It's done. Press conference coming soon.

News9.com - Oklahoma City, OK - News, Weather, Video and Sports | NBA approves SuperSonics' move to Oklahoma City (http://www.news9.com/Global/story.asp?S=8193139)

Awesome!

BETTER TOWN FOR MEEEEEEEE!

Press conference is going on right now which can be seen on 4, 5 and 9.

28 - 2 was the vote, with Dallas and Portland being the two "no" votes.

No problem with Portland voting no, and of course we knew what Mark Cuban thought. Stern is telling Seattle that with a building, there's hope for Seattle getting another team. Time to play nice.

Whooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!

Stern just said that he would recommend it be called 'Oklahoma' _____.

Stern said he didn't want to put any pressure on the ownership, but he could see the benefits of the team being "Oklahoma <insert nickname here>" instead of Oklahoma City.

I'm sure there will be a text version of his quote available soon....

Stern just said that he would recommend it be called 'Oklahoma' _____.

LOL! GMTA!

oh crap, I've realized that it should be Oklahoma City

Oh man.

He's a bit of a blunt guy when it comes to answering that Seattle reporter with his panties in a twist.

Doesn't like to be interrupted apparently... how embarassing is that!?

Yeah that was funny.

HE isn't giving up is he? The Seattle reporter.. he's like a dog with a bone re the 'email'!

My old "Get ready For OKLAHOMA _______" thread was met with a lot of "are you crazy" comments. Today, we have the NBA commish Stern saying he would encourage and believes the ownership group will name the team "OKLAHOMA". He said it was a topic of conversation, market size versus including Tulsa, etc. was discussed, and I don't believe Stern would have said that if he didn't KNOW it will be called "Oklahoma." So much for "Big League City" and hearing "Oklahoma City" on the sports every night during basketabll season. Hell, people have heard "Oklahoma" on the sports for years with the Sooners success. This would NOT give Oklahoma City the "Big league status" we wanted. As someone has said many times - how many people know where the New Jersey Nets Play?

This is a BAD deal. I am, frankly, angry - as this is what I thought Oklahoma CITY needed and why I ended up voting "Yes" on March 4th.

"the citizens of Oklahoma"

"the citizens of Oklahoma"

I'm sorry, JBrown, what do you mean?

Bennett said something about "the citizens of Seattle and the citizens of Oklahoma..." (not Oklahoma City)

Yes, and he just did it again stressing the call from the governor, the support from the state legislature, etc. and bringing the NBA to "Oklahoma." It's a done deal, folks and we've been had.

You guys are actually getting upset, after all this, about not being separated from the rest of the state in the name?

I don't get it. I'm happy we're getting them. We could call them the Okie Flatlanders and I'd be happy we got a team.

Interesting that the Seattle Times reporter suggested Bennetts number of trips to Seattle show he was in good faith.

Henry: "Oklahoma is in the Big Leagues"

Yes, and he just did it again stressing the call from the governor, the support from the state legislature, etc. and bringing the NBA to "Oklahoma." It's a done deal, folks and we've been had.

And why should it be Oklahoma City? I know the sales tax vote but remember that many people besides residence of OKC pay that tax. And the State has just given the team a free ride on taxation. This team will need all the support it can get.

I love the name "Oklahoma Roadunner" btw. BEEP BEEP for a rally call would be unique to say the least. Make a good looking mascot too. Can see a slim roadrunner for a live mascot. Have a little sexiness to it....lol

Interesting that the Seattle Times reporter suggested Bennetts number of trips to Seattle show he was in good faith.

Yeah, I thought that was pretty interesting as well. Bennett probably paid that reporter off. ;)

You guys are actually getting upset, after all this, about not being separated from the rest of the state in the name?

I don't get it. I'm happy we're getting them. We could call them the Okie Flatlanders and I'd be happy we got a team.

That's not the point. I just talked to Linda at Mayor Mick's office and she admitted she didn't know where the New Jersey Nets play. If this was sold as something MORE than just bringing a basketabll team to OKC, but about raising the profile of Oklahoma City - then it is a VERY big deal as to what it's named.

Clay Bennett knows now it will be Oklahoma. The little tripping over words with his comment about the new name wasn't an accident. (If channel 9 described it right - I missed that wouldn't you know.)

It matters.

That's not the point. I just talked to Linda at Mayor Mick's office and she admitted she didn't know where the New Jersey Nets play. If this was sold as something MORE than just bringing a basketabll team to OKC, but about raising the profile of Oklahoma City - then it is a VERY big deal as to what it's named.

Clay Bennett knows now it will be Oklahoma. The little tripping over words with his comment about the new name wasn't an accident. (If channel 9 described it right - I missed that wouldn't you know.)

It matters.

Yeah Bennett definitely stumbled.

I think it would be fine if a few games were played in Tulsa too. But that's just me.

Mick just said it would be OKC ______

Mayor says it will be OKC! Very confidently

Mick just said it would be OKC ______

It has been made clear to me - personally - that Mick is LOBBYING for it to be "Oklahoma City" by assuming as much and stating as much in public. He truly does not know. He's as concerned as some of us are and even more so after today's press conference you can rest assured. his confidence is his way of pressuring Bennett and the NBA.

How about "Oklahoma/Oklahoma City ______" lol

It has been made clear to me - personally - that Mick is LOBBYING for it to be "Oklahoma City" by assuming as much and stating as much in public. He truly does not know. He's as concerned as some of us are and even more so after today's press conference you can rest assured. his confidence is his way of pressuring Bennett and the NBA.

Well if that is the case, I wouldn't feel duped by Mick or the Big League City campaign. Clearly they intended and thought that it would be OKC ____. It's likely that pressure to make it Oklahoma ____ came down after the fact.

I haven't watched the press conference yet, but again folks, Mick doesn't have the ultimate say so, ultimately Bennett and Stern have the final call, Mick is just a lobbyist.

Man, how can anyone who loves Oklahoma let the name be an issue. Damn man we have a team, if it called Oklahoma so be it!!!!! thats about as backwards as this contiuous OU v OSU nonsense. Let's compete at the collegiate level but at the NBA level let's come together

Hey, I know where the New Jersey Nets play.

They play in New Jersey.

And the Mayor is not a lobbyist. He's an elected official. A lobbyist would have some influence.

Here's a new poll (at least new to me) from ESPN.com:

ESPN: SportsNation Polling - 3459 - SportsNation (http://proxy.espn.go.com/chat/sportsnation/polling?event_id=3459)

Very interesting results. I would like to see this same vote in 5 years.
I thought the press conference went pretty well (for us) and that the reporters from Seattle came off pretty poorly.

1) Where will the Sonics franchise play next season?

52.6&#37; Seattle
47.4% Oklahoma City

2) Where will the current franchise be in five years?

70.2% Oklahoma City
29.8% Seattle

3) Which city is a better NBA market?

77.7% Seattle
22.3% Oklahoma City

4) If the Sonics leave, how long will Seattle be without NBA basketball?

40.3% More than a decade
31.5% 1-5 years
28.2% 6-10 years

5) What should the franchise do with the ''SuperSonics'' nickname?

90.5% Leave it in Seattle
9.5% Take it to Oklahoma City

6) Who is most to blame for the potential departure of the Sonics?

34.7% Current owner Clay Bennett
20.8% David Stern
20.0% State and local politicians in Washington
17.3% Former owner Howard Schultz
7.3% Fans

7) Do you believe Clay Bennett was ever open to keeping the franchise in Seattle?

85.9% No
14.1% Yes

8) From what you know, do you believe there is any merit to Howard Schultz's planned lawsuit alleging Bennett did not deal in good faith?

57.2% Yes
42.8% No

9) Would you support a tax increase to help keep your favorite team in its current home, if the tax increase didn't impact you?

82.9% Yes
17.1% No

10) Would you support a tax increase to help keep your favorite team in its current home, if the tax increase did impact you?

70.3% Yes
29.7% No

Total Votes: 3,634

Well if that is the case, I wouldn't feel duped by Mick or the Big League City campaign. Clearly they intended and thought that it would be OKC ____. It's likely that pressure to make it Oklahoma ____ came down after the fact.

I would agree with you up to a point. That point being we now know the March 4th campaign was funded, in large part, by those who own the team. They knew what they were doing. Keep in mind, they got that vote out of the way BEFORE the bill was introduced in the state legislature to give the team all the state incentives.

YAY for the NBA! This is GREAT!

Now Seattle needs to drop these lawsuits, take some money, keep their name, and go back to whatever they were doing.

DCSooner: The New Jersey Nets play in East Rutherford, NJ. Do you think their having the Nets made them an "elite" city? I know, there are differences, but with "Oklahoma" having been heard for years by the public through the Sooners - there won't be anything new to them. Oklahoma City won't get that "people will hear Oklahoma CITY every night" exposure that was so hyped during the Big League City Campaign.

FLASH: (Like the Drudge Report) And this is important. For any of you still wondering, Ron Thulin on Joxx930 said this afternoon that when David Stern said in the press conference that he would let "Oklahoma politics decide that" and then went on to argue his case for it to be called "OKLAHOMA" that for Thulin - it was a done deal. This is a guy who worked with David Stern, right alongside him and he knows him very well. He said Stern calculates every word out of his mouth and that he would NEVER have gone on record as supporting it being called "OKLAHOMA" if he didn't already know that was exactly what it would be called. Thulin said it is a 99&#37; certainty the team will be called the OKLAHOMA _______. He also said what others here, including me from personal conversation, have been saying about Mayor Mick's saying it will be OKC. He is trying to pressure the group into a change of mind about the name and is simply acting as chief lobbyist for the OKC brand.

To those who don't think this is important, go back and read the threads when the March 4th vote discussion was hot and heated here. Almost to the poster the argument was used that having "Oklahoma CITY" all over radio, television and the newspapers would be publicity that simply could not be bought. That is true. But, the publicity to OKC for it being simply "OKLAHOMA" will be negligible because people are used to hearing Oklahoma in relationship to sports because of the Oklahoma Sooners. I'm surprised at the posters, posting now, saying it doesn't matter! How can you possibly say it doesn't matter? The thing we all wanted, the thing that switched my vote to YES, (publicity and prestige for Oklahoma CITY) - would be gone!

I would agree with you up to a point. That point being we now know the March 4th campaign was funded, in large part, by those who own the team. They knew what they were doing. Keep in mind, they got that vote out of the way BEFORE the bill was introduced in the state legislature to give the team all the state incentives.

Exactly. Clay contributed significantly, but he didn't know yet that Stern would pressure him to make it more of a statewide market.

I think it was Bennett's intention all along to brand it as a statewide team because of market size, etc.

I posted this in another thread and it deserves to be said here:

If it turns out to be Oklahoma City - it will be because of the intense pressure between now and then. Mick can't do it alone. Because, take it to the bank, as of this moment, right now, the plan is to brand this a state team. Are we going to say it doesn't matter? Or, are we going to be part of the pressure?

Also, I disagree with your opinion that we would lose our Oklahoma City publicity.

Even if it's not in the name, the commentators are still going to say "we're back here in OKC for the big Sonics-Mavs match up..." and they're still going to show footage of Oklahoma City before they go to breaks. And the leads on those AP articles are still going to say "OKLAHOMA CITY -- Fans cheered on Kevin Durant blah blah..."

I think it was Bennett's intention all along to brand it as a statewide team because of market size, etc.

What makes you think that?

Do they show footage of East Rutherford before the Nets games? I didn't know there was such a place as East Rutherford, but I don't watch a lot of ESPN.

Go vote

Also, I disagree with your opinion that we would lose our Oklahoma City publicity.

Even if it's not in the name, the commentators are still going to say "we're back here in OKC for the big Sonics-Mavs match up..." and they're still going to show footage of Oklahoma City before they go to breaks. And the leads on those AP articles are still going to say "OKLAHOMA CITY -- Fans cheered on Kevin Durant blah blah..."

You make some good points. Maybe that's why I said negligible, but those are good points. But honestly, did you ever dream of it being anything but Oklahoma City when you went to vote on March 4th? Especially after all the discussion here on OKCTalk about what it brings to the CITY? I remember few - if any - discussions about its impact on the state and how we'll be promoting the state. It was all about a big league city. The name goes a long way further towards that goal than the newspaper dateline. Though, as I said, those are valid points that, at the least, there will be some exposure for us as a city.

You make valid points as well. No, I didn't imagine it would be called anything other than OKC ____.

Solitude: Read all your stuff. My response is SO WHAT!!!! Everybody knows that the INDIANA PACERS play in INDIANAPOLIS and the UTAH JAZZ play in SALT LAKE CITY, MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES play in MINNEAPOLIS Get REAL

Of all the things that matter, this isn't one of them, at least not to me.
To think Oklahoma city gets nada publicity unless the team name is OKC strikes me as just one more verse ina we ain't good nuf chorus, where no matter what, there's gotta be something downsideed if it involves oklahoma at all.

Today is a happy day, or should be, for anyone in the state who likes roundball, whether you call OKC home, or Edmond, or bethany, or Yukon or Hollis and Slapout or even the hamlet of Kenton or Snow

Solitude: Read all your stuff. My response is SO WHAT!!!! Everybody knows that the INDIANA PACERS play in INDIANAPOLIS and the UTAH JAZZ play in SALT LAKE CITY, MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES play in MINNEAPOLIS Get REAL

All cities that hardly need exposure. We know they are there because the cities are already in another tier.

Here is exactly what David Stern said in regards to OKC/OK. From the transcript:

-------------------------
QUESTION: You've mentioned a number of times the importance of Tulsa's buy in to this plan to bring the NBA to Oklahoma City. Based on that, would you have a preference would you like to see this team be called Oklahoma City or Oklahoma? Does it matter to you?

COMMISSIONER DAVID STERN: I'm going to leave that to the politics of Oklahoma. I would guess that the current group would be under significant incentive and pressure to make it an Oklahoma franchise, and that would be a good thing.

But I wouldn't want to put any undue pressure on the ownership group. Although, there was a lot of discussion about the market size of Tulsa; its accessibility to Oklahoma City, and its support of many events in Oklahoma City, and the mayor was there to speak in favor of the application.

So there was some discussion in our meeting about what the actual size of the market is, whether it's simply the Oklahoma City market, or whether you add the additional numbers from Tulsa and it's suburbs, you really see a much larger market than just the Oklahoma City market.
-------------------------------

Emphasis, of course, is mine. Ron Thulin, who worked with Stern, said NO WAY would David Stern say something like that if it were going to be different. He says he runs the NBA with an iron fist (which Thulin thinks is exactly what the NBA needed to bring the thuggery under control) and he would never have said he would "leave it to Oklahoma," and then proceed to say what he thinks unless what he thinks is how it was going to be.

That's not the point. I just talked to Linda at Mayor Mick's office and she admitted she didn't know where the New Jersey Nets play. If this was sold as something MORE than just bringing a basketball team to OKC, but about raising the profile of Oklahoma City - then it is a VERY big deal as to what it's named.

Clay Bennett knows now it will be Oklahoma. The little tripping over words with his comment about the new name wasn't an accident. (If channel 9 described it right - I missed that wouldn't you know.)

It matters.

Do you know where the Indiana Pacers play?

It will still be a big push for OKC whether it is "OKC ________" or "Oklahoma ________." When it shows the shots of the skyline on ESPN etc. it will say OKC not Oklahoma. It will be the Bricktown area with the canal water taxis and shots of the Devon boats cruising up and down the river. This will show people there are some aspects of OKC that they didn't expect and will benefit the city not the state. The name being Oklahoma minus City is a small price to pay for the huge benefits OKC is going to gain IMHO.

I'm going to leave that to the politics of Oklahoma.

Do you know where the Indiana Pacers play?

It will still be a big push for OKC whether it is "OKC ________" or "Oklahoma ________." When it shows the shots of the skyline on ESPN etc. it will say OKC not Oklahoma. It will be the Bricktown area with the canal water taxis and shots of the Devon boats cruising up and down the river. This will show people there are some aspects of OKC that they didn't expect and will benefit the city not the state. The name being Oklahoma minus City is a small price to pay for the huge benefits OKC is going to gain IMHO.

Jbrown already made these points. I'l ask you, Dale: Did you dream the team would be anything other than "Oklahoma City" during the Big League City campaign? Be honest.

I'm going to leave that to the politics of Oklahoma.

That's a quote taken out of context as he then proceeded to give his opinion ("Oklahoma") and actually said they had discussions about it.

We'll see.

BTW, Note what he didn't say. He didn't say what Mick Cornett said; he didn't even say, "I assume it's going to be Oklahoma City - that's where the team is moving." Mick Cornett is fighting a gallant fight. Let's help him! Letters to PBC, emails to Bennett, Letters To The Editor, etc.

Mayor Mick has put that to rest. It will be OKlahoma City which already favors the state name.

I heard that a group in Tulsa is looking into the feasibility of getting an NHL franchise and will probably use the analogy that OKC is part of one major media market (Oklahoma City-Tulsa). In that case, I would call the NHL franchise in Tulsa, the Oklahoma ( ? ).

Agree that this does nothing to highlight Oklahoma City if the team is called Oklahoma.

If Tulsa gets an NHL franchise down the line, and they wanted to called it Tulsa "whatever," they will be eligible for state incentives; however, The NBA in OKC and all our efforts is to enhance Oklahoma City image and Oklahoma.

Mayor Mick has put that to rest. It will be OKlahoma City which already favors the state name.

I heard that a group in Tulsa is looking into the feasibility of getting an NHL franchise and will probably use the analogy that OKC is part of one major media market (Oklahoma City-Tulsa). In that case, I would call the NHL franchise in Tulsa, the Oklahoma ( ? ).

Agree that this does nothing to highlight Oklahoma City if the team is called Oklahoma.

If Tulsa gets an NHL franchise down the line, and they wanted to called it Tulsa "whatever," they will be eligible for state incentives; however, The NBA in OKC and all our efforts is to enhance Oklahoma City image and Oklahoma.

Laramie - Read the thread! Mayor Mick is using assumption and his bully pulpit to lobby for it being called, "Oklahoma City." His way of doing that is to state publicly he is committed to it being called "Oklahoma City." I, and others, have said that Mayor Mick is as worried as anyone else. He understands the importance for our city's basketball team to be branded as Oklahoma City. That's BIG LEAGUE. The country hears "Oklahoma" all the time in sports news from the success of the Sooners.