New Home?

[SJHornet]

Looks like the arena is almost a done deal. Will Sac State be a new tennant?

http://www.sacbee.com/2012/02/27/4294815/sacramento-kings-have-reached.html

 

[SDHornet]

That will be interesting to see. Since the City (taxpayers) will have a stake in the new arena, it would be in their best interests to have it used/occupied as much as possible. Whether or not the potential lease agreement between AEG (they will operate the arena) and Sac State would make financial sense is the question.

If anything it would be nice to see a few games played there against regional draws (Cal, Stanford, Nevada, etc..). If that could be worked out, it would help a lot with recruiting and exposure. I could see those Pac-12/MWC type programs being interested in playing in a brand new NBA quality arena in an area with a lot of potential recruits. :twocents:

 

[superhornet]

I would question scheduling and attendance in a shared arena. Oh, sure, the hype of a new place would initially spike the numbers a little bit, but after a while, getting students off campus to a game would begin to wear. We saw that when the Hornets played at the Auditorium. TV might not want to show a game where fans are disguised as empty seats.

The scheduling, however, may be the bigger issue. The Kings, clearly, would have priority, and conflicts may arise, particularly given that Sac has TWO hoops teams. (It wouldn't be very fair to leave the girls in that jr high POS we have now if the guys get to move. Gymnastics would also be an issue (a minor one, I grant you). VB probably wouldn't be a big deal given that the vast majority of their season (and perhaps all of it) would take place before the Kings take the court. In fact, starting a pre-season VB tournament could draw in badly needed funds.

Another factor is off-season event scheduling, particularly concerts. This is another reason why an on-campus arena is so vital. If we have our own arena, we control the revenue. If we share it with the Kings, does anyone really expect the Maloofs to let us share those revenues? I think not.

So, if the two sides can work out an adequte scheduling arrangement (both the NBA and the Sky would have to be involved), it MIGHT work, IF we can get fans there. A free shuttle from the dorms could be the answer. An interesting idea, to be sure.

 

[Green Laser]

I would question scheduling and attendance in a shared arena. Oh, sure, the hype of a new place would initially spike the numbers a little bit, but after a while, getting students off campus to a game would begin to wear. We saw that when the Hornets played at the Auditorium. TV might not want to show a game where fans are disguised as empty seats.

The scheduling, however, may be the bigger issue. The Kings, clearly, would have priority, and conflicts may arise, particularly given that Sac has TWO hoops teams. (It wouldn't be very fair to leave the girls in that jr high POS we have now if the guys get to move. Gymnastics would also be an issue (a minor one, I grant you). VB probably wouldn't be a big deal given that the vast majority of their season (and perhaps all of it) would take place before the Kings take the court. In fact, starting a pre-season VB tournament could draw in badly needed funds.

Another factor is off-season event scheduling, particularly concerts. This is another reason why an on-campus arena is so vital. If we have our own arena, we control the revenue. If we share it with the Kings, does anyone really expect the Maloofs to let us share those revenues? I think not.

So, if the two sides can work out an adequte scheduling arrangement (both the NBA and the Sky would have to be involved), it MIGHT work, IF we can get fans there. A free shuttle from the dorms could be the answer. An interesting idea, to be sure.

Don't think that anyone is advocating playing the entire schedule at the new arena, but it would be great for games of particular interest, possibly a annual tournament. We had a tournament at ARCO while we were still D2 although I think it was officially hosted by UOP since they were D1. The arena would only be 4.6 miles west of campus so distance shouldn't be a factor especially if a good product was being offered. It would be easy to set up shuttle buses from campus. Since there is public money being used and it is being sold as a "community asset" they need to reach out to Sacramento State and other potential local users.
With access to the arena we certainly move to the top of available Indoor facilities in the Big Sky or any larger Conference we may end up in the future.

 

[SDHornet]

SH it wouldn’t be a shared arena; it would be an arena available for use on a limited basis depending on availability and facility costs. If those costs exceed projected revenues for a Hornet event (as I assume would be the case for everything other than men’s OOC hoops against a regional draw), then Sac State admin probably won’t consider having an event at the arena. It’s a cost-benefit issue, not a fairness issue.

 

[SJHornet]

Limited basis would be all we needed. I like the idea of an on campus arena, but in all reality, I don't see that happening for some time. Using the arena for big games or conference games or whatever means we can either expand and renovate the nest or build something smaller, or maybe even focus on getting the stadium renovated.

Having the program utalize the arena would also boost recruiting and make our program look better. Im tired of the nest hindering our product on the floor and make our school's department look like a joke. Plus it could open up the possibility of a future Big West invite or a Pac 12 invite when I become a billionaire and buy our way in

We wouldn't be the first program to share an arena with a professional sports team. Heck, half the Big East does that now. I just think this would be a great opportunity for the program, and could open a new chapter for Hornets Basketball.

 

[superhornet]

Under that paradigm, SJ/SD, I think the idea works. You might not like hearing it, but that's an idea UOP has already used to great affect. They actually snagged a home game at Stockton Arena against Cal. That generated a lot of fan support, particularly given that the Tigers swapped the home unis for ones reading "Stockton." (That move didn't fly so well with the fans.)

So with this idea, we could swing a home game against a big-name school, and Sac would probably have a larger pool of candidates given that there would be no 45-min bus ride following the plane trip. Get a free shuttle from the dorms to the arena and have ticket pricing somewhere between what one would charge at the Nest and what the Kings charge, and the school could turn a decent profit. The place could also be a major draw for hosting the Sky tournament if we could arrange for the Kings to be out of town.

Your idea works out MUCH better, guys. I like it. I like it a lot.

 

[The Green Hornet]

I think the Hornets should make a major effort to play their games at the new arena. Worrying about whether any students would attend or not is a non-factor. I went to nearly every game this season (and the past ten) and there were only a couple games where there was a significant number of students anyway. If the Hornets played downtown, I think they'd get many more students just becuz of the new facility and a lot of students live near downtown.

The city will be the owner of the new arena, so the Maloof's shouldn't have as much influence in saying who can play there. Maybe Kevin Johnson, being a college hoop star and appreciating the support he got at Cal, would help us get in there (that is, if he's still a power broker then).

I do recall that one of the main reasons the Hornets left Memorial was becuz they said they didn't have a home court advantage playing there cuz they rarely got to practice there. That could come up again, but most NBA teams have practice facilities and they don't practice all the time in their arena's and many still win most home games. I think home court advantage has more to do with crowd support anyway. I think we'd pull in more general basketball fans, not specifically Hornet fans, cuz they'd want to go see a game at the beautiful new facility; then the team/coach would have to get them back by being at or near the top of the conference every year. Let's go for it.

 

[Green Cookie Monster]

I think the Hornets should make a major effort to play their games at the new arena. Worrying about whether any students would attend or not is a non-factor. I went to nearly every game this season (and the past ten) and there were only a couple games where there was a significant number of students anyway. If the Hornets played downtown, I think they'd get many more students just becuz of the new facility and a lot of students live near downtown.

The city will be the owner of the new arena, so the Maloof's shouldn't have as much influence in saying who can play there. Maybe Kevin Johnson, being a college hoop star and appreciating the support he got at Cal, would help us get in there (that is, if he's still a power broker then).

I do recall that one of the main reasons the Hornets left Memorial was becuz they said they didn't have a home court advantage playing there cuz they rarely got to practice there. That could come up again, but most NBA teams have practice facilities and they don't practice all the time in their arena's and many still win most home games. I think home court advantage has more to do with crowd support anyway. I think we'd pull in more general basketball fans, not specifically Hornet fans, cuz they'd want to go see a game at the beautiful new facility; then the team/coach would have to get them back by being at or near the top of the conference every year. Let's go for it.

I agree. :thumb:

Students are a non-factor of being on campus. There goes any real hope of the school finally building a new arena on campus anyway. PBalance will low ball every event coming to town to keep it as the main mid-arena in Sac. Why is there now need for an on campus 6,000 arena??

With Nelligan coming onboard and a hope for much greater exposure, why not go for it?

Hard to justify anything when only ~700 show up for home games.

 

[superhornet]

Yes, the lack of practice time at Memorial was a factor. But that was a factor because the place wasn't built for hoops. The acoustics are all wrong, the chandeliers are crazy, and the platform is at one end so that an out of control player could get hurt running into it. The lack of practice time under these conditions eliminated whatever factor one likes to assign to the odds for home-court. Abatemarco-coached teams (as they were at the time) were not generally able to overcome that.

From a fan's perspective, the experience completely sucked. The place is wonderful for a concert or a play. I found that out at an Amy Grant concert. But for hoops, the angles and acoustics really sucked. The Nest also sucks, but for completely different reasons. A medium-sized on-campus arena with access to the Kings new place for big games like hoops Causeway and perhaps Cal/Stanford would be a great thing.

 

[SDHornet]

Students are a non-factor of being on campus. There goes any real hope of the school finally building a new arena on campus anyway. PBalance will low ball every event coming to town to keep it as the main mid-arena in Sac. Why is there now need for an on campus 6,000 arena??

I don’t think the new downtown arena changes the fact that the campus will always have a need for a 6-8k capacity events center that would serve the campus for many events other than athletics (graduations, concerts, expositions, etc).

 

[SDHornet]

Yes, the lack of practice time at Memorial was a factor. But that was a factor because the place wasn't built for hoops. The acoustics are all wrong, the chandeliers are crazy, and the platform is at one end so that an out of control player could get hurt running into it. The lack of practice time under these conditions eliminated whatever factor one likes to assign to the odds for home-court. Abatemarco-coached teams (as they were at the time) were not generally able to overcome that.

Sounds like just another one of the many excuses made for Hornet hoops failures. When I read this, the scene from Hoosiers where the coach measured the dimensions of the hoop and key came to my mind…

 

[SJHornet]

Students are a non-factor of being on campus. There goes any real hope of the school finally building a new arena on campus anyway. PBalance will low ball every event coming to town to keep it as the main mid-arena in Sac. Why is there now need for an on campus 6,000 arena??

I don’t think the new downtown arena changes the fact that the campus will always have a need for a 6-8k capacity events center that would serve the campus for many events other than athletics (graduations, concerts, expositions, etc).

I definitely agree with you. I think a move to the new arena could actually help this goal. If the program improves its exposure and eventually improves, it could lead to a push for our own on-campus arena.

 

[superhornet]

All I meant to say, SD, was that the horrible facilities are an impediment. The mere fact that it's an impediment makes improvement difficult, but certainly not impossible.