Are the Vancouver Hornets in the making?

I see where you're going ... but do a billion Chinese care as much about the NBA after Yao retires (not counting sweatshop workers)?

 

There won't be any teams erased.

With payrolls cut about 50 percent, they'll all be making tons of money.

They're all making SOME money now, but after the new Genghis Khan CBA is imposed, they'll be making way more.

 

Plus, if the NBA contracted, it would be a sign the league really is in financial trouble. Which it sure as fucking fuck isn't.

 

Contracting the number of NBA teams makes for better basketball but a smaller business and less overall revenue. That's why this won't happen. I mean, if you subtract four teams does that allow the remaining teams to raise ticket prices that are already maxed out? Of course not. Does the contraction allow the owners to pay less in salaries? Nope. Sports salaries never go down unless there is a hard cap.

With fewer cities and fewer teams revenue from TV, t-shirts, broadband, etc., will all go down. I personally support contraction because it would obviously lead to greater competition. But as a business guy I can't see any reason why the league would want to do it.

 

Seattle's arena is much older and out of date than Vancouver's. That's the bottom line these days. If you don't have a modern arena with all the luxury suits and such -- or aren't going to commit to building one -- no team is moving there.

With the economy being what it is right now, few cities are going to shell out billions to build a new arena. So you're probably looking at cities with arenas built in the late 90s or 2000s: Kansas City, Nashville, Vancouver, Tampa, San Jose, Pittsburgh, etc.

 

They're not going to contract anyone.

Canadian taxes make it nearly impossible for a Canadian team to be competitive. No free agent in his right mind wants to go there for that reason. I think it was Otis Thorpe who said, "Here, it's another day, another dollar. Up there it's another day, another 60 cents."

 

For some reason I don't see the NBA working in Pittsburgh.

 

So Mona Mondieu's work was all in vain?

 

NBA works best in glamour towns. It isn't drawing 16,000 but making sure you fill the courtside seats on a Tuesday night when Sacramento is in town.

That is why I am surprised Milwaukee still has a team. Only so many people in that city who want and can afford to sit courtside. It is also why Pittsburgh, Cincy, St. Louis don't have teams. Even with a new arena, Kansas City won't get a team. Not enough high-end clientele.

Only reason it works in cleveland is that it is market 14.

 

And it's never going to work in Cleveland again.

 

They could barely hold onto their hockey team until a few years ago. Now they'd be trying to get another team to split the clientele between the team, the Pens and Pitt?

 

How do we explain Oklahoma City and San Antonio? Sacramento had amazing home attendance up until about five years ago.

I think the best places for the NBA to go are cities that don't have a ton of other professional sports options.