This is good for the league. The 66ers are the third team that has purchased their own D League affiliate (Lakers/Defenders-Spurs/Austin Toros).
I got a call from one of the other D League team owners yesterday asking me how we could continue to let this happen and that this was giving these teams a competitive advantage that the rest of us could not overcome. I listened to him for a few minutes without saying anything (I was also simultaneously catching up on some much needed XBox 360 Bad Company Battlefield so it was not a complete theft of my time) and then just told him that I could not disagree more.Like any Sports team or league you can minimize the effects of the "giant" by being smarter and more reactive. Will the pro teams have more detailed scouting reports? Will they have a greater ability to send guys to their respective D League teams? Absolutely. Will they outspend the rest of us? I doubt they will be outspend the Flash but they will likely outspend most of the other teams. Will they have greater ability to attract sponsors? Not if other teams in the D League do their jobs. Will they attract more fans? Not if the other teams in the D League hire the right people and create the right atmosphere. Success in this league is not a guarantee just because you own an NBA team. You have to work and earn the respect in your community.
I am excited for Clay, I swapped an email with him yesterday. But having a successful team is not an absolute-and although the OKC ????? can likely absorb a $1m loss from their D League Team much easier than the rest of us-I am certain Clay does not want to report back to his partners that he is loosing his *** on their minor league team in Tulsa.
So Clay, get someone to run it like a business and you should be fine. To the other D League owners-get over it. Your franchise value just went up-time to adapt.
Brandt Andersen
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12 comments:
Screw you for playing XBOX while I was talking to you.
That is great to see the owner who you were speaking to get angry. Share the team. We all deserve to know
Can you tell us what other teams may be looking to buy d league teams? I heard the Knicks and Celtics were both looking at buying teams.
hey wonderboy, aren't there 30 teams in the NBA, not 29?
"3 down, 29 to go"
Anonymous
You are correct-there are 30 teams in the NBA. 3 already owned by NBA teams-26 more that I would like to see NBA teams buy-and then the Utah Flash which are not for sale.
Sorry that was so difficult to understand.
Brandt
well said
So, if all teams sold to NBA parent teams, you would not follow suit... even if the price was right.
Anony
Anony
While I would be glad if every team was owned by NBA teams because of the value it would put on my franchise, the old saying that everything has it's price does not always apply. I suppose it is possible that some day I will not enjoy the team as much as I do now and I would consider selling but for now that is not on the radar. Don't stress too much over the headline.
Brandt
haha, it's all in good fun with you, no negativity intended, hope you know that. just curious about your future plans with the team.
I went to a game or two last season and enjoyed it very much, I would love to see all 30 NBA teams own their own D-League team and turn the D-League into a minor league system that the MLB has imposed. What are you thoughts on that? Sending down veteran players, etc?
Anyway, this site is great, thanks for the chance to interact with the driving forces of the Flash.
Anony
Brandt, you need a proofreader! Just ribbin ya man, I enjoy your blog. Keep it up.
While unrelated to this blog entry, I was curious for an update on the Gehry project. Previously you stated that some plans would be revealed in August, and that appears to not be the case. Is there any news you can share?
Gehry project. Yeah that is going to work in this economic environment. Just like supercolliders are going to create black holes.
No way is that dream going to come to pass. No rational lender is going to fund a waterskiing high-rise complex. Any lending officer will get his head handed to him by the underwriters if he tried to propose funding the folly at the point.
The days of crazy lending are over unless you can put up a huge amount of equity (30-40%).
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