Multiple sources have said that the Warriors are finalizing plans to move to San Francisco. Warriors fan blogger for the Bay Area News Group Adam Lauridsen first reported the story on Twitter, and said an announcement for a privately funded, Pier 31-32 arena "could come as early" as tomorrow (TWITTER.com, 5/20). ESPN.com's Ric Bucher cited a source as saying that the team "wants to make the move and is committed to making it happen" (ESPN.com, 5/20). Warriors co-Owner Joe Lacob said yesterday in an e-mail, "We are not prepared to make any announcements at this time." In Oakland, Marcus Thompson II writes Lacob's statement was "a classic non-denial denial." The Warriors "still could end up part" of the MLB Giants' $1.6B Mission Rock project, which was unveiled April 4 (OAKLAND TRIBUNE, 5/21). In San Jose, Tim Kawakami notes Lacob and co-Owner Peter Guber "haven't hidden their desire to move to San Francisco from day one of their ownership tenure." The Warriors "can get out" of their lease in Oakland after the '16-17 season. The team's lease option "plays into this Piers 30-32 site, because the Warriors would need at least a couple of years to nail down the permits, environmental reports, financing and all the other doodads that come with building a sporting venue in the Bay Area." Lacob and Guber have "set their sights on S.F., that much we know." They paid a record $450M for a team "that isn't worth that much ... unless it's in S.F., in a gleaming new building, generating mega-revenues." An impending move "could make the next five seasons at Oracle Arena a little weird, but the Warriors are OK with that, as long as they end up where they want to be, when they want it to be" (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 5/21).
