their skill to run a ownership? Would they make the same goofball screwups with the team?

Are there any other possbile ownership groups willing to step up in the area? Is there anyway the city could own the team, much like how the city of Green Bay owns the Packers and not any ownership group?

I guess they are better than having an owner like Schultz that took a good team and made it suck and then sold it to an out of town group only to change his mind and then sue to try and get the team back. Talk about someone playing the Seattle fans like a yo-yo.

__________________
Oklahoma City - The surprise your family has been looking for.

I honestly don't care if they lied, I just care if they were stupid enough to get caught lying, that would end up costing OKC a team!

The bottom line is just getting a team here by whatever means, once we have a team no one will remember or care how we got it and it will be all water under the bridge! I am not saying I think they lied, I really don't care, just get a freaking team here already!

So what you're saying is, can we trust Clay and the group for anything in the future?

My answer is yes, it doesn't show that they are bad business men, they were doing business. What they were bad at, and I don't have a problem with, is lying. Which obviously means they are use to telling the truth, I don't have a problem with that.

More than likely, it probably means they're used to not being held up to scrutiny as in Oklahoma, this crew generally gets their way.

__________________
It's a friendlier OKCTalk!

Well, it may not matter what any of us think, because I know that the 28 who voted for this group to move them to Oklahoma City would seriously question if they want these people to own another team in their league.

Very true. Not only do they usually get their way, but they have convinced many that whatever they do is good for the city and have gotten people defend actions people wouldn't otherwise defend, simply because it's them doing it.

these guys are billionaires, they should know to be using prepaid cell phones when talking shady business

hell, I'm only a thousandaire and I know that

Or they're just not use to being shady.. as much as you appear to be.

Whatever you want to say about all this, these guys wanted a team in OKC. If you thought otherwise at the time they bought the team you're naive. Having said that, no one can say they didn't give Seattle and Washington state the chance to keep them there. Other then filling lawsuits.
In the contract with Schultz it seems plain that he was trying to get out from under the ownership while hoping that it would stay in Seattle. However the contract showed that he was willing to sell if the team could not find a suitable arena to play in. No one argued that Key was suitable. Schultz had argued that for years. Bennett and company made an attempt to get a new arena with no one interested in funding that project just as Schultz had tried. That's about all Bennett was expected to do. To say he didn't act in good faith just doesn't fly and a judge will have a hard time saying otherwise.
Say what you want about Bennett and company, they are trying to make OKC and Oklahoma a better place. Yes they have money but I assure you they could have invested that in something else besides a sports team and the returns would have been much better. Let's give them credit for trying to improve the quality of life in Oklahoma.

Some valid points raised, these guys weren't too bright for obvious reasons. I agree, we may not care if they own a group, but the NBA's BoG will care. The NBA doesn't want another George Shinn. Bennett is on his way to becoming a hated owner.

As said above, just get a team somehow already!

I think I may shy away from all Sonic topics until June. There is just too much of a wish wash going on right now.

Can you provide a link or quote of this? The only thing I can see bad about GS is he told everyone what they wanted to hear be it here or in NO.

I'm not sure that Stern feels that Bennett and company are not good owners. I think one of the reasons we are being rewarded with a team is Bennett's responding to Stern in a time of need (asking for help with the Hornets and getting it from Bennett).

I have a feeling that after the smokes clears, OKC will be seeing NBA for some time to come. Start deciding where you want to sit in the Ford center now...

Are you kidding me?

How many times have you thrown a text message or e-mail together and it's all general discussion and business planning? I mean, c'mon, my partners and I ALWAYS throw out different scenarios and ideas to dialogue on various deals we are working on. E-mail is just one median and it's really easy since you have mobile pdas etc and online all the time. What these guys should have done was CC their attorney on all of this communication and see if they could say that was attorney-client privileged (I don't know if that can fly or not) but I can totally see how they did this as I and my partners have done this many times discussing deals we are working on. Our deals are quite smaller than $350mil but I'm sure most of you can appreciate looking back in your sent items of your Outlook or Treo or Blackberry etc ... and if it's business talk with colleagues or associates you can see how insane it is.

maybe they have a really good case against pbc but I think they have to be grasping at this ... and if this is overturned and pbc "gives" back the team to the previous owners, our justice system is again playing in gray areas that we have no absolutes!

In other words - Don't question! Don't second-guess! Fall in line!

Are you forgetting March 4th? We have a right to question.

This is a message board. Feel free to question all you want. Hope this isn't about penis envy tho..lol j/k

wow it was like you were waiting for someone to defend PBC in any way so you could throw this comment out there......

based on the post you picked, your comment is a bit of a stretch..... you made it sound like rabidred said "they can kill babies cause they are helping OKC."

I know you wrote you are kidding but can a guy even have penis envy? The Freud I am thinking of reserved that for women. I'm most definitely a man.

Women have penis envy?

We are both correct.

Male penis envy
I worked with Freud in Vienna. We broke over the concept of penis envy. He thought it should be limited to women – Woody Allen in Zelig

While not the same kind of penis envy as that typically referred to in psychoanalysis, the phrase "penis envy" or "small penis syndrome"[1] is also sometimes used to describe the envy of a male over another male's penis. Although this subconscious or conscious envy may solely be based on the idea that a larger penis is universally more satisfying and appealing to a sexual partner, other implications arise from the fact that a large penis has been seen in many cultures as a symbol of high masculinity, dominance and power. While this whole matter has probably always been a part of human psychology, recent developments have made the issue slightly more public in the western world.

The media attention given to penis size and some women being vocal in their opinions of penis size have led some men to state their envy of others with larger penises. Television shows such as Sex and the City and Ally McBeal popularised the penis size issue when characters in these TV shows stated their preference for well-endowed men over more modestly-endowed men. Also, in the 1977 film Annie Hall, Woody Allen's character, upon hearing the question asked by the title character about penis envy, replied that he "was one of the few males that suffered from it". This conception of Freud's theory is usually the explanation behind the term penis envy.

Men can underestimate the size of their own penises, see Perceptions of penis size.

Ah Penis!



Jerry Brewer | Swappin' e-mails with Stern and those gents from Oklahoma City who bought the Sonics | Seattle Times Newspaper

Chalk one up for another Dbag in Seattle. I'm really starting to hate seattle more and more. Wanna-be elitist ass hats.

I have a Larry the Cable Guy attitude on that particular column

"that was funny, Ii don't care who ya are, that was funny right there"

mmonroe, Just remember the vast majority of people in Seattle couldn't care less. The NBA is the last thing on the minds of many (most) in Seattle. The fact is, it's a great American city. Don't let all this spoil your feelings about Seattle. Unless, of course, you hate them anyway due to other things. Which, if that is the case, it's too bad. It's a great place.

Well.. in june i'll be in jersey, new york, and connecticut. July, I will be in central and northern california.. i may just have to drive up to seattle while i'm at it.