2011–12 Sacramento Kings season
Encyclopedia
The 2011–12
Sacramento Kings
season will be the 67th season of the franchise, its 64th season in the National Basketball Association
(NBA), and its 27th in Sacramento
, once NBA players and owners sign a new collective bargaining agreement (see 2011 NBA lockout
for more information).
, the owner of the Anaheim Ducks
and Anaheim Arena Management has hoped to bring an NBA
franchise to Honda Center in Anaheim since he took control of the arena in the early 2000s. Recently the Sacramento Kings
have expressed an interest in relocating to Anaheim from their current stadium, Power Balance Pavilion (formerly ARCO Arena).
On March 3, 2011 a lawyer representing the Maloof brothers (owners of the Sacramento Kings) filed federal trademark
applications for names for a new basketball team based in Anaheim. Those names included Anaheim Royals, Los Angeles Royals, Orange County Royals, and Anaheim Royals of Southern California. Of note, the city of Anaheim has mandated that any team playing at Honda Center must use "Anaheim" as its only geographic identifier. This requirement was made after the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
added 'Los Angeles' to their official name. On May 2, 2011 The Maloofs announced they were staying in Sacramento for at least one more season, to try to make things work with a new Sports and Entertainment Complex in Sacramento, California
.
2011–12 NBA season
The 2011–12 NBA season, the 66th season of the National Basketball Association , will officially begin with the signing of a new collective bargaining agreement between the owners of all 30 NBA teams and the NBA's players. The previous CBA, which was ratified in 2005, expired at 12:01 AM EDT on...
Sacramento Kings
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
season will be the 67th season of the franchise, its 64th season in the National Basketball Association
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
(NBA), and its 27th in Sacramento
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
, once NBA players and owners sign a new collective bargaining agreement (see 2011 NBA lockout
2011 NBA lockout
The 2011 NBA lockout is the fourth lockout in the history of the National Basketball Association . The owners began the work stoppage at 12:01 am EDT on July 1, 2011. The main issues dividing the owners and the players are revenue sharing and the structure of the salary cap...
for more information).
Key dates
- June 23: The 2011 NBA Draft2011 NBA DraftThe 2011 NBA Draft was held on June 23, 2011 at Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The draft started at 7:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time , and was broadcast in the United States on ESPN. In this draft, National Basketball Association teams took turns selecting amateur U.S. college basketball...
took place at Prudential Center in NewarkNewark, New JerseyNewark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
, New JerseyNew JerseyNew Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
.
Possible relocation
Henry SamueliHenry Samueli
Henry Samueli is co-founder, senior vice president, and chief technology officer of the Broadcom Corporation, owner of the Anaheim Ducks, and a prominent philanthropist in the Orange County, California community. In 2007 Forbes placed Samueli's net worth at $2.3 billion. He currently resides in...
, the owner of the Anaheim Ducks
Anaheim Ducks
The Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California, USA. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
and Anaheim Arena Management has hoped to bring an NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
franchise to Honda Center in Anaheim since he took control of the arena in the early 2000s. Recently the Sacramento Kings
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
have expressed an interest in relocating to Anaheim from their current stadium, Power Balance Pavilion (formerly ARCO Arena).
On March 3, 2011 a lawyer representing the Maloof brothers (owners of the Sacramento Kings) filed federal trademark
United States trademark law
Trademarks were traditionally protected in the United States only under State common law, growing out of the tort of unfair competition. As early as 1791, Thomas Jefferson proposed that the marks of sailcloth makers could be protected under the Commerce Clause, but it was not until 1870 that...
applications for names for a new basketball team based in Anaheim. Those names included Anaheim Royals, Los Angeles Royals, Orange County Royals, and Anaheim Royals of Southern California. Of note, the city of Anaheim has mandated that any team playing at Honda Center must use "Anaheim" as its only geographic identifier. This requirement was made after the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California, United States. The Angels are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. The "Angels" name originates from the city in which the team started, Los Angeles...
added 'Los Angeles' to their official name. On May 2, 2011 The Maloofs announced they were staying in Sacramento for at least one more season, to try to make things work with a new Sports and Entertainment Complex in Sacramento, California
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
.
Timeline of events
- July 1, 1997: Sacramento obtains a $70 million dollar loan for the Kings. A "Team Owner's Relocation Assurance Agreement" recites that Kings agree to stay in Sacramento for 30 years or until the loan is repaid. But the contract includes a term prohibiting the City of Sacramento from preventing a relocation.
- November 8, 2003: As early as 2003, there has been speculation that the Kings may move to Anaheim. The Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles TimesThe Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
reported that the Maloofs (then and current owners of the Kings) were interested in purchasing the then-Mighty Ducks of AnaheimAnaheim DucksThe Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California, USA. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
who played (and still play) at the Arrowhead Pond/Honda Center. In that same article, Gavin Maloof was quoted as saying that "I think Anaheim would be a plus for the league. The arena is beautiful. The market is so rich. Three teams in that market, it could handle it." This, naturally, set off speculation that the Maloofs were considering a move to Orange County, however, a spokeswoman for the Maloofs quickly shot down the idea calling a possible Kings move to Anaheim "laughable." - February 13, 2009: Speculation was renewed by the Orange County Register/Sacramento Bee that the Kings may be looking at Southern California as a possible new home.
- September 23, 2010: Anaheim DucksAnaheim DucksThe Anaheim Ducks are a professional ice hockey team based in Anaheim, California, USA. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
and Anaheim Arena Management owner Henry SamueliHenry SamueliHenry Samueli is co-founder, senior vice president, and chief technology officer of the Broadcom Corporation, owner of the Anaheim Ducks, and a prominent philanthropist in the Orange County, California community. In 2007 Forbes placed Samueli's net worth at $2.3 billion. He currently resides in...
renewed his interest in an NBA franchise relocating to Honda Center. - December 6, 2010: ESPNESPNEntertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
, Sports IllustratedSports IllustratedSports Illustrated is an American sports media company owned by media conglomerate Time Warner. Its self titled magazine has over 3.5 million subscribers and is read by 23 million adults each week, including over 18 million men. It was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the...
, and other news agencies were reporting that Anaheim is on the NBA's short list for a possible franchise relocation. At this time, however, speculation surrounded the New Orleans Hornets franchise and also the cities of Kansas City, MissouriKansas City, MissouriKansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
; San Jose, CaliforniaSan Jose, CaliforniaSan Jose is the third-largest city in California, the tenth-largest in the U.S., and the county seat of Santa Clara County which is located at the southern end of San Francisco Bay...
; Seattle, WashingtonSeattle, WashingtonSeattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
; and ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois; along with Anaheim. - January 9, 2011: Randy Youngman of the Orange County Register re-kindled the Kings to Anaheim speculation and the Register continued to publish Kings to Anaheim speculation for a week.
- February 10, 2011: The Sacramento city council unanimously voted to approve ICON and David Taylor to conduct a feasibility study for a new sports/entertainment center in the state capital. The Maloofs, at this time, reportedly agreed to hand over 11 years of financial/arena information documents to help in this study.
- February 19–22, 2011: NBA Commissioner David SternDavid SternDavid Joel Stern is the commissioner of the National Basketball Association. He started with the Association in 1966 as an outside counsel, joined the NBA in 1978 as General Counsel, and became the league's Executive Vice President in 1980. He became Commissioner in 1984 succeeding Larry O'Brien...
acknowledged that there are ongoing talks between the Kings and Anaheim officials about a possible relocation during the All-Star festivities at Staples Center in Los Angeles. - February 25, 2011: The Kings asked for an extension to the relocation filing deadline. The deadline is normally March 1.
- February 28, 2011: Kings fans organized to sell out then-ARCO Arena for a game against the Los Angeles Clippers in response to the relocation rumors.
- March 1, 2011: The NBA moved the relocation filing deadline back from March 1 to April 18 for the Kings.
- March 6, 2011: It was reported that the Taylor/ICON group will delay their report until they know whether or not the Kings are staying in Sacramento.
- March 23–26, 2011: Jim Crandell reported that there is a possible "game changing" proposal that could keep the Kings in Sacramento. It was later reported, however, that the Maloofs have rejected this plan which calls for a renovation of Power Balance Pavilion.
- March 28, 2011: The Orange County Register reported that an official in the city of Sacramento had sent a letter to the city of Anaheim insisting that they cease negotiations with the Kings because of a $73,725,000 loan that is owed to the capital city by the Maloofs. Kings co-owner quickly shot back, saying that the letter was "below the belt" and that Sacramento should "not interfere with our business." The next day, the Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles TimesThe Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
reported that California state senate president pro tempore SteinbergDarrell SteinbergDarrell Steven Steinberg is a Democratic politician from Sacramento, California. He is currently serving his second term in the California State Senate, representing the 6th District. He has been the Senate President Pro Tem since 2008...
(D-Sacramento) is considering legislation that would prevent the Kings from moving until the debt is paid in full. - March 29, 2011: The city of Anaheim unanimously approved a 75 million dollar bond to bring Honda Center up to modern NBA standards.
- April 14, 2011: NBA Board of Governor's meeting at the St. Regis Hotel in New York City where George Maloof, on behalf of the majority owners, made his case to the other owners that relocation is advisable. Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait, Anaheim City Manager Tom Wood, Anaheim Ducks owner Henry SamueliHenry SamueliHenry Samueli is co-founder, senior vice president, and chief technology officer of the Broadcom Corporation, owner of the Anaheim Ducks, and a prominent philanthropist in the Orange County, California community. In 2007 Forbes placed Samueli's net worth at $2.3 billion. He currently resides in...
, and Anaheim Arena Management official Michael Schulman all attended the meetings to make the argument for relocation to their city. Sacramento mayor Kevin JohnsonKevin JohnsonKevin Maurice Johnson is the current mayor of Sacramento, California. He is Sacramento's first African American mayor. Prior to entering politics, Johnson was a basketball player in the NBA, playing point guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Phoenix Suns...
also attended the meetings and made the case why the Kings should remain in California's capital city or why Sacramento deserves a new team if the Kings leave. Kevin JohnsonKevin JohnsonKevin Maurice Johnson is the current mayor of Sacramento, California. He is Sacramento's first African American mayor. Prior to entering politics, Johnson was a basketball player in the NBA, playing point guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Phoenix Suns...
also announced during his presentation that Ron Burkle, a billionaire credited with helping keep the Pittsburgh PenguinsPittsburgh PenguinsThe Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the first expansion teams during the league's original...
in their home town, wanted to purchase the Kings franchise and keep them in Sacramento. Burkle's firm later sent out a press release confirming his interest in purchasing the Kings and keeping the NBA in Sacramento. The Orange County Register also reported that the fate of the Kings may be known by Friday, April 15. - April 15, 2011: NBA Board of Governor's meeting at the St. Regis Hotel in New York City: the NBA moved the relocation filing deadline back from March 18 to May 2 for the Kings.
- April 18, 2011: The Kings' second deadline to file for relocation. An extension to May 2 was granted on April 15.
- April 29, 2011: The Orange County Register reports that the relocation committee headed by Oklahoma City Thunder owner has suggested that the Kings remain in Sacramento. In response, Anaheim Ducks owner Henry Samueli upped his offer to the Maloofs promising to pay for up to 70 million dollars in upgrades to Honda Center. He also reportedly secured 30 million dollars (to counter the 10 million that Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson secured) in corporate funding and a six year television deal that would pay out 24 million dollars annually. Samueli also upped his personal loan to the Maloofs to 75 million dollars and offered to buy a minority stake in the Kings. Following this report, the Maloofs have not filed for relocation and the relocation committee has not changed their reported suggestion.
- May 2, 2011: George Maloof announces that the Kings will remain in Sacramento for at least one more season.
Draft picks
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | College |
|---|