I find the outrage over the Sonics sale a little bit curious. First of all, if you did not attend a Sonics game last season, then quit complaining because you have no credibility. You can watch the Oklahoma City Sonics on TV. I understand some people might support the team in other ways, but if you are going to be outraged by the team leaving town then you should have gone to at least one game. Some people might say it is too expensive and they cannot afford to go to a game, but that is a weak argument. I saw a set of 4 tickets sell for 99 cents on Ebay this past season. If it is not worth it to you to go see a crappy Sonics team play some other crappy team and sit in the cheap seats then you are not a real fan and have no place getting all upset about the team skipping town.
What happened to Seattle sports fans? Success has spoiled us. Real fans are the people that sat in the third deck of the Kingdome and cheered the Mariners to their first ever winning season under Jim Lefebvre in 1991 with Alvin Davis, Harold Reynolds, and Dave Valle. Or the people that tried to will Rick Mirer to success and then stood up and fought when they tried to move the Seahawks by going to games and showing they cared. The Kingdome was pretty empty before Behring tried to move the team. We bought a second set of season tickets in the upper deck for $10 a seat and could barely give them away.
Don't get me wrong, Seattle still has some great fans. However, it has largely become a bunch of front-runners. No one cares about the Sonics because of the success of the Seahawks and Mariners. That is how it was 10 years ago when no one cared about the Seahawks because of the Sonics and Mariners. If you only support your team when they are winning, then you are the worst kind of fan. It would be better if you just stayed home and let the real fans enjoy the success when it comes.
If the Sonics do not have a fan base that steps it up and shows that it cares about keeping the team to support it through the tough times, the Seattle does not deserve an NBA team. It is tough for the small group that does support the team, and they should blame the rest of the city instead of Howard Schultz. He could have sold the team for $75 million more, but chose not to because that group was definitely going to move the team. If Schultz sacrificed $75 million to at least try to make a difference in keeping the team in Seattle and you could not spend $10 on a cheap ticket, then why should he draw the criticism?
The fans in Oklahoma City supported the transplant New Orleans Hornets in an unbelievable way last season. That city probably deserves a team more than Seattle. If you are outraged about the Sonics leaving town then shut your mouth, go to a game, buy a jersey, show the new ownership that Seattle really cares about basketball and will support it. If fans had done this earlier, they could have kept Schultz from selling the team or might have at least inspired another wealthy Seattle native to make an offer on the team. Being a fan is about standing behind your team through losing seasons and hard times, not about jumping on the bandwagon when the team is successful and abandoning it when the good times end. The Seahawks faithful kept the team in Seattle 10 years ago, and it will be interesting to see if the Sonics have the same kind of support. If they do not, then Seattle does not deserve an NBA team.
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