Ryan Lillis and Tony Bizjak of the Sacramento Bee are reporting that the NBA will be back in Sacramento next week to further investigate the now $9.2 million in new corporate sponsorship money that Mayor Kevin Johnson is claiming to have in his back pocket.
In a further indication that the NBA is open to keeping the Kings in Sacramento for another year, league staffers will be back in town on Monday to thoroughly research local corporate commitments to purchase luxury suites and season ticket packages next season, sources close to the negotiations told The Bee.
After spending the morning at the Capitol building with state Senate President Darrell Steinberg, Mayor Kevin Johnson, Thunder owner Clay Bennett and NBA executive Harvey Benjamin are meeting with Tim Romani of ICON and possibly even touring the rail yards this afternoon. Multiple sources are describing Sacramento’s push as an effort to get a one year reprieve so they can prove that they can get shovels in the ground on a new sports and entertainment facility in the Capitol City. According to the Bee’s report:
Should the league decide to give the Kings one more season in Sacramento, that timeline would come with a significant restriction, the sources said: plans for a new arena must be finalized by next March in order for the city to keep the team long-term.
A special thanks goes out to both Ryan Lillis and Tony Bizjak, who have done amazing work over the last few months covering this story from all angles. We will continue with updates as they roll in throughout the next two days.
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