Sordid Tales Of David Stern, George Shinn And The New Orleans Hornets

This is not a unique theory -- Bethlehem Shoals investigated the framing of the takeover earlier this week at FanHouse, and CNBC’s Darren Rovell immediately questioned the reasonableness of the NBA’s decision once the sale was announced Monday. The Hornets were believed to be in bad shape in New Orleans, and it’s pretty apparent Shinn would have had a difficult time getting what he will receive from the league from any local buyer.

Wojnarowski introduces some new details; of particular note is that the Hornets were apparently on the precipice of not being able to meet debt obligations on its league-sponsored credit. Basically, the Hornets were about to go into default.

But there’s something else at play that Woj sets his aim upon: Shinn’s image in New Orleans, and the NBA’s next move.

To Shinn, the Hornets were little more than a prop to celebrate him as an upstanding pillar of the community. Now Shinn sells the Hornets to the NBA and gets to make believe he did it because he cares about the franchise staying in New Orleans. Another load of garbage out of him, another con on another city. Stern made this easy for Shinn, who does a public service and cashes out of the NBA.

Now, Stern goes back to his Seattle playbook: Ask for public monies that aren’t there and pretend he isn’t on the prowl for the next sweetheart deal somewhere in North America. Maybe the Hornets will find a buyer to keep them in New Orleans, but that appears a most improbable ending to this story. For George Shinn and David Stern, New Orleans served its purpose. The photo-op’s over.

That’s highly cynical; given that Shinn, a contemptible man by most accounts, is at the center, the cynicism is almost assuredly well-placed. (In other words, Woj knows a dog when he sees one.) But there’s another piece of the puzzle that doesn’t quite fit.

Woj writes that after Hurricane Katrina, Shinn never wanted to return to New Orleans. It was apparent southern Louisiana would be a rough market for a substantial chunk of time (and possibly forever), and Oklahoma City treated the Hornets extraordinarily well. A 2008 profile by the New York Times’ Bruce Schoenfeld documented correspondence between Shinn and Stern as the Hornets prepared to return to New Orleans, before Oklahoman Clay Bennett purchased the Sonics from Howard Schultz. A key passage:

Convinced that [Oklahoma City] was ready to go national, Bennett tried to buy the Hornets and keep them in Oklahoma. According to a letter Shinn subsequently wrote to Stern, Stern recommended that he sell.
“You pressed me to sell the team,” Shinn wrote. “You even told me that owners were asking you, ‘What’s wrong with George - why doesn’t he sell his team[?]’ ” Shinn’s response made it clear that he, too, coveted the new territory. “We need to immediately begin laying the foundation for what I believe will be great relationships in Oklahoma City,” he wrote. “I believe there are several options that we have, none of which involve returning to New Orleans.”

That slice of investigative journalism reveals that, yes, Shinn had given up on New Orleans before the team even went back. But it also indicates that Stern had given up on New Orleans, by asking Shinn to sell the Hornets to Bennett and keep the team in OKC. Shinn refused, Bennett moved on the Sonics, and the rest is history.

Would Stern have really allowed Bennett to stay in Oklahoma City? Certainly, the NBA would have had some brand of cover, by indicating that it could better help New Orleans by donating time and money and keeping its expensive entertainment option elsewhere. Stern could even have promised to keep options with N.O. open, whether through expansion or the eventual relocation of another team, if the city was ready for it. The NBA could have rebranded the team, stayed in basketball-crazed OKC and maybe even still have held an All-Star Weekend in New Orleans.

But Shinn held, Stern sent him back to New Orleans, the Hornets crumbled financially, and now the NBA owns a franchise it will probably relocate in the next four years. Stern saw this all coming years ago, and tried to avoid it by removing Shinn, but couldn’t force it. There is no question Shinn is wearing the black hat here, and while Stern probably doesn’t deserve a halo given the situation, he’s not the bad guy here. Stern isn’t to blame for the sad state of the New Orleans Hornets.