When I drifted off to sleep at 8:00 pm PDT last night (or 2000 hours, as I am wont to call it), not a whole lot new and different was going on in Seattle.  The Mariners were losing...AGAIN.  The NBA Board of Governors was planning to vote affirmatively on the request to relocate the Sonics to OKC.

A lot can change in seven short hours.  I awoke at 0300 (that's 3:00 am to you non-military, non-healthcare types, AKA O'dark thirty) to find that this man

Starbucks founder and CEO Howard Schultz, had announced last evening that he has retained legal counsel to litigate for nullification of the sale of the Sonics to Professional Basketball Club, LLC of Oklahoma City.

This came almost immediately on the heels of two other daily news articles regarding the Sonics move; a) Daniel Stern's disingenuous claim that he felt that Clay Bennett had negotiated in good faith, despite the fact that he hadn't even read the incriminating e-mails yet and b) the Oklahoma State Legislature ponying up huge, ginormous tax breaks for the Sonics as an incentive for them to complete the relocation.

The new litigation (to be added to the city of Seattle's suit for specific performance of the Key Arena lease (to be heard in June 2008) and the season ticket holders' class action lawsuit (planned to be heard in March 2009)) seeks to nullify the sale of the team and return ownership to Schultz and the previous ownership group, on the basis of breech of contract by PBC related to their failure to honor the side letter commitment to negotiate in good faith with all applicable parties (city, county, state and any/all private parties who would present plans) to keep the Sonics in their home of 41 years.  Said side letter/codicil to the sales contract was required by the previous ownership group as a condition of the sale.

It is this side letter that would have appear to have been violated by all of the e-mails recently (partially) released by the city of Seattle's legal team, led by former Senator (R-WA) Slade Gorton, and which indicate that the PBC was actively negotiating with OKC (and Kansas City) during the time that they were required to be negotiating solely with the Seattle area.

Does this mean that the Board of Governors will fail to rubber stamp approval of the relocation request this Thursday and Friday during their meetings?  Not necessarily, but Clay Bennett and PBC had darn well better think twice about immediately running out and signing that arena lease with the City of OKC, or they could find themselves being sued--AGAIN--for specific performance, but this time by OKC if the team reverts to Schultz and the former ownership group.  And that could cost him a pretty penny, in addition to all of the money they recently spent to push through the sales tax in OKC that would pay for the renovations to Ford Center (reportedly over one half of the monies received by the committee pushing for the tax were received from PBC).

Speculation has it that, if the team is returned to Schultz, he will immediately sell to the local investment group headed by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, so that they can proceed with the planned $300MM re-renovation of the Key Arena.

If I am a member of the BOG, I vote to table the relocation request pending the outcome of all filed and planned litigation, in an effort to protect what little dignity and credibility the NBA has in this issue (but then, me being me, I probably also ask David Stern for his immediate resignation as commish, too).

More to follow as developments occur.

I'm still shaking my head after reading this article in today's Oklahoman, the hometown paper of Oklahoma City.

John Rohde, seen here

is one of the Oklahoman's sports columnists. One thing that surprises me is that this article, blatantly in favor of getting the Hornets back to OKC (or at least wishing them there), would be allowed to be published in the Oklahoman.  Why am I surprised?  The paper is owned by the ####lord family, Clayton Bennett's in-laws (and his sister-in-law and wife are heavily involved in the day to day operations of the news outlet).

Then again, maybe the tone of the article was to keep Oklahomans from thinking about the "negotiating, stonewalling, manipulating, bickering and e-mailing" that he says have "grown tiresome", but which are going to be at the center of the compliance hearing in the New York District Court (Federal) within the next several days.

Very little has been said about the issue of the current Sonics' ownership group's breach of contract (for failing to negotiate in good faith/keep the team in Seattle as agreed to in the side letter which was required of them before Howard Schultz and the previous ownership group would agree to sell to them--and the black and white proof of their perfidy) in the Oklahoma paper.

Well, OK, that is not totally true.  There is a vocal group of Oklahomans who comment on the Oklahoman's fan forums who say that Seattle fans have no right to be upset that Bennett lied to Seattle AND to David Stern, and that we should all shut up and stop being such crybabies--accepting meekly the purloining of a franchise that has been in this city for 41 years, and is not likely to prosper in its change to a considerably smaller market. (There are, however, a few of them who realize that Bennett, McClendon and Ward made a mistake which is likely to come back and bite them in the tuchis, and which is embarrassing to a good many Oklahomans).

Depositions begin this week.  Bennett, McClendon and Ward will be deposed, as will OKC City Manager Tom Couch, Mayor Mick Cornett and a host of others who were secretly negotiating with the PBC during the time that Bennett was required to be negotiating with Seattle alone.  If you haven't read the e-mails and the city of Seattle's brief in support of the motion to compel, you should.  They make for very interesting reading.

Both Clayton Bennett and David Stern have taken refuge behind the "no comment" screen, something they probably should have done nearly two years ago.

Finally, Steve Kelley has said it much better than I ever could, right here.

Check back from time to time, gentle readers, for updates and further episodes of As the Stomach Turns.

In order for me to school you properly, gentlemen, it is necessary that you complete this "homework assignment" before we get started here.  Read all of the following.  No  scanning or skimming allowed.  Read EVERY WORD and read for (hopefully) comprehension:

First go here and read this one; and then here for the all important followup.  All y'all go on and do that now.  I will be right here waiting when you get done and return.

For those who are waiting with me, let's put faces on those to whom we are speaking, just for the record:

First there is the Commish:

Then there is Clay Bennett, one of the owners of and (apparently) the spokesperson for, the Seattle SuperSonics Basketball Club,along with Aubrey McClendon (more on him shortly). Mr. Bennett is the one on the right:

I have been unable to find an aggregate photo of the NBA Board of Governors, and I have neither time nor space here to post all 29 of them, so we will just have to use our imaginations.

(*taps foot impatiently*--Geez, I could have read both of those articles twice by now....).  Ah, there you are, gentlemen.  I trust that you read all of those words carefully, because there will be a quiz at the end of our schooling session.

But, first, let us establish a few rules of behavior.

I promise not to call you greedy, scum sucking sons of sea barnacles and/or carpetbaggers.

In return for that concession, you promise not to label me as some liberal know nothing, tree hugging Seattlite. (In point of fact, and to the rather intense discomfiture of most of  my acquaintances and others in Seattle, I am a staunchly conservative (both fiscally and socially) Republican, and I firmly believe in a good many of the things that you purportedly espouse).

You may also not use any statement to the effect that I know nothing about OKC and what goes on there. (My father was BORN in OKC, gentlemen, and I still have relatives there and have made numerous trips to the city in my slightly over 50 years of life.  Were he alive today, my father would probably be totally appalled by what you are up to.  As it is, he is probably rotating in his grave in Las Vegas, so you had better never show up there with the Sonics or he might just haunt you...)

OK, so, somehow you managed to convince 44,849 of your very closest friends to come out to the polls on 4 Mar 08 to vote in favor of the proposal to cosmetically renovate Ford Center (an option, by the way, which you refused to even consider in Seattle), as opposed to 27,564 slightly smarter people who voted against it.  Wow, that's only 72,413 people, out of something over 605,000 who live within the city limits of OKC according to the 2000 census.  That's a voter turn out of 11% of the population--that's pretty darn bad for a city that is predominantly Republican.

What these people voted to do was to continue a 1% sales tax (called MAPS) for another 15 months, in order to fund the proposed renovation.  Did anyone tell them that neither the ownership group of the team nor the NBA is planning on kicking in any funds of any kind to pay for part of this planned renovation or the practice facility, or that the vast majority of the monies made in that building by the team would not be coming to the city of OKC as partial payment/repayment for those renovations.  No?  I didn't think so.  $121 million for you and yours, and nary a penny for those taxpayers who are ponying up the dollars to foot the bill.

Then there is the little subject of your walking into Seattle immediately after buying the team and saying that you "had every intention of making a go of it in Seattle, and you did not buy the team to move it out of Seattle."  But then Aubrey let it slip not too long after that all y'all never had any intention of buying the team to leave it in Seattle, OKC was the target city for relocation all along.  A senior moment type of statement for which the league ultimately fined him $250,000.00 for letting the cat out of the bag (pocket change for him, to be sure, but a heck of a lot of money for all of us "normal people").

And there was the initial statement that Sonics basketball is a major economic force in Seattle, and that the team would be economically missed if they were moved.  Seems to me that just a few weeks ago, when making application to the league to relocate the team to OKC, you stated just the opposite--that a basketball team has no economic impact on a city at all (hmmmm, then why were all of the people on the "Big League City" campaign touting how much of an economic boon the Sonics' move to OKC is going to be?????)

And, of course, there is the whining about the fact that the Mariners and Seahawks have fine new stadia, so why wouldn't the taxpayers of the city of Seattle come up with $500,000.00 for a new arena for the Sonics, again at 100% taxpayer expense?  I can think of one good reason, right off of the top of my head....because Nintendo America and Paul Allen, and their business associates heading those teams did something that you are apparently not willing to do under any circumstances--invest a significant amount of their own money in the construction of those self same stadia, in order to cement the team's ties with the cities and demonstrate fiscal responsbility on the part of ownership.

It's not like a number of people didn't approach you about assisting with finding a suitable location for, and private (or private/public) financing of, that arena that you wanted, but you refused to talk to any of them.  Is that a good faith effort to keep the team here?  I think not.

Collusion:  A nasty, nasty little word; and it seems to be rearing it's little head about now.  Seems Messrs. Stern and Bennett have been friends for quite a number of years.  What did the Commish promise to Mr. Bennett in terms of finding him a team for OKC when the Hornets had to head back to NOLA, and when did he make the promise?

I guess we're going to find out sometime in June.  The city of Seattle has filed a lawsuit in Federal Court to require specific performance of the Sonics' remaining lease on Key Arena, which runs through the end of the 2010 season, because the relocation petition requests that the team be allowed to relocate at the end of THIS season.  The season ticket holders have filed an application for a class action suit against the team because of promises made to them by Mr. Bennett in which he stated that season tickets would be honored through 2010, and without any increase in price.  Yet another lawsuit has been filed against the team by the union local representing the seasonal/part time employees of the Key Arena because of projected loss of jobs and earnings, because this is the primary income for a good many of these individuals.

And, lest the Commish and the Board of Governors should think that all of this legal wrangling has nothing to do with you, perhaps you should think again.  Former Senator Slade Gorton, the lead private sector attorney and the City Attorney for the city of Seattle have promised that you, gentlemen, will be added as respondents in the aforementioned lawsuit, should there be a positive vote on the relocation to OKC at your meeting in April.

It could get pretty ugly, which could have a rather dampening effect on the Commish's plan to go international with the NBA.  (Note to the Commish:  The author of that piece is a "Seattle boy" so, though you might take the tone of the article as a tad ironic, I, personally, believe that he meant pretty much everything he said, including what he DIDN'T say).

In closing, I think that the good people of OKC should know now that you will be coming to them again in just a few years with another request/proposal, this one for a brand new arena, at a cost of $500 million or more, and that they will be asked to foot 100% of the bill again, or the team will be moving to some other city--AGAIN.  But, when that time comes, I would hope that they would have learned a lesson from the city of Seattle, and refuse to be held hostage to the whims of a bunch of guys with a lot of money who want a new home for their hobby/toy, but want someone else to pay for it or they will pick it up and go home.

Good luck with that, gentlemen.

(Note:  The city turned down a $26.5 million lease buyout offer from the team last week, and do not plan to listen to any other such offers.  A group of local businessmen, including Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, have stepped up and offered to buy the team and pay one half of a proposed $300 million dollar renovation/upgrade to Key Arena, with the other half being financed by the same tax that finainced the public portion of the Safeco and QWest Fields' construction. If, as expected, the court case goes in the city's favor, leaving the ownership group to peform the leasehold through the end of the 2010 season; as well as pay the city's legal fees, and suffer any other financial losses that might accrue through the other pending suits and a possible boycott of the team's home games; all y'all just might want to rethink your position on the vote on that relocation petition while you still have the time).

Thank you for your kind attention, gentlemen.

As I sit here thinking about taking Ultra up on his challenge from a week or so ago, and possibly writing a retroactive letter to Santa Claus about all of our local sports needs for the next year, I realize that I can sum my predictions for the year up in one great big word…….

Now, let’s take it from the top, and you will see what I mean:

Basketball:  I don’t care how much he and his lackies deny it, “Cash Us” Clay Bennett very clearly came into town and demolished what little bit of good there was to the Seattle Supersonics, just as a means of making Seattlites reach a point where they barely give a flying flip about the team and the fact that he has the moving vans almost packed and ready to take off to OKC as soon as the NBA’s board of governors gives him permission to do so.

The Sonics can barely win their way out of a paper bag any more after trading Ray Allen to the suddenly resurgent Boston Celtics, and letting Rashard Lewis get away to the Orlando Magic.  About the only good thing about this team is Kevin Durant, and he should be the league’s Rookie of the Year for the way he is trying to carry the team on his back.  Can you say “deliberate tanking” everyone?

The Federal Court hasn't even started to hear motions on the city of Seattle’s litigation against Bennett and the Sonics ownership for trying to bail out on the last two years of their lease for the Key Arena, and the other two class action suits that have been filed against them for ticket fraud (he DID, after all, make some promises to season ticket holders that he didn’t really have much of an intention of fulfilling), and already Mr. Bennett has convinced the City of OKC that they need to raise $100MM to upgrade the nearly brand new Ford Center against the POSSIBILITY that the team might be relocating there, for which the city will be holding a referendum vote on an additional city sales tax to support the renovation.  (Note to OKC:  If you approve it, he isn’t going to spend any of the team’s money for that renovation; and will be back in less than five years asking for $500MM more (again none of the team’s money to be added) for a totally brand new arena.

Pfooey, Clay.  The people of OKC really want the Hornets back anyway.  Hopefully, while you are tied up in court, Mr. Shinn will bring them back, since the league is not happy with their attendance in NOLA since their return, and you won’t have any place in OK to put the OKC whatever their names will be.  There are people here who want to buy the team back to keep it here.  Get off the dime and sell to them.

Baseball:  Carlos Silva??  Carlos Silva???  OK, so we got a pitcher from the Twins.  Note to Silly Billy Bavasi—–WRONG PITCHER, DUDE!!!!  You were supposed to be dealing for Carlos’ best friend, Johan, remember?  What’s up with that?  (Note to Carlos:  Please go and have a talk with your best friend and convince him to tell the Twinkies management that he would like to be reunited with you.)  The only thing good about this offseason is that the Angels didn’t get a whole heck of a lot better.  Yes, they got Torii Hunter and Jon Garland, but Vlad is getting a little brittle lately, and sending Orlando Cabrera off to Chicago isn’t going to do a whole lot for Vlad’s protection in the line up.  (Torii isn’t exactly getting any younger or faster or better with the bat, you know; and Jon Garland is a solid middle of the rotation pitcher  more or less).

I’m here to predict that, barring a miracle like the one that happened in NYC in 1969, I will have quit watching local baseball games on TV by the middle of July, and probably won’t have attended one in person after opening day.

Football:  *sigh*  Methinks Mike Holmgren retireth after the Hawks get knocked out of the playoffs (hopefully in the second round, not the first), and we have son of “Playoffs? Playoffs?  Don’t even talk about the playoffs!” as the new head coach (at least until Ty Willingham gets the axe at the UW, and Mora the Younger goes off to  take over that gig).  He’s done a great job with the defensive secondary this year, but is he ready to be a head coach again?  I dunno, but something deep within me says that the Hawks window of opportunity is about to slam shut with a resounding ####, and they go back to being the Hawks of old for a few years (translation:  not so hot).

 Now that I have totally depressed myself about the state of professional sports in Seattle, I think I will go off and watch a T’Birds game.  At least they are playoff bound, and stand a pretty good chance of winning the American Division of the WHL again this year.

Hot on the heels of Daniel Stern's latest anti-Seattle diatribe comes this little piece of information.

Major League Soccer is on the verge of announcing an expansion team into Seattle in time for the 2009 season.  Now, I am not a soccer fan per se, though I find it interesting to watch as a change of pace when the other local sports are not going well, and worked the Sounders games at the Q when it was first opened.  This team will also share playing space at the Q with the Seahawks and the concerts and other events that take place there.

Seahawks owner Paul Allen will also own part of the MLS team, as well, garnering more income (does he really need it??) for both the venue and himself; making him a three sport owner (NBA, NFL and MLS).

This cannot be BAD for Seattle, as there is quite a lively soccer community here, what with our very diverse population.

There is also talk of trying to lure an NHL team into town to become natural rivals with the Canucks a few hours north, be it an expansion team or one that already exists and is struggling in its current venue.  Few people know that the Seattle Metropolitans won the Stanley Cup some seventy-ish years ago, and that we have two good WHL hockey teams within 30 miles of each other in the Seattle Metro area now, both of which enjoy good fan support, and both of which usually  make it into the playoffs at season's end. The T-Birds will be playing in their new arena next season, as well, down in Kent (south of Seattle).

In short, will we miss the Sonics when "Cash Us Clay" (copyright Jim Caple of ESPN's Second Page....) and the commish drag them off to Oklahoma City?  Well, yes, at least I and some of my friends will, but.......don't write Seattle off as a sports town just because they go to a smaller venue where Herr Bennett already says that the Ford Center needs to be refurbished and/or another new arena built Sooner than later (pun intended.

In the immortal words of Gloria ####nor from the disco era "I (We) Will Survive.  And quite nicely, too.