PRO BASKETBALL
Relocated NBA Franchise Rolls Into Oklahoma City
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The NBA officially handed over the Seattle franchise to Oklahoma City about two months ago, and three trucks arrived downtown at headquarters on Friday.
The first thing to roll off the truck was a basketball with the NBA logo.
"It was a nice touch, wasn't it?" said Pete Winemiller, a team vice president for guest relations who helped oversee the move.
Winemiller said the move from Seattle to Oklahoma City will involve about 60 truckloads and be done by the end of September.
He said 10,000 pounds of equipment and furniture were in the Friday load. The first items offloaded were five office chairs and a 50-inch flat-screen television after the nearly 2,000-mile trip.
The team has set up its offices at the Leadership Square office building downtown. Winemiller said they're working filling the 25,000 square feet of space with the items that were in a similar-sized office in Seattle.
"It really is taking that area that we had in the Northwest and trying to make sure it fits here in this space, and so far it's been a pretty good fit," said Winemiller, who wouldn't say how much the move will cost.
Clay Bennett's ownership group finalized a settlement last week that determined what items will stay in Seattle and what will come to Oklahoma City. Many items won't be shipped until after the WNBA's Seattle Storm finishes its season.
The Storm will continue to play in Seattle. A group of Seattle women are buying the Storm from Bennett for $10 million.
-- From News Services
