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Kings Moving To Va. Beach?
The owners are still denying it, but it appears Live Nation and Comcast-Spectacor have visions of luring the Maloof brothers’ Sacramento Kings NBA franchise to Virginia Beach, Va., with a new arena.
The Maloofs will meet with Comcast-Spectacor executives in Virginia Aug. 28, according to the Virginia-based Hampton Roads Business Journal, with Comcast promising to guarantee a 25-year lease on a new arena.
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The announcement is expected to come Aug. 29 if the deal goes through.
“I think the greatest thing coming out of this is that Comcast and Live Nation are for real,” Virginia Beach Mayor Will Sessoms said. “They would guarantee us a professional sports team.” Sessoms did not confirm that the Kings were the team in question.
Meanwhile, the Maloofs are remaining quiet.
“We haven’t talked to Virginia Beach,” Joe Maloof told CBS13. George Maloof Jr. had a similar response, telling the Journal, “We have been approached by several cities over several years about moving the Kings and we will not comment other than that.”
Comcast-Spectacor spokesman Ike Richman said the company would not comment until the meeting.
“Comcast-Spectacor, through several of our subsidiaries, and Live Nation, both of which have a substantial presence in Southeastern Virginia for many years, are always looking for new opportunities to expand our business in the area,” Richman told CBS13. “We will refrain from making any comments until we are in Virginia Beach on Tuesday.”
The Maloofs have repeatedly stated intentions to remain in Sacramento but are reportedly exploring other options after a deal for a $391 million entertainment in the city fell through three months ago.
The new arena would be built across from the Virginia Beach Convention Center, according to the Journal’s sources, and could be funded partially by a hike in lodging taxes.
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