Picture, if you will, a team with an enduring legacy. A team whose rich and vibrant history spans both coasts of the United States, and who can trace their beginnings back to the time of the Chester A. Arthur presidency. A team who many legends have called home. A team who has been indelibly etched into some of the most historic moments not only in their sport, but in all sports. A team of legends, of icons.
Now, picture this team being driven into the ground by an unscrupulous owner who regards it as his personal ATM. A husband and wife ownership that are too busy trying to determine whether or not to purchase a seventh mansion than to pay attention to their own franchise. Picture bathrooms covered in graffiti, concession stands that are criminally understaffed, and a stadium that is less than half full every night. Picture a place and team where a fan of the opposition was beaten bad enough that he remains in the hospital almost three months later. A team that is being declared bankrupt, and the commissioner of the league has to step in to keep the team functional.
The teams in the preceding paragraphs? The Los Angeles Dodgers.
What Frank McCourt and his wife Jamie have done to the Dodgers is criminal. They have taken a once proud franchise, a team that is not only royalty in their own sport but in all sports, and turned it into a laughing stock. They have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, due to their inability to meet their upcoming payroll. This was after McCourt attempted to negotiate a television deal that would permit him to pay his divorce settlement, but would severely handicap the Dodgers over the next seventeen years.
Naturally, none of this is the fault of Frank McCourt. Just ask him. He blames Bud Selig for blocking the proposed television deal and for stepping in to take over the team, even though he still does not realize that the Dodgers are not his personal ATM. In response to McCourt's accusations, Selig issues a statement saying that "The Commissioner's Office has spent the better part of one year working with Mr. McCourt and his representatives on the financial situation of the Los Angeles Dodgers, which was caused by Mr. McCourt's excessive debt and his diversion of club assets for his own personal needs. We have consistently communicated to Mr. McCourt that any potential solution to his problems that contemplates mortgaging the future of the Dodgers franchise to the long-term detriment of the club, its loyal fans and the game of Baseball would not be acceptable. My goal from the outset has been to ensure that the Dodgers are being operated properly now and will be guided appropriately in the future for their millions of fans. To date, the ideas and proposals that I have been asked to consider have not been consistent with the best interests of Baseball. The action taken today by Mr. McCourt does nothing but inflict further harm to this historic franchise."
The Los Angeles Dodgers deserved better than Frank McCourt. They deserved better than to be facing the spectre of bankruptcy, and to be in such a terrible financial state where it may take up to a decade to recover. Above all, their fans deserved better than this.
It is always rough watching a team with such history go through a rough stretch. It is worse when the problems are entirely self-inflicted by an uncaring ownership that did not understand what owning a professional franchise entailed.
Showing posts with label Brooklyn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brooklyn. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
The Nets are setting themselves up
When a team has been terrible for an extended period of time, things need to change. Typically, this involves firing a coaching staff and/or a front office. Very rarely does the change come from the ownership, in terms of a dramatic new vision and dynamic for a team that is an afterthought, if anything at all. And let's face it, the New Jersey Nets have been an afterthought since they randomly won the Eastern Conference in 2002 and 2003.
However, this mindset began to change with the introduction of Mikhail Prokhorov as the new owner of the Nets. From the beginning, he had a vision - he wanted to build a team around a couple of transcendent players, he wanted to move the team to Brooklyn so as to better market the Nets brand, and he wanted to set the Nets up as a global team.
In purchasing the Nets, Prokhorov also personally funded a loan for $700 million to build their new arena in Brooklyn. The remainder of the funding would be acquired through the banking system, making it where the taxpayers of Brooklyn did not have to be taxed any further for the construction of another owner's private playground.
Next, Prokhorov set about revamping the front office and coaching staff with his goals in mind. He named a new general manager in Billy King, who had been the general manager of the Philadelphia 76ers from 1998 until 2007, and a new head coach in Avery Johnson, who had been the Coach of the Year for the Dallas Maverics in 2006, and had reached the NBA Finals previously. With a staff set, the Nets could now focus on gaining a legitimate superstar to build around.
With their impending move to Brooklyn, their primary target became Carmelo Anthony, a native of New York who wanted to play in front of his hometown crowds. However, he had no interest in playing for the Nets, and wisely, the Nets moved on, trading for a top three point guard in Deron Williams. Coupled with a burgeoning star at the center position in Brook Lopez, the future for the Nets on the court looks bright indeed.
Yet, their future off the court may be even better. With Prokhorov, the Nets are looking to expend themselves internationally, to be the franchise that fans in Europe, Africa, and Asia follow. Already, they have played the Toronto Raptors in London this year. They have a basketball clinic scheduled for Russia during the next offseason, and already played exhibition games in China. Add this to the amount of foreign born players on the nets roster, a Russian language website and a television deal to broadcast Nets games in Russia, there is a solid foundation. Yes, the NBA can limit what teams can do in terms of international promotion, but the Nets are on their way.
Perhaps this vision can save a franchise from falling to the ranks of irrelevancy, which is where teams like the Pacers or the Grizzlies find themselves. By focusing on areas outside their present neighborhood and to keep from spending their entire advertising budget in a futile attempt to wrestle away the stray Knicks fan, the Nets can legitimately make something of themselves, and tap into a fanbase that has been waiting for someone to pay attention to them.
Well played thus far Prokhorov. Hopefully this will translate into success.
However, this mindset began to change with the introduction of Mikhail Prokhorov as the new owner of the Nets. From the beginning, he had a vision - he wanted to build a team around a couple of transcendent players, he wanted to move the team to Brooklyn so as to better market the Nets brand, and he wanted to set the Nets up as a global team.
In purchasing the Nets, Prokhorov also personally funded a loan for $700 million to build their new arena in Brooklyn. The remainder of the funding would be acquired through the banking system, making it where the taxpayers of Brooklyn did not have to be taxed any further for the construction of another owner's private playground.
Next, Prokhorov set about revamping the front office and coaching staff with his goals in mind. He named a new general manager in Billy King, who had been the general manager of the Philadelphia 76ers from 1998 until 2007, and a new head coach in Avery Johnson, who had been the Coach of the Year for the Dallas Maverics in 2006, and had reached the NBA Finals previously. With a staff set, the Nets could now focus on gaining a legitimate superstar to build around.
With their impending move to Brooklyn, their primary target became Carmelo Anthony, a native of New York who wanted to play in front of his hometown crowds. However, he had no interest in playing for the Nets, and wisely, the Nets moved on, trading for a top three point guard in Deron Williams. Coupled with a burgeoning star at the center position in Brook Lopez, the future for the Nets on the court looks bright indeed.
Yet, their future off the court may be even better. With Prokhorov, the Nets are looking to expend themselves internationally, to be the franchise that fans in Europe, Africa, and Asia follow. Already, they have played the Toronto Raptors in London this year. They have a basketball clinic scheduled for Russia during the next offseason, and already played exhibition games in China. Add this to the amount of foreign born players on the nets roster, a Russian language website and a television deal to broadcast Nets games in Russia, there is a solid foundation. Yes, the NBA can limit what teams can do in terms of international promotion, but the Nets are on their way.
Perhaps this vision can save a franchise from falling to the ranks of irrelevancy, which is where teams like the Pacers or the Grizzlies find themselves. By focusing on areas outside their present neighborhood and to keep from spending their entire advertising budget in a futile attempt to wrestle away the stray Knicks fan, the Nets can legitimately make something of themselves, and tap into a fanbase that has been waiting for someone to pay attention to them.
Well played thus far Prokhorov. Hopefully this will translate into success.
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