It isn’t like any other day this city has seen.
Just yesterday, Sonics owner Clay Bennett ripped the struggling yet deeply-rooted Sonics team from the temperate jungle of downtown Seattle. For many fans of the former team, hearing the colors and name will stay in Seattle just creates a bigger problem—what to do now.
It isn’t as if there is an easy transition. So many fans celebrated the 41 years of Sonics basketball. So many fans didn’t realize this day was about to come. So many fans are now left without a team, rain-bathing in distaste, despair, and uncertainty.
Nothing will quell the sadness in the hearts of these supporters, just as nothing will dilute the margarita of emotion the Mothers of the Plaza feel when thinking about their lost children. We lost our prodigal son, our only truly successful, championship-winning child—and even if we adopt another team in the future, it will never be the same.
At this point, the fans of Seattle have options at an individual level. Namely, each individual has to decide how he or she is going to go about dealing with professional basketball in the future. Here are some opportunities.
The most obvious and understandable option for the former Sonic fan is to drop interest in the NBA altogether. Though they would have to give up a professional sport they once loved, the Washington Huskies are consistently improving and are close to reclaiming some sort of dominance in the Pac-10.
Basketball is also in full force on the local level. Seattle's hallmark is producing future stars, including 2006 NBA Rookie of the Year Brandon Roy, 2006 Dunk Contest Winner Nate Robinson, and national top-ranked freshmen like Tony Wroten.
The sentiment is understandable. David Stern and the NBA, at best, were apathetic toward the cultural upheaval during relocation, and one could even argue they connived and held grudges toward an unproductive, yet completely supportive city.
And what could be worse than seeing the Oklahoma City Thunder play, wearing their disgusting colors (what else would they be?) and beating the Portland Trailblazers with Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook, and the rest of the cast we were fooled into believing would become Seattle sports legends?
On the other hand, a true basketball fan won’t give up the sport without a fight, and there exist two plausible options to satisfying this desire.
The Sonic fan could continue to support what is rightfully theirs, no matter what uniform or home stadium they are playing in. The youngest team in the league has too much potential in this league for the average fan to ignore.
Most Seattleites were jumping up and down when the Sonics received the second overall pick and selected one of the best collegiate players ever, Kevin Durant. And with the dismantlement of the franchise by trading away the stars, aren’t the younger players rightfully ours?
If somebody trades cash (buys) a car, and that car gets stolen from them, aren’t they still the rightful owner? Or isn’t the insurance supposed to help provide them an immediate team? But the latter case is a different story.
The fans of the Supersonics have a right to follow this team, no matter the location. Those in Seattle have just as much of a right to this team as Oklahoma City does, possibly more.
The other option for the fan is to adopt another NBA franchise, which is completely acceptable under Bill Simmons’ Rules for Being a True Fan.
The most plausible of choices is the Portland Trailblazers, as they are geographically the closest, have hometown stars (Martell Webster, Brandon Roy, and coach Nate McMillan), and are owned by Paul Allen, the same man who led the more popular Seattle Seahawks to glory after buying the team in 1997.
Yet the Trailblazers and Sonics shared the “I-5 Rivalry,” named after the interstate highway that connects the two, for the entirety of their coexistence. Sure, it isn’t Yankees-Red Sox, but it is one of the biggest professional sport rivalries the city has.
Other than that, because Simmons permits it, former Sonic fans shouldn’t be blamed for taking a team as far away from the city as possible. On a map, that is the Miami Heat, which are a viable option. They have a “big three” similar to the Celtics. Sure, they are much younger, but in that way we can pull for a team that is developing, much as our Sonics were.
If we can pick a team, why not get away from it all and go for broke? Heck, they had the number two draft pick this year—isn’t that close enough?
Or we could go for broke and pick the closest team to Oklahoma City, in hopes of a good rivalry in which we can see Bennett bleed. And what does luck bring upon us? The Dallas Mavericks.
They only have a couple more years of talent, but by that point we might have a team of our own. I cannot wait to see Kidd line up against Russell Westbrook and show Bennett that he shouldn’t have traded away Ray Allen.
But the more I think about it, the more I can’t. I cannot just give up this team. Yet I cannot just follow this team like an abused puppy.
I am lost, and to be honest, I have absolutely no idea what path I am going to take.
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3 months ago
Well Said sentiments my friend. Im personally a fan in the NYC area, and I cant decide what direction to go in next. I feel your pain my friend.
I cant possibly root for the knicks or the nets for that matter, because its been engraved in me to hate them when the Sonics came to town for their annual visit to the eastcoast.
I know deep down im gonna follow the Sonics in OKC, but maybe not as much as I did as a diehard fan. The easiest solution is root for the Blazers if you live in the northwest I think. Im not sure how itd be not having a franchise around anymore. Im heartbroken.
I think the best solution is to tell yourself to boycott the NBA
heres my sentiment
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/34738-the-oklahoma-city-thunder-boycott-the-nba
3 months ago
Great article Bill. It is truly a difficult decision, but like Kristopher, I'm leaning toward the boycott option.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/34640-boycott-the-nba-seattle-supersonics-stolen-by-david-stern-and-clay-bennett
Honestly, the whole debacle has soured me on professional sports. I'm finding it hard to keep my faith in all the teams I love. Who knows what could happen?
3 months ago
What's in a name, colors or where they play? To me it is the love of the sport and the greatness of the players that make any team in any sport worth watching. Instead of wailing and finding fault with some unknown quality ask the city why they did not want a decent stadium. Or the Sonic owners why they no longer wanted a pro basketball team in a beautiful city like Seattle.
I guess the Okies win this round. Now they have a hub for major sports for the folks in tornado alley. Kansas City, St. Louis, Dallas and now the OKC Tornados. Almost forgot the famous OU Sooners/OSU Cowboys/Tulsa Hurricanes............
3 months ago
Fans need to support fans. The Seattle fan base has been stabbed in the back by the NBA. This can happen to your team as well! This sad scenario has happened over and over, with the likes of the Baltimore Colts slithering out of town at night, The Browns, Houston Oilers and others. And who supports the fans?....Certainly not the owners, certainly not David Stern. Fans need to send a message to these thiefs. Please show solidarity with the Seattle fans. Boycott the OKC whenever when they come to your town. It is the only way we have to send a message...tell them we will not tolerate their abuse any longer!.....Please cut and paste this, spread the word. BOYCOTT OKC GAMES!
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