(…and he doesn’t want the Tacoma Sonics, either)
From The Seattle Times’ Percy Allen :
Sonics chairman Clay Bennett is so eager to sever ties with Seattle that he’s willing to leave the team’s name, logo, colors and history behind to avoid a messy divorce.During a breakfast meeting for team sponsors Friday at the Loews Santa Monica Beach Hotel in Southern California, Bennett said he plans to influence the city to accept a buyout. He also told several sponsors that he wants to negotiate a settlement in which the city retains nearly everything associated with the Sonics except the players and coaches.
Sonics spokesman Dan Mahoney confirmed Bennett’s statement on Monday.
“That’s an accurate assessment,” he said. He added that the ownership group told the city last month it was willing to leave behind the Sonics name, logo and history.
In its $26.5 million settlement offer, which was rejected and panned by city officials, the ownership group sent a letter to city attorney Tom Carr that read: “We understand the city’s desire to reserve the Sonics name for a future franchise and will support the city’s effort with the NBA on this issue.”
Since Bennett’s on record, can’t some enterprising fan/litigator press the claim that Kevin Durant is a fairly prominent part of (recent) Sonics history, and as such, oughta stay behind?