Seattle rejected $26M offer to let Sonics go

The city of Seattle last week rejected a $26.5 million offer from the Sonics' ownership group to buy out the last two years of the KeyArena lease, continuing the ongoing battle over the NBA franchise.

NBA Commissioner David Stern, who revealed the offer Saturday during his annual address at the All-Star Game in New Orleans, said he supports Sonics Chairman Clay Bennett's attempt to move the team to Oklahoma City and expects Seattle's first major professional team to leave town either this year or in 2010.

"I accept that inevitability at this point," he said. "There is no miracle here."

Stern's comments drew a strong response from Deputy Mayor Tim Ceis.

"If Mr. Stern had any kind of integrity, he wouldn't be trying to hijack this team out of Seattle," Ceis said. "David Stern hasn't lifted one finger since Clay Bennett bought this team to do anything to try and keep it in Seattle. It's been an ongoing conspiracy between the league and Clay Bennett to hijack this franchise out of Seattle."

Since purchasing the team from Howard Schultz on Oct. 31, 2006, Bennett unsuccessfully tried to gain support from city and state lawmakers on a $500 million arena in Renton before filing relocation papers with the NBA. The city filed suit June 16 to block the move.

Stern sounded extremely pessimistic about the Sonics staying in Seattle.

"It's apparent to all who are watching that the Sonics are heading out of Seattle," the commissioner said. "There's not going to be a new arena. There's not going to be a public contribution.... "

The Seattle Times obtained a document dated Thursday in which a law firm representing the Professional Basketball Club, which owns the Sonics, sent a letter to Seattle City Attorney Tom Carr offering to settle the lawsuit against the team.

In the document, attorney Bradley Keller states that if the city wins its case, it can expect no more than $4.1 million in revenue-sharing and rental payments and admission taxes during the 2008-09 season and $3.8 million the next, which would leave $26.5 million on the city's outstanding debt to KeyArena from the $73.4 million bond used for renovation.

The Sonics offered to pay off the debt and gave the city a 5 p.m. Friday deadline to respond.

Carr declined the offer.

"I sent them a letter saying it was low and they miscalculated the debt amount, if that was their goal, and that we couldn't accept it at this point," Carr said. "The city's intent is to hold them to the lease.

"I don't know what Mr. Stern is trying to do. I will say it's a sad fact that he's treating a 40-year NBA city like this. I suspect what they are trying to do is put pressure on the decision makers. But when an NBA team signs a lease to play for 15 years, they should play for 15 years and not play games like this."

According to city officials, the Sonics' offer doesn't account for $10 million in lease payments.

"Bond holders are entitled to that," Carr said.

In preparation for its lawsuit to block Bennett's move to Oklahoma City, the city of Seattle has subpoenaed the NBA for records concerning the sale of the Sonics to Bennett's group.

Ceis said the Oklahoma City-based ownership group has refused to provide information requested in discovery.

"That is in front of the federal magistrate to decide what to do," he said.

Bennett's spokesman Dan Mahoney declined to comment and said the commissioner "said everything we need to say."

Stern said he urged Bennett's group to make the offer to buy out the lease and pay off the debt from the 1995 renovation of KeyArena.

"All I can tell you is that in response to that request by me, the offer was made, and it was rejected," Stern said. "I think it's bad public policy."

The NBA commissioner also said he believed the city's rejection had nothing to do with Bennett.

"They're equal-opportunities deniers of aid," Stern said. "Howard Schultz, who was a resident of Seattle, who owned the team previously, who invested time and energy leading lobbying efforts at the city council, at the county level and at the state level, was unsuccessful. Clay Bennett actually spent more money, developed more plans, made more visits, and the answer was no, no, a thousand times no."

Percy Allen: 206-464-2278

or pallen@seattletimes.com