Report: Kings Expected To Stay In Sacramento
SACRAMENTO- After months of discussion about the likely relocation of the Sacramento Kings to Anaheim, the tables have apparently turned.
The Los Angeles Times is reportingthat the Kings are now "expected" to remain in Sacramento for the 2011-2012 NBA season, citing NBA officials.
NBA officials now expect the Kings to play next season in Sacramento, league executives told The Times on Friday.
Whether the team, which was about to seek permission to move to Honda Center in Anaheim, stays in Sacramento beyond next season remains to be decided.
Fan efforts in Sacramento to keep the Kings have been ongoing for months. Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, the former NBA point guard, has also been instrumental in presenting the city's case for keeping the team, appealing to the NBA's Boad of Governors to reconsider the merits of the Kings' relocation proposal.
NBA commissioner David Stern says that Johnson's presentation provided significant new information, and the Timeswrites that it was essentially a game-changer.
"Mayor Johnson made certain representations about community support that he had secured," Stern said.
The NBA officials agree that if the Kings live up to all of their pledges, the team is expected to stay in Sacramento long-term.
When Johnson presented his lavish package with the Is dotted, the Ts crossed, the timetable specific and the funding package appearing to be credible, everything changed.
The Maloof family, which owns the Kings, still has until May 2 to present its case for relocation, a date that exists after two extensions were already granted by the league. They could still pursue the relocation option, but it's still possible the NBA's Relocation Committee wouldn't approve their proposal.
More on this story as it develops.
