NBA On Doorstep Of Controlling Hornets...

We've gotten pretty use to an NBA team in New Orleans and apparently the NBA has also, so much to the point of purchasing the franchise. All that is left now is a vote from the NBA Board of Governors and it's a done deal the NBA will own the New Orleans Hornets. Many factors have came in \to play for the NBA to be in the position of owning one of it's franchises for the first time in history.

New Orleans has always been that city with the big question mark as to whether it could support and NBA franchise. Now that George Shinn has brought pro hoops back the goal is to keep it there but Shinn wanted out and therefore had a deal in place with minority owner Gary Chouest but it bottomed out.

Stern had this to say about the NBA taking over control...

"...In the absence of any viable purchaser seeking to own the Hornets in New Orleans, I recommended to the NBA Board of Governors that the best way to assure stability and the adequate funding of the franchise would be for the league to step in, and complete the transaction and assume control. The Hornets have a strong management team in Hugh Weber, Dell Demps, and Monty Williams and we have recruited Jac Sperling, a seasoned sports executive and New Orleans native, to be the team's chairman and governor, with Hugh serving as president and alternate governor. I have notified Governor Jindal and Mayor Landrieu about this transaction and will continue our dialogue with them about ways to strengthen the franchise for new ownership in New Orleans."

There is a lot on the NBA table in the coming months so for the league to takeover a franchise it cannot go unnoticed. It'll be interesting to watch how the league operates the Hornets in the interim. How will this affect the team and can Monty Williams and his crew keep winning because winning seems to cure all ills.

The NBA had to do something but was this the right move to make?