Warriors co-Owner Peter Guber cautioned yesterday that his efforts to build a new arena atop S.F.’s Piers 30-32 that will house the NBA team “are in the very earliest stages,” according to a front-page piece by Knight & Cote of the S.F. CHRONICLE. Guber said, “This is the beginning of the beginning of the beginning. We're at the opening credits.” The Port of S.F. estimates the piers "will be condemned in 10 years if not dramatically overhauled.” What the Warriors have in mind is a $75-100M “repair job on the pilings supporting the piers and a brand new surface on top of it.” The plan calls for an “iconic, high-tech arena, retail center, restaurants, parking garage and public park space” estimated to cost an additional $500M in private financing. Guber and Warriors co-Owner Joe Lacob said that they are “fully aware of the condition of the piers and will soon be putting out a bid to fix them.” Knight & Cote note while S.F. Mayor Ed Lee and all 11 members of the city’s Board of Supervisors “sent a letter to the team this month urging it to move to San Francisco, community support is far from unanimous” (S.F. CHRONICLE, 5/23). Lacob said yesterday, “We looked at a number of sites and we are faced with a pretty tight timeline. Our lease expires, as has been reported, in 2017, so we have five years -- and it takes probably all of that.” CSNBAYAREA.com’s Matt Steinmetz noted Lacob and Guber were joined at the press conference by California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, Warriors Exec BOD member Jerry West, coach Mark Jackson and F David Lee, among others (CSNBAYAREA.com, 5/22). In S.F., Ron Kroichick notes Jackson, “like virtually all Warriors employees, wore a pin with the team’s ‘2017’ logo, signifying the timeline to move across the bay” (S.F. CHRONICLE, 5/23).
ONE OF OWNERSHIP'S MAIN GOALS: Lacob said when he and Guber bought the team in July '10, building a new arena “certainly was something we thought about." Lacob: "We knew that we’d have to address this issue at some point. We have the oldest arena in the NBA.” He noted ownership was "pretty busy" during the first year with the team, learning "what we had." Lacob: "We were making corrections in management and trying to get the culture and all the other things done that we needed to do. About six months ago, we began to address this in earnest." Lacob and Guber have "talked with everybody all around the country, trying to see what's good, what's bad." Lacob: "We've met with civic leaders on both sides of the Bay. We've looked at venues, we've asked for proposals. We did all of that in about six months and we started talking with Mayor Lee about five months ago. They really came on strong in the most recent month or two and made a proposal to us that we frankly too good to turn down” ("Chronicle Live," Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, 5/22).
THE LONG HAUL: In San Jose, Mike Rosenberg notes Lacob joked that “it might take 50 years to pay off the construction loans, but he didn’t mind.” However, NBA Commissioner David Stern said that “money will be the easy part.” Rosenberg notes parking, access for cars and public-transit service are “sure to be headaches, as are the environmental challenges of building next to the water.” The Warriors’ owners yesterday also “briefly acknowledged Oakland, where city leaders say they feel as if they've been ‘slapped in the face.'" Lacob said that half the team's fans "live on either side of the Bay Bridge, while dismissing the notion that they had planned to move the team all along.” Lacob said that the team “only briefly considered sites in San Jose and denied a request from San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed to meet” (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 5/23).
STILL WORK TO DO: CSNBAYAREA.com’s Steinmetz noted while Lacob and Guber said that the arena "will be privately financed, the reality is that neither had specifics with regard to personal seat licenses, naming rights, environmental impact studies, etc.” When it was mentioned many have tried and failed to develop the piers, Lacob said, “Don’t bet against us. You’ll lose.” Stern said, “The need of the city for an entertainment complex to really deal with the conventions, to deal with family events, shows, NCAA tournaments and the like is great” (CSNBAYAREA.com, 5/22). Stern, on the specifics of the proposed arena and whether the plan is realistic: “I wouldn’t profess to be all knowing. But I have gauged situations like this in other cities. … I think that San Francisco is going to want to join that group” (INSIDEBAYAREA.com, 5/22). In. S.F., Bruce Jenkins writes that Lacob and Guber are "onto something big here, and you can't blame them. … I wouldn't bet against them, either. And I don't think Stern would take the time to visit San Francisco, delivering a few cursory remarks on the podium, if he didn't think this would fly” (S.F. CHRONICLE, 5/23).
STILL NEED PRODUCT: Warriors GM Bob Myers said that the facility "is only part of the equation." He added, “I think when a player is making his decision on where to play, there are a lot of factors: money, chance to win, commitment of the owners. When you see a statement like this, it shows the owners are committed. That does matter.” Warriors F David Lee said, “If you're a losing team, it doesn't matter if you have 24-karat gold seats in the new arena. The important thing is winning.” West: “The onus is on us as players and executives to build a team worthy of this arena” (S.F. CHRONICLE, 5/23).
NOTHING EASY ABOUT IT: CSNBAYAREA.com's Ray Ratto said if the Warriors get the arena built, “they’re going to have to build a whole new fan base because it’s going to be a different vibe, it’s going to be a different cost structure, it’s going to be a lot harder to get in and out.” Ratto: “In many ways, they’re going to have to reinvent themselves as a fan proposition.” Ratto added the team is “going to have to figure out a way to turn” 45-50 dates for the Warriors “into an arena that can generate 200-240 nights a year which means a lot of concerts, a lot of other forms of entertainment and they might even have to try to figure out a way to get a hockey team here” (Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, 5/22). In San Jose, Tim Kawakami writes, “It seems incredibly likely that this will happen, eventually, especially with the politicians desperate to make up for the pending loss of the 49ers.” Maybe this "splashy announcement wasn't a total bluff, but maybe it was a signal -- hey Giants, here we go, but if you want to sweeten your offer, we'll still listen.” Lacob: “We like the Giants a lot. They're going to be our neighbors. They're great people. I respect them very much.” Kawakami writes, “Lacob and Guber do things big. They make big promises. And they negotiate big. It's always a show. Sometimes that's the only way to make an impossible arena possible” (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 5/23).
LEAVING OAKLAND BEHIND: The S.F. CHRONICLE's Jenkins writes, “Exactly what's wrong with Oracle? It's a fabulous place to watch a game. It could not be more accessible, by car or public transit. It harbors all the essential amenities, thanks to the well-conceived reconstruction project. And for some reason, the Warriors always draw.” Jenkins adds, “I'm not saying the Warriors won't draw in San Francisco. This is an astonishingly fine location, and the sheer novelty would pack the joint for a couple of years. But say the next five seasons bring a playoff drought. … There's no chance that S.F. arena would sell out” (S.F. CHRONICLE, 5/23). In Oakland, Monte Poole writes if Lacob and Guber “really believe moving to San Francisco -- or any city, anywhere -- is the panacea, magically providing the ability to develop the winning organization they have promised to deliver, they’re lost in fantasy.” While there is "more corporate cash in San Francisco, success in the NBA is not about where the house sits.” It is about “who sits in the house and the decisions those folks make” (OAKLAND TRIBUNE, 5/23). CSNBAYAREA.com’s Ratto wrote having been told “by a second pro franchise that it isn’t demographically or economically cool enough to hang with the other kids." Ratto wrote, “This is about appearances, which Guber is very much into, and being the cool and beloved benefactor, which Lacob can no longer be in Oakland” (CSNBAYAREA.com, 5/22). Lacob said he thought the city “would keep at least one of its teams, although he wasn’t sure which one.” Lacob: “We’re the first shoe to drop, I guess you could say.” O.Co Coliseum Authority Commissioner Nate Miley said, “The one good thing is we know what the Warriors want to do. We will embrace them if they want to stay -- this is not a divorce. But we have to play it like they're gone” (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 5/23).
WHAT'S IN A NAME? In S.F., Ron Kroichick writes the franchise's 40-year-old Golden State moniker “obviously becomes more relevant” as Lacob and Guber move the team back to S.F. But they are “proceeding carefully on this question; Lacob said Tuesday the franchise would remain known as the Golden State Warriors ‘maybe forever,’ unless the fans want change” (S.F. CHRONICLE, 5/23).
