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Saturday, February 3, 2001
Heisley says moving Grizzlies is 'a consideration'
Associated Press
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VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- Vancouver Grizzlies owner
Michael Heisley will meet with NBA commissioner David Stern during
the All-Star weekend to discuss options for his struggling
franchise.
He said moving the team is "a consideration."
"I talked to David Stern today," Heisley said Saturday. "I
told him we continue to have some serious problems with the team
and with financial aspects with the team and so on."
He wouldn't go into details about what would be discussed,
saying it would be a free-form discussion with give and take on
both sides. He promised to hold a press conference after the
meeting to tell the fans what his thinking is at that time.
As for relocation of the team, Heisley said, "There are not a
lot of places, quite frankly, contrary to people's belief, that you
can go with an NBA franchise."
Heisley cited attendance and a poor won-loss record as areas of
concern, but said it goes deeper than that.
"If I thought an improvement of the record would solve all of
the problems I have in Vancouver, then I wouldn't be calling Mr.
Stern," he said. "Do I believe the people in Vancouver have a
reason not to come to the game in large numbers? Absolutely. We're
not putting a winning team on the floor."
He claimed the team would lose somewhere between $25 and $50
million and that the situation has deteriorated every month for the
last two or three months.
"I think we've had a number of situations that have gone
against us," he said. "The exchange rate has continued to
deteriorate since last April, for example. We've had difficulty
attracting people to the stadium. We just have not made the
connection we should make. We were never able to get a real huge
response from the business community.
"I could see myself walking away from it," he said. "But if I
have to make this move, it's going to be a very, very traumatic
situation for me. Most people may not believe that, but it's going
to be very difficult for me."
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