After announcing earlier this week that he is joining Sonics Arena Group, an investment group led by Chris Hansen, Seattle Seahawks star quarterback Russell Wilson on Thursday said that he plans to have an ownership stake if the NBA returns to Seattle. Chris Hansen's investment group is planning on building arenas for an NBA and NHL team.
"Yeah, I will. Yes, for sure," Russel Wilson said. "It's going to be an exciting thing. I met Chris a few years ago, and we were having a great conversation. I've told you guys I've been really authentic about wanting to own a team one day and being a part of something really special and doing that. And even though I'm young, I definitely have a business mindset. And I want to be able to help people and give back and help change this community, continue to change this community for the better."
When asked if he's keen on lobbying city hall and Seattle's Mayor on behalf of the ownership group, Russel Wilson, 27, said, "Of course. I think it's just trying to encourage people and let them understand, you know, how important it is, and it will open up tons of jobs for people. It's going to be a state-of-the-art facility and give people opportunity."
The Seattle Supersonics left the NBA after the 2007-2008 season when it relocated to Oklahoma City and became the Oklahoma City Thunder. Clayton Bennet and his Oklahoma City based investment group Professional Basketball Group LLC bought the Sonics from Howard Shultz in 2006 for $350 million. The new ownership group said that they plan to keep the team in Seattle, granted that they can work out a new deal for a new arena in the next 12 months. Unfortunately for Seattle, they couldn't work out a new deal. Before selling his teams, Howard Shultz and the other minority owners of the Seattle Supersonics and the WNBA's Seattle Storm had previously said at that time that they've lost millions of dollars in recent years. The reason according to them is that the venue is too small and outdated and the lease terms are unfavorable.
