While Seahawks Owner Ken Behring continues to insist that
his team is not for sale, Blazers President Bob Whitsitt, who is
representing Microsoft co-Founder Paul Allen in negotiations,
said "the window of opportunity for a deal is shrinking,"
according to yesterday afternoon's SEATTLE TIMES. Whitsitt, who
called the end of March a "critical time": "As a buyer, you want
to know the team is yours before the draft [April 20-21], you
want conditioning of the players to be taking place, you want to
know you'll be able to sell tickets. There is a lot of work to
be done. By April, Ken Behring may be in some serious legal
battles. We don't want to be involved in that. Paul hasn't
given me a deadline, but I assume he might in the near future."
Behring says he still plans to move the team to Southern CA
(Seven & Newnham, SEATTLE TIMES, 3/14). On Wednesday, King
County Councilmember Pete von Reichbauer said, after meeting with
Whitsitt, that there could be an announcement within seven days
(Tacoma NEWS TRIBUNE, 3/14). In L.A., Plaschke & Simers note the
following issues as possibly leading to a Behring sale -- and
thus, no move: talk of an NFL lawsuit; and use of league by-laws
against a Behring team in CA. Behring has yet to sign a lease to
use Anaheim's Rams Park as a practice facility (L.A. TIMES,
3/14).
