MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Faster than you can say barbecue and
Elvis, Memphis has gone from no NBA teams to having two franchises
that have applied to move there.
After three decades of searching for big-time pro sports, the
city learned Monday it could be the new home of the Vancouver
Grizzlies or Charlotte Hornets.
"Memphis' best days are ahead of it, and this is another step
in that evolutionary process," Mayor W.W. Herenton said.
The Grizzlies and Hornets both asked the NBA for permission to
relocate to Memphis, effective next season.
However, a potential Charlotte move may be avoided if the Hornets are sold to local banking executive Hugh McColl. McColl is believed to head a group trying to buy the Hornets and local opposition to a proposed arena may disappear if current Hornets co-owner George Shinn sells his interest in the team.
The sale could happen within 30 days. The NBA has 120 to approve the team which will move to Memphis. A relocation committee will be appointed in a week to review each case and make a recommendation to the league's board of governors.
Each team said it would play in The Pyramid, a $65 million arena
opened in 1991, until a new stadium costing up to $250 million
could be built. The Pyramid seats 19,000 for basketball.
Grizzlies owner Michael Heisley passed on Louisville, Ky.,
Anaheim, Calif., and New Orleans in choosing Memphis, which would
be the NBA's smallest market.
The Hornets, meanwhile, want the option to move in case
Charlotte voters reject a new $215 million downtown arena in a
referendum in June, co-owner Ray Wooldridge said.
Wooldridge has said he wants to keep his team in Charlotte but
that it needs a backup plan if the voters oppose a new stadium.
Monday was the NBA deadline for teams to apply to move.
Financing for a new Memphis arena still is unsettled, but much
of it would come from state and local government, through tax
breaks and construction bonds. As now proposed, no referendum would
be required, though the city council and county commission will
have a say in the process.
"There are a number of details and intricate negotiations that
will take place in the ensuing months. I hope Memphians will have
an open mind," Herenton said.
Though Herenton said an NBA franchise would be an economic and
public relations boost for the city, he noted some citizens
undoubtedly will oppose construction of a new stadium.
Talk about a possible move by the Grizzlies has been swirling
through Memphis, but there has been little mention of the Hornets.
"This is great news for Memphis because it makes it even more
likely that Memphis will receive an NBA franchise," said Autozone
founder J.R. "Pitt" Hyde, leader of a business group that has
been searching for a team for the past year.
Hyde said at a news conference that his local investor group
would buy "up to 50 percent" of a franchise, regardless of what
team might move to Memphis.
An NBA relocation committee will be appointed in a week to
review both applications and make a recommendation to the league's
board of governors within four months.
Michael Glenn, a vice president of FedEx Corp., said the company
has made a major commitment to buy naming rights for a Memphis team
and the new stadium. Glenn declined to give figures. He also said
any talk about a new team name is premature.
The Hornets say they need a new arena to be profitable.
Wooldridge told The Charlotte Observer the team could lose as much
as $40 million next season if he did not apply for relocation and
the referendum failed.
Memphis, with a metropolitan population of just over 1 million
and a TV market ranked 40th nationally, would replace Salt Lake
City as the smallest market in the NBA. The city is known for its
plentiful barbecue restaurants and as the home of Elvis Presley,
who died in 1977.
The decision to move gives Heisley a chance to build a new fan
base for his Grizzlies, a 7-year-old franchise that has scattered
support in Vancouver and is expected to lose $40 million this year.
For Memphis, landing either team would end a search for a major
professional sports franchise that has lasted more than three
decades.
In 1974 and 1993, Memphis was a finalist for NFL expansion teams
but lost out each time. The former Houston Oilers used Memphis as a
temporary home in 1997 before moving in 1998 to Nashville, where
they became the Titans.
"We've been trying to get to this point for many, many years,"
Hyde said. "Now I think it is incumbent on the citizens of Memphis
to get behind this effort to show that they fully support the
building of a new arena."
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ALSO SEE
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AUDIO VIDEO
 The Vancouver Grizzles and Charlotte Hornets want to talk to Memphis.
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