Entertainment News for Late May 2008
@WB18 @mrcubfan415 @farmerted555
As the NBA Conferene Finals start to wind down, the issue of new realignment is still a hot topic for the owners.
- ESPN
Option A
Pacific | Northwest | Southwest | Atlantic | Central | Southeast |
Golden State
Los Angeles
Phoenix
Sacramento
San Diego
Expansion: Las Vegas | Denver
Portland
Seattle
Utah
Vancouver
Expansion: Kansas City | Dallas
Houston
New Orleans
San Antonio
St. Louis
Expansion: Oklahoma City | Boston
New Jersey
New York
Philadelphia
Toronto
Washington | Chicago
Cleveland
Detroit
Indiana
Milwaukee
Minnesota | Atlanta
Charlotte
Kentucky
Miami
Orlando
Expansion: Nashville |
Option B
Pacific | Northwest | Southwest | Atlantic | Central | Southeast |
Golden State
Los Angeles
Phoenix
Sacramento
San Diego
Expansion: Las Vegas | Denver
Portland
Seattle
Utah
Vancouver
Expansion: Kansas City | Dallas
Houston
New Orleans
San Antonio
St. Louis
Expansion: Oklahoma City | Boston
New Jersey
New York
Philadelphia
Toronto
Expansion: Pittsburgh, Buffalo or Montreal | Chicago
Cleveland
Detroit
Indiana
Milwaukee
Minnesota | Atlanta
Charlotte
Kentucky
Miami
Orlando
Washington |
All good options for a realignment, though 36 teams could be too many.
Competing expansion bids for 2008-09 (only 4 will enter the league at a fee of $320 million USD each)
Oklahoma City Bison (Headed by Clay Bennett)
Available arena: Ford Center
Yes. OKC would make an excellent home for an NBA team shown they have solid support for the Thunder IOTL and it seems the Twisters ITTL have good support as well.
Las Vegas (Headed by Gavin Maloof)
Available arena: MGM Resorts Arena (On the OTL site of T-Mobile Arena)
Well, considering Vegas has been the hot market for quite some time, this makes sense financially, but can Vegas really support 3 major teams is the question?
Nashville (Headed by Gaylord Entertainment)
Available arena: Bridgestone Arena
Ehh, I think Memphis would be better than Nashville. Don't get me wrong, Nashville has some great sports fans. But Memphis has proven to support an NBA team IOTL, so why not ITTL while Nashville is pretty unproven.
Pittsburgh (Headed by Art Rooney II)
Available arena: The Igloo (temporary), PPG Arena (Opening in 2010)
Pittsburgh would make an interesting market for the NBA, considering they've never had a shot at the NBA, but have great support for all three sports. It would especially great if the expansion took place just as the new arena opened.
Buffalo (Headed by Terry and Kim Pegula)
Available arena: HSBC Arena
Ah, Buffalo. A city that had the NBA IOTL from 1970-78 but failed. It may be a small market, but like Pittsburgh, it has had great support for it's sports franchises historically. Considering college basketball is popular in the area and Toronto is oh so close, this is a risky one.
Kansas City (Headed by Clark Hunt)
Available arena: Sprint Center
Another failed NBA city IOTL, as KC had the Kings from 1972-85. Even with a new arena, Kansas City may be too close to OKC and St. Louis to succeed in the NBA.
Montreal (Headed by the Molson family)
Available arena: Molson Centre
A high risk, high reward move, as Montreal could be a strong market for the NBA if it succeeds. But should it fail, this team could be gone within years. It would definitely be cool to see what brand identities a Montreal team could come up with considering the cities history with English and French culture.
So, i'd personally say OKC, Memphis/Nashville, Pittsburgh and Montreal for expansion, and alignment could look like this.
Northwest Division
Golden State
Portland
Sacramento
Seattle
Utah
Vancouver | Southwest Division
Dallas
Houston
Los Angeles
Phoenix
San Antonio
San Diego | Midwest Division
Denver
Minnesota
New Orleans
Oklahoma City
St. Louis
Tennessee (Memphis/Nashville) |
Atlantic Division
Boston
Montreal
New Jersey
New York
Philadelphia
Toronto | Central Division
Chicago
Cleveland
Detroit
Indiana
Milwaukee
Pittsburgh | Southeast Division
Atlanta
Charlotte
Kentucky
Miami
Orlando
Washington |