Sacramento Kings to Seattle: Would a Move to Seattle Benefit the Team?

The city of Seattle was upset, and rightfully so, about the loss, or as they would say, robbery, of their beloved SuperSonics in 2008. And it stung them even more when Kevin Durant blossomed into a superstar and the Oklahoma City Thunder cracked the Western Conference Finals twice in a row, breaking through into the NBA Finals in 2012.

However, they might finally get their so-called revenge. Why? Because the Sacramento Kings might be migrating to the Emerald City.

According to Tim Booth of Yahoo Sports, the Kings have been sold to a group of Seattle investors led by Chris Hansen. They will restore the SuperSonics name and control 65 percent of the team, while having the team play at KeyArena for about two seasons before moving to a new arena in downtown Seattle.

You have to feel for the city of Seattle, which was, in a way, robbed of their team by Clay Bennett. The city has been pleading for an NBA team and the city is fit for an NBA team. After all, they own arguably the most rambunctious NFL fans in the league at CenturyLink Field for the Seahawks and decent fans and a great facility at Safeco Field for the Mariners.

Even though the Kings have been struggling and don’t have much of a chance at championship contention in the next couple of years, they would have the support of the gracious fans, who suffered through what will be five years of NBA withdrawal after the conclusion to this season. It would be great for them to restore the feeling of NBA basketball in their city, with the old SuperSonic feel at Key Arena. However, there are also some potential cons.

Some may wonder if SuperSonic fans would feel bad for Kings fans and the simple answer I have to that is “no.” Devoted sports fans that reside in Sacramento or the Sacramento area can make the “trek” down to the Bay Area (aka Sports Paradise) for any sport and fans have not flocked to watch the Kings play lately, although in fairness Sacramento fans sold out the then-Arco Arena for more than 13 seasons, from 1985-85 to 1997-98.

But Seattle fans were definitely more devoted and they will be devoted to their new team if the deal holds up.

Do the sports fans in Seattle have some other teams to support? Yes. But do they deserve a basketball team? Yes.

As a football fan of the San Francisco 49ers, I don’t exactly love the Seahawks. But I can see that their fans are incredibly devoted to their football team and they would do the same to the talented basketball team they are likely to take in. Tyreke Evans and DeMarcus Cousins are both great players and the team would be more motivated with a more devoted fan base.

In fact, Sacramento isn’t all that bad of a team. They are 17-29, which is nothing to be proud of, but they have some talent and a core that they can build around. Cousins doesn’t have a great attitude, but he could be shipped off for some talent to a team lacking a legitimate big man, like Miami. The Kings will probably have a decent pick in the 2013 NBA Draft and with Evans and some decent forwards (in a trade or in the draft) with Jimmer Fredette and Isaiah Thomas in the backcourt, the Kings–or the SuperSonics–will be set.

While the results aren’t there, the talent is. And the move to Seattle may be the final step towards success for the Kings.

You had better believe that the city of Seattle is going to be craving the return of basketball, something that they are intensely passionate about. And you had better believe that the Emerald City will be experiencing success in the sport if the move is finalized, because the Kings have talent and lots of youth. A passionate fan base and no thoughts about moving or having to deal with the whole Sacramento-Seattle fiasco would help clear their minds as well, and that would lead to success.

And the move to Seattle would be the main cause.

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