Seattle no more?

[Izzy]

SEATTLE -- The SuperSonics will move to Oklahoma City for the 2008-09 season as part of a settlement with the city of Seattle, ending a contentious relationship that resulted in a trial in which the judge was due to issue her ruling Wednesday.

The settlement calls for Sonics owner Clay Bennett and the Professional Basketball Club LLC to pay up to $75 million to the city in exchange for the immediate termination of the KeyArena lease between the NBA team and the city.

More in the link provided: ESPN - SuperSonics, Seattle reach last-minute settlement - NBA

[rockin500]

not really all that surprising. theyve been trying to leave for awhile. but damn that is a lot of cost!

[realmofotalk]

At first I would ask why the city of Seattle would cave to an out-of-court settlement, considering that no judge in his/her own mind would allow the team to be released from a contract with the city, but then I realize that Clay Bennett can legally take the team name with him after the lease ends. Anyway, it sucks for Seattle that it had Kevin Durant for just one year.

[Porter]

Our wonderful leadership are incompetent as all hell. They thought that they could repeat the Mariners and Seahawks miracle. But then realized that Clay Bennett is smarter than Behring and Co.

[Izzy]

I feel bad for Seattle and its fans, going through some pain. The loss of a franchise that had history in Seattle for 41 years is going to be a very hard. I really wish they doesn't have to move, although the city has the absolute rights to keep the team name and colors. Ownerships can be a pain in the ass, seriously.

NBA will grant Seattle an expansion team in future, but it wouldn't be the same. They have a few years to figure out what to do with KeyArena. Not a very suitable arena for a big business like NBA.

[Porter]

Blow up KeyArena. And this should have been done 10 years ago.