Seattle Mayor Meets With David Stern In Hopes Of Bringing NBA Back to City

While the residents of Oklahoma City rejoice in postseason success and Finals anticipation, the team that drafted Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook is still on a mission to bring the NBA back to the Emerald City. The Seattle Times has the details: “Mayor Mike McGinn met with NBA Commissioner David Stern in New York City on Monday to tell him Seattle wants to bring back professional basketball. ‘We met so the mayor could show his commitment to bringing an NBA team back to Seattle,’ wrote McGinn spokesman Aaron Pickus in an email. The visit came as a surprise to local representatives of Chris Hansen, the San Francisco hedge-fund manager who is proposing to spend up to $800 million to partially finance a new arena and buy an NBA team. Rollin Fatland, a spokesman for Hansen, said he didn’t know anything about the meeting. ‘What the hell is that about?’ Fatland said, adding that the mayor may have contacted others about the meeting. ‘I’m not aware that anyone asked him to do it.’ The Seattle City Council and Metropolitan King County Council are currently considering a proposal to build a nearly $500 million state-of-the art sports and entertainment venue in the Sodo neighborhood. The public contribution would be capped at $200 million.”