Op Ed

Sam Smith

Op Ed

The Kings of Sacramento

Sacramento, California has and always will be a town based around its sports teams. Therefore, last year when the town was confronted with the possibility of the NBA,Sacramento Kings leaving, the community was outraged. The city has grown to love the Kings over the past 25 years, especially in the 2000’s when they made it to the semi-finals and helped to put the city of Sacramento on the global map. So, why move a team that is so close to the hearts of Sacramento? Unfortunately, the arena they play in is now over 20 years old and falling apart; the King’s owners, Joe and Gavin Maloof are running out of money. It is time to find the funding and lay down the ground work for a new arena. In order to build an arena in Sacramento the city has to find money to help the Maloofs, find a new place for the arena, and then convince the city that the money they would be spending on the new arena would be profitable for the city itself. The Kings leaving would prove detrimental to the city as a whole. 

The mayor of Sacramento, Kevin Johnson, has proposed a final plan to keep the Kings. In this plan Joe and Gavin Maloof will have to contribute 73.25 million dollars to the deal, while new sponsor AEG will contribute 58.75 million dollars. This leaves the city to fund 255.5 million dollars to the project over some 20 years.(1) In order to provide the money, Mayor Johnson plans to acquire this money by adding several new parking lots to downtown Sacramento and taking money from other parking lots around the city and making this the “Kings Fund.” The Oklahoma City Thunder have proven this plan effective. It is time for Sacramento to make a stand, keep its team, and begin making money off of this new possible investment.

Some would argue that the city is not in the position to spend, and is already cutting funding in other areas. The money that the parking structures are currently producing could be put towards education or the debt of the state. Those who argue this would see the Kings as a frivolous and foolish investment. They think the team does nothing to benefit the community, and the games serve as nothing but a drunken sports gathering.

However, Kings fans like myself and Mayor Kevin Johnson believe that the team itself as well as a new arena will provide more money than the parking structures do to begin with. As of now, the Kings are a team of young talent and will only get better. 2008 was a dominant year for the Kings, not only were they the Western Conference Champions but were Forbes Magazines sixteenth most profitable team, netting 117 million dollars.(2) This being said, Sacramento would have a return on its investment and begin profiting shortly. Another reason the city would profit is because AEG, one of the world’s largest sports and entertainment companies, and is sponsoring the new arena.(3) The arena will have better acoustics and will therefore bring an array of musical talents that will bring in revenue from new areas of the entertainment industry.

Not only would the Kings prove economically beneficial, but in my own life they have helped guide me down a path of education and success. In eighth grade I attended a Kings basketball camp where I learned much more about life and being a servant leader in the community than the game of basketball itself. Players taught children and teens of the community about being student athletes and giving back to the community the same way they do. The whole team participates in a program called NBA Cares. They travel around to schools teaching kids about the importance of education and community involvement. This inspired me to participate in ASB, a widely recognized and revered leadership establishment, in high school. ASB focuses on bringing the community and the school together, therefore I spent many hours off campus in Special Education classrooms and community outreach programs. Through these experiences I gained and passed on valuable life lessons. Without that basketball camp I don’t know where I would be today. For without the Sacramento Kings or ASB I would not have received the housing scholarship I received to the University of Montana and may not be able to afford college. Children and teens need people like these Kings players in the community to look up to.

Without the Kings in Sacramento, not only would the city suffer economically through the loss of a high value high, high income professional basketball team; but children would miss out on the opportunity to learn from idols who at times have a stronger influence on them than their own parents. That is why the Kings must stay in the city of Sacramento.

1. Forbes. Forbes Magazine. Web. 11 Mar. 2012. <http://www.forbes.com/lists/2010/32/basketball-valuations-11_Oklahoma-City-Thunder_329710.html>.
2. Forbes, Forbes Magazine. Web. 18 Mar. 2010. <http://www.forbes.com/lists/2008/32/nba08_Sacramento-Kings_327146.html>.
3. "Company Overview." About. AEG. Web. 17 Mar. 2012. <http://aegworldwide.com/about/companyoverview/companyoverview>.