NBA Franchise Notes: Kings Struggling During Harsh Economy

Kings Having "Worst Team At The Worst Time"

CREDIT CHECK: In Phoenix, Paul Coro reported the Suns are "one of 12 to 15 teams who are taking advantage" of a $200M line of credit from the NBA. The Suns "did not add debt," but rather "replaced debt at a cheaper rate that the NBA had the borrowing power to negotiate when credit was hard to acquire" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 4/11).

HEAT WAVE: In Ft. Lauderdale, Sarah Talalay reported the Heat Friday "began advertising 'Black is Back' -- its return to the postseason -- and placed a limited number of individual tickets for the team's first two home playoff games on sale." Heat Exec VP & CMO Michael McCullough said, "Individual playoff ticket sales are keeping pace with previous years, but our goal is to ensure the AmericanAirlines Arena is filled to capacity." Talalay noted a "number of playoff activities are planned, including watch parties and a car decal giveaway" (South Florida SUN-SENTINEL, 4/11).

PLAYOFF PAYOFF? Spurs Sports & Entertainment President of Business Operations Rick Pych said that it is "too early to tell how the team's playoff sales will fare." Pych: "A lot of things are dependent on who your opponent is." The team Saturday started selling tickets for the first two home playoff games, with prices "ranging from $10 to $125." San Antonio-based ticket reseller Best Tickets Owner Jerome Cohen said, "It's the law of diminishing returns. The Spurs have won four titles, ho hum. We've seen it; we've been there. There's no excitement. Prices went up, that didn't help. The economy went down, that didn't help." In San Antonio, Tom Orsborn noted the Spurs "offered breaks throughout the season to what a team spokesperson called 'our corporate partners and key sponsors.'" The team also "offered lower-level seats at half price for the last five home games" (SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS, 4/11).

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