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Failed Relocation of the Timberwolves to New Orleans in mid 90s
Posted on 1/24/11 at 1:46 pm
Posted on 1/24/11 at 1:46 pm
I was young at the time and didn't really know the specifics of the deal. a thread on the MSB got me curious, so i went check it out on wikipedia
LINK
there's some interesting information on that page.
we almost inherited a team led by Isiah Rider, Christian Laettner, and Donyell Marshall (Garnett wasn't on the team yet, he was drafted in the upcoming draft).
kinda glad that deal fell through, I was a big Hornets fan back in those days.
LINK
there's some interesting information on that page.
quote:
On June 6, 1994, Top Rank officially filed the paperwork to the NBA seeking to relocate the Timberwolves to New Orleans for the 1994–95 NBA season.
quote:
With the timber wolf being a species not native to Louisiana, there was much speculation as to a what the relocated franchise would be called.[15] Although never officially changed, some of the proposed names included: Rhythm from New Orleans Mayor Marc Morial and Angels from Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards.[15] After speculation as to where the team would play their home games while a new arena was constructed, Superdome officials notified the league that enough dates would be available to schedule 41 home games at the dome for the 1994–95 season.[16] Prior to this announcement, the team was rumored to play games at the Lakefront Arena, the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge or the Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi when the Superdome was unavailable
we almost inherited a team led by Isiah Rider, Christian Laettner, and Donyell Marshall (Garnett wasn't on the team yet, he was drafted in the upcoming draft).
kinda glad that deal fell through, I was a big Hornets fan back in those days.
1
Posted on 1/24/11 at 1:50 pm to Iamnick
quote:
kinda glad that deal fell through
I am but for reasons other than you.
The Wolves relocating to Louisiana would likely have meant the same management group that ended up running things in Minny. The one which got smacked down hard by the NBA for the Joe Smith contract fiasco and lost at least one 1st, if not more, as a result.
If you think the hate for Shinn as owner and Bower as GM was bad, imagine what it would have been like with Kevin McHale as our GM.
Posted on 1/24/11 at 1:56 pm to teke184
quote:
The Wolves relocating to Louisiana would likely have meant the same management group that ended up running things in Minny.
actually, it wouldn't have. McHale was a Minny native and a friend of Glen Taylor, the guy who ended up keeping them there. he came into power in 94 after the move fell thru and Taylor took over. NO ownership likely wouldn't have hired McHale.
Posted on 1/24/11 at 2:03 pm to ATLTiger
Still remember the front page of the Times Pic. It simply said...GOT EM!
Posted on 1/24/11 at 4:21 pm to Tigersfan
yeah, i remember seeing t-shirts at Sports Avenue in the Southland Mall with the front page of the TP on it.
Posted on 1/24/11 at 4:25 pm to Iamnick
My dad still has the shirt with the timberwolves jersey with "We got em" on it. That might be the shirt referenced above. I think it's a wash rag now.
Posted on 1/24/11 at 4:38 pm to Tigersfan
quote:
Still remember the front page of the Times Pic. It simply said...GOT EM!
I have this stashed away somewhere at my parents house. One day I'm going to have to go look for it. I was 12-13 at the time & was super pumped about having an NBA team in town. Didn't know I would have to wait almost a whole decade!
Posted on 1/24/11 at 5:11 pm to gabe311
The deal was killed because the proposed ownership was "big hat, no cattle". It was bogus. It had nothing to do with New Orleans.
Posted on 1/24/11 at 6:02 pm to VOR
How close was N.O. to getting the Grizzlies?
Posted on 1/24/11 at 8:50 pm to hg
quote:
How close was N.O. to getting the Grizzlies?
I think Memphis was always the first choice. NOLA was 2nd in line. They got the Hornets the very next season IIRC.
Posted on 1/24/11 at 11:04 pm to medtiger
It's never been said publicly but I've heard more than a few folks tell me than David Stern wanted no part of Fred Hofheinz and Edwin Edwards. If you want to snicker at that, remember that Hofheinz was convicted for bribes to EWE cronies. EWE was looking to use this to get some political kickback. Remember also that this was the time when EWE was starting his push to get casino gambling in Louisiana. This was the start of what brought down Edward DeBartolo,Jr. and ultimately got him removed from the San Francisco 49ers. Also, Stern has avoided association with gambling like the plague, which is one reason that Las Vegas has never surfaced as a viable candidate for an NBA team.
This post was edited on 1/24/11 at 11:07 pm
Posted on 1/25/11 at 12:11 pm to EastBankTiger
quote:
How close was N.O. to getting the Grizzlies?
Fred Smith, the founder of FedEx made the Memphis deal happen. It's hard to say no to company like that, especially when their name was going on the new arena.
Michael Heisley said in a interview a few years after the move that he would have preferred Anaheim second, knowing that he would have made more money as the third LA area team than in Memphis, Louisville, or New Orleans. At the time, he was trying to paint the move to Memphis as "not about money." Right. He really moved to Memphis to sell out to what he thought would be an easy-to-manipulate local ownership group at an inflated price. That didn't work out, the economy went south, and the value of the team depreciated well below what Heisley was willing to sell for. Now he's stuck with them for the foreseeable future, because the no one will be able to move the team for a long time. I just hope someone will step up when the Forum is paid off and keep the team here.
Posted on 1/25/11 at 12:41 pm to misey94
I really wanted the Timberwolves at the time, but am happy as hell we wound up with the Hornets instead.
Posted on 1/25/11 at 1:16 pm to misey94
quote:
I just hope someone will step up when the Forum is paid off and keep the team here.
I hope so also. FedEX Arena is a pretty nice place and like AutoZone Park, I love how it's situated right at the end of Beale St.
Posted on 1/25/11 at 2:54 pm to misey94
quote:
Fred Smith, the founder of FedEx made the Memphis deal happen. It's hard to say no to company like that, especially when their name was going on the new arena.
I thought back when this deal was going down I remember hearing about a proposed name change from Grizzlies to "Express" as part of the move. Or am I just dreaming this up?
Posted on 1/25/11 at 3:19 pm to Iamnick
quote:
yeah, i remember seeing t-shirts at Sports Avenue in the Southland Mall with the front page of the TP on it.
they were all over the mall in BR
Posted on 1/25/11 at 3:41 pm to misey94
quote:
At the time, he was trying to paint the move to Memphis as "not about money."
he alo took the fedex $ for the naming rights up front in 1 payment as opposed to being paid off over a 10 year period. he didnt think he would be here after 10 years.
Posted on 1/25/11 at 3:48 pm to VOR
I remember the Times Pic published an article on the front page titled "We Got Em" or something like that..... it appeared to be a done deal.
Posted on 1/25/11 at 8:13 pm to The Mick
you dont say
Posted on 1/26/11 at 2:24 am to gabe311
quote:
I thought back when this deal was going down I remember hearing about a proposed name change from Grizzlies to "Express" as part of the move.
That was discussed, but rejected. It is against the NBA bylaws to have naming that is tied to a sponsor.
This post was edited on 1/27/11 at 8:41 am
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