Sacramento Kings Decision Likely Weeks Away
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Investors and fans from Seattle and Sacramento were hoping today would be the day the Kings' fate would be decided. Unfortunately, the decision looks to be a couple of weeks away.
League owners who want even more details from the Sacramento and Seattle groups before a recommendation is made.
"I think it's a huge decision for the league. I think it's two fantastic cities," said Deputy NBA Commissioner Adam Silver.
Although a recommendation does appear to be coming next week, and then the rest of the league owners will vote sometime around May 8.
"While we would all like to see this move faster but we can't shortcut this process," Silver said.
But in these final days, the Maloofs have been trying very hard to sway a vote Seattle's way. Publicly and privately, the Vegas bachelors want Chris Hansen to get the Kings.
But it's not up to them.
"We do have a system where owners are more or less encouraged to decide who they want to sell to but that is not true in respects of moves of franchises," NBA Commissioner David Stern said.
So letters or pleas by the Maloofs to fellow owners simply don't matter, even though the offers for the Kings don't appear to be even.
"They're in the same ballpark with respect to the net result of the selling family." Stern said.
The Seattle group is offering up $16 million more than Sacramento, but with the Maloofs' debts to the NBA and the city of Sacramento, the numbers may not have to add up for the owners to say "Yes" to the local whales.
