Clay Bennett is the chairman of Professional Basketball Club LLC, which is the group that owns the Oklahoma City Thunder. Bennett is maybe greatest identified within the basketball world for his determination to transfer the group from Seattle to Oklahoma City.
Bennett, who hails from Oklahoma City, bought the Seattle SuperSonics in 2006 with a promise that he wouldn’t transfer the franchise. After being unable to obtain $500 million in public funds to construct a brand new area, Bennett introduced his determination to transfer the franchise to his hometown.
While the transfer was permitted by NBA homeowners, it was briefly delayed, because the earlier possession group filed a lawsuit making an attempt to revoke the sale due to breach of contract. Bennett was additionally sued by the town of Seattle, however he was in a position to attain an settlement that allowed the transfer.
The metropolis of Seattle was in a position to preserve the SuperSonics identify, championship banners, trophies, and retired jerseys. However, Bennett was compelled to pay $45 million to break the lease on the KeyArena and one other $30 million if the state permitted funding for a brand new area, however Seattle is unable to get a group. While the Thunder shall be in a position to use the SuperSonics’ statistical historical past, a brand new group in Seattle would additionally have the ability to accomplish that.
Bennett was named the chairman of the NBA’s relocation committee. Five years after shifting the SuperSonics to Oklahoma City, he was certainly one of 22 members of the board of governors that rejected the proposed relocation of the Sacramento Kings to Seattle.
Watch Seattle SuperSonics followers giving Clay Bennett a chunk of their thoughts within the remaining house recreation in Seattle beneath:
Clay Bennett’s profession exterior of Oklahoma City Thunder
The Oklahoma City Thunder should not the primary group Clay Bennett has had an possession stake in.
During the Nineteen Nineties, Bennett was part of the possession group of the San Antonio Spurs, the place he represented the franchise on the NBA’s board of governors. Bennett additionally performed a task in serving to Oklahoma City safe the then-New Orleans Hornets for 2 seasons after their area was broken by Hurricane Katrina.
The two seasons through which the town had an expert sports activities franchise for the primary time probably laid the groundwork for the Thunder’s eventual relocation, because it grew to become clear that native followers would help the franchise.
Outside of basketball, Clay Bennett serves because the chairman for Dorchester Capital Corporation and the chairman emeritus of the board of administrators of the Oklahoma Heritage Association. He beforehand served because the chairman of the Board of Regents on the University of Oklahoma from 2011-2019 earlier than stepping down due to well being causes. Bennett had mind surgical procedure in 2017.
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