Nope, the Grizzlies drew bigger crowds in Vancouver than they ever have in Memphis. It was a combination of tightwad ownership, unfavorable exchange rates (at the time), the lock out shortened season and a better arena deal from another city looking to steal a team. So, don't blame the fans in Vancouver, they came out and supported what was an absolutely horrible team that never won more than 23 games in the six seasons they were there (15 wins, 14 wins, 19 wins, 8 wins - lockout season, 22 wins and 23 wins) didn't have a superstar, and never came close to being in play-off contention. Remember what it was like that ONE season when the Blazers won only 21 games? Imagine being that bad, or worse, for six straight years with no prior history of succes and no established fan base. The Grizzlies in Vancouver drew bigger crowds during those six seasons than the Blazers did when they were rebuilding. I don't have the numbers in front of me, but U have looked this up in the past and the Grizlies drew an average of 16,000 - 17,000 fans while they were in Vancouver. With the right ownership group and a much more favorable exchange rate these days, Vancouver could be a viable destination for relocating an struggling franchise. I'd love to see the NW Division actually have a second team located in the NW. Two more would be even better. Move the Hornets to Vancouver and the Kings to Seattle (seems appropriate since Seattle is in King County) and re-align the divisions. BNM
Vancouver Attendance http://www.databasebasketball.com/teams/teamatt.htm?tm=Van&lg=n Memphis Attendance http://www.databasebasketball.com/teams/teamatt.htm?tm=mem&lg=n
Yea, plus I think their initial franchise draft pick of Bryant Big Country Reeves didn't help out much when he only lasted a few years in the league.
I don't think Vancouver would be a draw. Its second fiddle to Hockey. And its not the exchange rate, its the international tax rate, having to go through customs every road trip..probably annoying.
Getting marginally more fans than Memphis is one thing, but then again, nobody is calling Memphis a model franchise. Another big concern in BC is that basketball just isn't really that popular, so that limits the size and scope of a local TV contract. I'd love to see a team back in Vancouver, but frankly, Seattle makes much more sense if they can agree on an arena. Or, play at Key Arena again for a while. The Sonics didn't leave because they lacked local support, which became the case in Vancouver for the Grizzies.
I don't know how you can say it won't be a big draw. The CDN dollar is up to par with ours and it's a beautiful city. Plus, Vancouver is crazy about basketball. They love it so much they refuse to root for Toronto . Attendance in Vancouver wouldn't be a problem.
When you're an NBA team customs is easy peasy. With Stern talking about expansion to Europe, bringing a team back to Vancouver would be a piece of cake. The climate is no different than Seattle, unless you go a little further up into Whistler. You also have to consider basketball is growing big time in Canada. Look around the NCAA and recruiting websites, high school basketball in Canada is bigger than it has ever been. Plus, I would love to road trip up to BC. Its not as far-fetched an idea as your making it out to be.
Let's get to the important issue: Chris Paul is going to be a Blazer, thanks to the franchise's instability.
Yeah. Its still a bit further up than Seattle. I love Canada, but I don't think Basketball makes sense...its already failed there in the past, as it has in Seattle. I can see Orange County or San Diego having a team before Canada.
I think Ptd tri-county area can support two professional basketball teams . . . the Beaverton Hornets!
Screw that. Put them in beautiful Central Oregon and make Maris happy. They would probably draw as many people in Bend as they do in New Orleans. Might as well make it the Hilsoboro Hornets and sell Bagels in the arena
Oh dear God, no more California teams please. And Zaggers right, basketball in Canada is getting really big. My girlfriend goes to school at McGill (up in Montreal) and when I went to watch a Raptors preseason game in the Bell centre, they sold out the game game in 20 minutes. They all love hockey, soccer, football, and basketball in Montreal. I'm sure Vancouver would be no different.
Vancouver has an expansion MLS team starting this year with Steve Nash heavily involved in that. It will be intersting to see who draws more attendance between the two expansion clubs, Ptd or Vancouver. Go Timbers!
Yes, but basketball has also previously "failed" in New Orleans, Charlotte, Minneapolis, Kansas City, St. Louis and San Diego. Those first three all have gotten second chances, and the last three were at the top of Stern's list of cities that are in the running for future relocations. Hell, the NBA even failed in Chicago - twice. The Washington Wizards were originally the Chicago Packers/Zephyrs. Chicago got a second chance (third chance, actually counting the original Chicago Stags from early days of the NBA) when the Bulls were added as an expansion franchise in 1967. So, there are multiple precidents for cities getting a second chance. BNM
Thanks for digging up the links. It agrees with my general memory of the attendance figures for the Grizzlies in the two different markets. Here's the numbers from the links (totals and average/game): Code: In Memphis: 2009-10 552,914 13,485 2008-09 509,806 12,745 2007-08 523,578 12,770 2006-07 600,836 14,654 2005-06 647,533 15,793 2004-05 691,362 16,862 2003-04 622,723 15,188 2002-03 614,301 14,983 2001-02 591,030 14,415 In Vancouver: 2000-01 563,218 13,737 1999-00 569,864 13,899 1998-99 417,966 16,719 1997-98 660,457 16,109 1996-97 679,422 16,571 1995-96 704,489 17,183 For the first four seasons in Vancouver, the Grzzlies were in the 16,000 - 17,000 range. That is definitely in the range for a viable NBA franchise. 1999-2000 was the year after the lockout, which definitely hurt attendance, and 2000-01 was a lame duck season when it was announced that the team was moving. And, even in those two down years, attendance in Vancouver was better than it's been in Memphis for the last three seasons. The only season attendance in Memphis was in the 16,000 - 17,000 range was 2005-05 - the year after they won 50 games and made the play-offs for the first time in fanchise history. That level of success helps increase season ticket sales substantially. So, in general, the people of Vancouver supported a far inferior product better than the people of Memphis have supported the team even though they've had better success on the court (three consecutive post season appearances) since moving to Memphis. BNM
