Dave Zirin: Red State Hoops: The Oklahoma City Thunder and the Value of Seattle's Rage

[marmar]

from The Nation:



Red State Hoops: The Oklahoma City Thunder and the Value of Seattle's Rage
Dave Zirin on June 15, 2012 - 9:41 PM ET


The Oklahoma City Thunder are a stolen franchise, having been torn from Seattle in 2008. A mere four years later, they are in the NBA Finals, three wins away from becoming champions. They are also being relentlessly promoted by the NBA and their network partners as a team to love. We are told to see them as America’s Sweethearts, with their small-town vibe, roaring crowds and exuberant fans in color-coded shirts that all read, ”Team Is Family.” They are the brilliant culmination of a strategy meeting NBA Commissioner David Stern had with Republican strategist Matthew Dowd about how to give the league “red state appeal.” This was in conjunction with the NBA’s establishment of a dress code and road behavior guidelines, and a general sense of rather blunt unease from David Stern that a league built on a foundation of black, inner-city talent would repel wealthier white fans.

You don’t get much more “red state” than Oklahoma, where every district voted for John McCain in 2008, the only state that can make that claim. You don’t get more red state than an arena named after minority owner Aubrey McClendon’s Chesapeake Energy Corporation, a company that makes its profits through “fracking,” the practice of splitting open the earth to extract more oil and natural gas. “Fracking” has been linked to earthquakes, toxic contamination of drinking water and global warming. According to studies, it actually causes greater degrees of global warming than coal. Not surprisingly, McClendon is a climate change denier. He’s also, for good measure, a staunch gay rights opponent, and one of the main funders for the 2004 group, “Swift Boat Veterans for Truth” aimed at smearing John Kerry’s military record in Vietnam. And he, like majority owner and major Republican donor Clay Bennett, took hundreds of millions in corporate welfare to move to OKC. It’s all so very “red state appeal.”

It’s not surprising that the NBA is promoting the Thunder like they’re the team from Walnut Grove. It’s also not surprising that every effort is being made to eliminate any discussion during broadcasts of their Seattle roots. More surprising by far is how much traction this line of thinking has among those who should know better.

ESPN’s Bill Simmons who once railed against the move to Oklahoma City, promising to only refer to the new team as “The Zombie Sonics,” has learned to stop worrying and embrace the Thunder. In a column titled—I wish I was joking—“Thunder Family Values,” Simmons writes about his newfound love for Oklahoma City, it’s exuberant fans, and the general vibe of the entire region. He ends by writing, “I found myself feeling happy for the Oklahoma City fans after they clinched Game 1…. Is it possible to feel happy for Oklahoma City while continuing to feel absolutely, unequivocally terrible for Seattle? Actually, yes.” .................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.thenation.com/blog/168445/red-state-hoops-oklahoma-city-thunder-and-value-seattles-rage

[Upton]

1. Agree with most of the piece..

but I don't even see any mention of Howard Schultz. He bought the Sonics, promising all sorts of things, and then less than a decade later sold the team to Clay Bennett knowing full well he intended on trying to move the team to OKC...

I consider Schultz, along with Stern's help, the real villain here...which is one reason you'll never find me in a Starbucks again..

[OKNancy]

2. full of shit

I fucking hate it when Sports and politics get tied together. Believe me, those boys on the team don't give a shit about if Oklahoma is red or not. In fact since most are black, they are probably Democrats.
As far as Seattle is concerned... it was 4 years ago. When they came to OKC the record was what.. 3-29 to start. Seattle had one of the worst attendance ratings in the NBA. OKC has been sold out forever.

Teams move all the time. Get over it.

( oh and by the way 500,000 people in Oklahoma voted for Obama )

I can hate the owners guts and still cheer for a fantastic team. The amount of fervor and support this team has been so fun for those of us here. It is actually bonding many together no matter their politics. Of course it doesn't hurt that Kevin Durant is a sweetheart as are his teammates.

[JonLP24]

3. Attendance was fine

It dipped down last couple of seasons obviously w/ the relocation cloud and the team was bad since the 90's. Anyways attendance wasn't the issue it was the Arena. All of these new arenas, stadiums, & ballparks have all these restaurants, shops, revenue generating amenities that the NBA was saying Seattle needed. KeyArena was built just for basketball(Not to mention they renovated to the NBA's requirements in the 90's).

To compare attendance can't be accurate. Even new stadiums in existing cities have "new car smell" where attendance reaches sell-out points before dropping down to existing levels. OKC had a new team/new arena followed immediately by a great team. Great teams have no trouble getting fans to the seats. Like I said though, attendance wasn't the stated issue.

Seattle was unique though when in comes to teams relocating. Clay Bennett had no intention of keeping the team in Seattle though city/state didn't want to pony up the taxpayer money unless it was a fair deal. Especially since they built a new baseball & football stadium. The thing that saddens me about the US/franchise model professional sports is the teams/leagues have the bargaining power to use the all-or-nothing approach. Approve of these terms that are great for us but bad for you or we will find another city that will reach them. If there was no threat of relocation, cities would say just play where you play now.

Oklahoma Sooners will probably not get a brand new football stadium any time soon, why? Because imagine if they used the relocation threat? Alumni would never allow it so they best they can get is some renovations. I laughed when the new Arizona State athletic director said that we need a new football stadium. It will never happen because he can't relocate the team.

[Upton]

4. Call Durant a "sweetheart" if you must..

Last edited Sat Jun 16, 2012, 02:22 PM - Edit history (1)

just remember he was drafted by the SEATTLE SONICS..He had bought a big house on Mercer Island and didn't want to leave.

[fishwax]

5. A lot to like in Zirin's column, though I agree with Bill Simmons, and in particular his final line

He ends by writing, “I found myself feeling happy for the Oklahoma City fans after they clinched Game 1…. Is it possible to feel happy for Oklahoma City while continuing to feel absolutely, unequivocally terrible for Seattle? Actually, yes.”

The fans of the new team in Oklahoma City are great fans, and have embraced the team. They were great hosts and very supportive of the Hornets when the franchise had to temporarily relocate after Katrina, even knowing that it wasn't going to be a permanent situation. And they've had a great relationship with the organization since the Sonics moved. I'm happy for those fans and for the state.

Zirin is right about the influence of money over sports in general, and if his family still wants to hate O'Malley that's their business. If they choose to hate L.A. for it, it's still their business, but it would seem rather stupid. Zirin is also right about the approach to the Thunder and the role of marketing; but it doesn't follow that this is merely superficial marketing--from what I've been able to tell, it's a plan that is structural, with respect to how they try to build cohesion among their players, what they look for in free agents, how they try to bring the free agents into the family, and so on.

Sure Oklahoma is conservative, and now the team plays in an arena named after an oil company--instead of one named after a major bank. Would the pain be less if they had moved to a bastion of liberalism? Certainly it sucks for Seattle, and I don't blame their fans for being pissed at the organization. If Zirin (and others) are right about how badly the NBA needs Seattle, then Seattle will probably get another team eventually--and barring expansion, it will probably be a franchise "stolen" from somewhere else.

[KamaAina]

6. Clay Bennett tried to get his tenterhooks into the New Orleans Hornets after Katrina

He was Johnny on the spot when the New Orleans Arena was damaged. But by the end of the year, he had the team wearing unies that read "Oklahoma City"!!



Mercifully, the NBA rebuffed his rapacious attempt to hoover up the team. But as it turned out, all that did was get him to turn his reptilian eyes toward Seattle.