Currently there are 13 cities that can tout that they have a professional sports team in each of the major-four North American sports leagues (NHL, NFL, NBA, and MLB). While there are many that have three, such as Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and Toronto, but it looks like the 14th city to join the Big Four club could actually be a city that only has two current professional teams – Seattle.
While the Mariners and Seahawks have become staples in their respective leagues, the city lost their beloved NBA team when the Seattle Supersonics left town to become the Oklahoma City Thunder. The reason for the team’s move was caused by a lack of public funding to build a new arena when the $220-million renovation to KeyArena was requested.
Now Seattle is looking to get back in the game. They have approved a $660 million dollar Memorandum of Understanding agreement designed to renovate and revitalize KeyArena at Seattle Center, the traffic and parking around the arena, and donate to local charities. This is a direct step towards attracting an NHL and NBA franchise to the city of Seattle. The Seattle Times reports that the NHL is expected to make an announcement regarding Seattle in the coming months.
All photos courtesy of Oak View Group
In terms of an NHL team, the city could be the home to an expansion team, the 32nd team in the league that would act to balance out the two conferences, or it could be the site of relocation for a team such as the Arizona Coyotes or the Calgary Flames. On the NBA side, there have been discussion that the Memphis Grizzlies could be a potential team on the move. The Grizzlies used to play in Vancouver, which is very close geographically to Seattle.
(H/T The Seattle Times)
