Save the Sonics

In general, I have a lot of respect for ESPN columnist Bill Simmons.  Sure, at times his logic is faulty (usually clouded by his blind love for his Boston sports teams – a fault that all sports fans fall prey to from time to time), but he writes his columns with humor and a genuine love for sports.  Recently, Simmons has outdone himself on two specific occasions.  The first is his article on the NBA’s successful All-Star Weekend in New Orleans a couple weekends ago.  In particular, Simmons cites the NBA’s overwhelming volunteer work over the weekend as commissioner David Stern’s proudest moment.

The second stretches towards the other end of the spectrum.  Over the past couple days, Simmons printed countless letters from distraught Seattle Sonics fans over the surprisingly under-the-radar saga regarding a potential move to Oklahoma City.  The first article, one Simmons bills as his “longest piece I’ve ever sent to my editors,” is a compendium of angry, depressed, frustrated, and confused Sonics fans railing against their greedy owner, David Stern’s tacit compliance, and the general gloom of their franchise leaving.  I’m not a Sonics fan but I found myself sharing the same frustration as I read through the e-mails contrasting memories of the Sonics’ championship year and their mid-90’s resurgence with the seemingly hopeless present.

In particular, Simmons’ follow-up article had a couple more e-mails that really drove home the point.  One e-mail captured the sentiment of the entire mailbag.

City: Moses Lake, Wash.
Name: Jon Bartlett

I read every e-mail in your Sonics mailbag. I clicked on the YouTube link and watched all the Kemp dunks. Tears were welling up in my eyes. Then I read the e-mail from the guy who couldn’t watch the Kemp dunks without crying, and I started tearing up more. Then the next to the last e-mail where the guy couldn’t even write his e-mail because he was crying. I’m 37. We’re grown men, we don’t cry! That’s how much this hurts. Suffice it to say that you got 3,000 emails, well there are 10 times or a hundred times as many people who feel the same who just didn’t get a chance to write. Stern doesn’t realize how big a mistake he’s making.

In addition,  a couple readers referenced Seattle legends / personal favorites Pearl Jam as possible allies.  Ben from New Haven hit the nail right on the head.

I just read your “Save the Sonics” mailbag, and I know this e-mail is too late for its inclusion, but I can’t believe no one suggested getting Pearl Jam involved in the fight to save basketball in Seattle. The band members would be perfect spokesmen as NBA fans (as you know, the original name of the band was Mookie Blaylock and their first album is named for his jersey number) and Seattle legends. Plus, you know Eddie would love to take on backstabbing, heartless, billionaire businessmen in a public fight. I’m sure you can use your column or other channels to appeal to the band to join the cause; their support makes too much sense for it not to happen.

I would not be surprised if members of Pearl Jam become involved.  Jeff and Stone were fixtures at Sonics home games in the mid-90’s.  Regardless, it’s unfathomable that a city like Seattle will lose their franchise because the taxpayers won’t fund an owner’s unreasonable and excessive stadium demands.  As Simmons points out, Commissioner Stern’s silence makes him equally culpable; there’s some reasonable compromise out there in the ether (probably involving sale of the franchise to local ownership with the current owner purchasing a new franchise) and Stern owes it to the Seattle fans (and the fans of the NBA – a league that has improved itself tremendously over the past year).