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149-774: SoDo was originally named for being located " So uth of the Do me ", but since the Kingdome 's demolition in 2000 the name has been taken to mean " So uth of Do wntown ". The moniker was adopted in the 1990s after the renaming of the Sears building to the SODO Center (later Starbucks Center , the world headquarters of Starbucks at First Avenue S. and S. Lander Street). It includes Seattle's downtown stadium district of T-Mobile Park (where Major League Baseball 's Seattle Mariners play their home baseball games) and Lumen Field (built on

298-570: A $ 15 million bond issue measure on the ballot to fund construction of a stadium, but voters on November 8 defeated it with only 48 percent approval because of doubt the stadium could be built within that budget, and lack of a guarantee the city would have a team to play in the stadium. By 1966, the National Football League and the American League were both considering granting the city an expansion franchise , and as

447-779: A 144–116 loss in their first game against the San Francisco Warriors . On October 21, the Seattle team's first win came against the San Diego Rockets in overtime 117–110, and the SuperSonics finished the season with a 23–59 record. Before the start of the next season, Hazzard was traded to the Atlanta Hawks for Lenny Wilkens , who brought a strong, all-around game to the SuperSonics, averaging 22.4 points, 8.2 assists and 6.2 rebounds per game for

596-573: A back-up plan for the future of SuperSonics, they would support the renovation by Oak View Group if the plan to acquire an NBA team was successful. Renovations of KeyArena, which was renamed Climate Pledge Arena , began in 2018 and were completed by the beginning of the 2021–22 NBA and NHL seasons. The SuperSonics played at the Seattle Center Coliseum , on the grounds of the Seattle Center , from 1967 to 1978. They left for

745-474: A double that scored Remy, who had stolen second and third base after drawing a walk from Seguí. The Mariners' first batter, Dave Collins , struck out; however, the next batter, José Báez , singled for the franchise's first ever hit. The first home run at the venue was hit in the top of the third inning by Joe Rudi ; designated hitter Juan Bernhardt scored the Mariners' first home run in their fifth game at

894-513: A font that was also used by Cincinnati Royals (now the Sacramento Kings ). The road jerseys were green and had yellow lettering; the home uniforms were white with green lettering. In 1995, SuperSonics changed their uniforms, adding red and orange, and removing yellow, to their new jerseys that would last six seasons. It displayed the team's new logo on the front and their alternative logo on the shorts. The home uniforms had green stripes on

1043-406: A game) but the service shut down after the 1984–85 season . In October 1983, original team owner Sam Schulman sold the SuperSonics to Barry Ackerley . In 1984, Fred Brown retired after playing 13 productive seasons with the SuperSonics; during this time, he had been on the same team roster as Rule and Wilkens during his rookie season, playing a key role on Seattle's first playoff teams, and being

1192-416: A hitter's park, especially in the 1990s when Ken Griffey Jr. , Edgar Martínez , Jay Buhner , Alex Rodriguez , and other sluggers played there. The large number of in-play objects—speakers, roof support wires and streamers—contributed to an "arena baseball" feel. The Kingdome was somewhat improved in 1982 with the addition of a 23-foot (7.0 m) wall in right field nicknamed the "Walla Walla" (after

1341-513: A letter to the Seattle City Council suggesting the city needed a covered stadium for a major professional sports franchise. A domed stadium was thought to be a must because of Seattle's frequent rain. At the time, the city had Husky Stadium and Sick's Stadium for college football and minor league baseball , respectively, but both were deemed inadequate for a major league team. In 1960, King County commissioners placed

1490-454: A long, long time in Seattle or somewhere else. It's presumptuous to assume they're going to move that franchise to Oklahoma City. I understand that people are going to say that seems to be a likely scenario, but that's just speculation. After failing to persuade local governments to fund a $ 500-million arena complex in the Seattle suburb Renton , Bennett's group notified the NBA it intended to move

1639-625: A merger with the ABA ; Schulman, a member of the ABA–NBA merger committee in 1970, was eager to merge the leagues and he publicly announced if the NBA did not accept the merger agreement, he would move the SuperSonics to the ABA; he also threatened to move his soon-to-be ABA team to Los Angeles to compete with the Lakers . The Oscar Robertson suit delayed the merger and the SuperSonics remained in Seattle. Early in

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1788-590: A minority owner of the Golden State Warriors , brought in to assemble a stronger group of investors. Ahead of the annual Board of Governors meeting where they were expected to vote on approval of the sale of the Kings to Hansen and Ballmer's group, as well as the relocation request, members of the NBA owners' finance and relocation committees held a meeting in New York City on April 3, 2013, for

1937-561: A new team had not been awarded to the city, was reached. It was agreed the Oklahoma City team would not use the name "SuperSonics", and that the team's history would be shared between Oklahoma City and any future NBA team in Seattle. The relocated team began play as Oklahoma City Thunder for the 2008–09 season , becoming the third NBA franchise to relocate in the past decade, following Vancouver Grizzlies , who moved to Memphis, Tennessee , and were renamed Memphis Grizzlies for

2086-465: A pitching change as Indians' pitcher Orel Hershiser was walking off the mound following a home run by Edgar Martínez . After an inspection by engineers, the game was continued the next evening, resulting in a 6–4 win for the Indians. Seguí, who retired from professional baseball after the 1977 season, was invited by the Mariners to throw the ceremonial last pitch after the final Mariners game at

2235-737: A playing surface that was despised by both football and baseball players alike; after the 1998 season, a survey by the NFL Players Association found that 56.7 percent of Seahawks players rated the surface as "poor" or "fair", and was the worst-rated one in the AFC West . Injuries from playing at the Kingdome and its contemporaries occurred more often compared to stadiums with natural grass. Of note, Seahawks running backs Sherman Smith and Curt Warner respectively suffered season-ending knee injuries in 1980 and 1984 during games at

2384-455: A ramp and plunged 47 feet to his death; this was despite the installation of signs warning about the chest-level barriers the previous year. Logistics would be a problem throughout the team's tenure at the Kingdome because the Seahawks and Mariners had scheduling priority over them, especially during the playoffs when the Mariners were playing there at the same time in the spring. As part of

2533-539: A result, the King County Council placed another bond issue measure on the ballot for a September vote. While it received 51.5 percent approval, it did not reach the 60 percent required to proceed; the requirement was due to a 1932 initiative that mandated a supermajority for tax levies over 40 mills . In 1967, the American League granted Seattle an expansion franchise that would be known as

2682-539: A stadium in 1960 and 1966, but the outcome was different in 1968; King County voters approved the issue of $ 40 million in municipal bonds to construct the stadium. Construction began in 1972 and the stadium opened in 1976 as the home of the Sounders and Seahawks. The Mariners moved in the following year , and the SuperSonics moved in the year after that , only to move back to the Seattle Center Coliseum in 1985. The stadium hosted several major sports events, including

2831-445: A tentative agreement on a revised MOU that included the county council's amendments and new provisions; a personal guarantee from Hansen to cover cost overruns of construction of the new arena and make up any backfall for annual repayment of the city bonds issued. To address concerns of Port of Seattle, Seattle Mariners , and local industry, a SoDo transportation improvement fund to be maintained at $ 40 million by tax revenue generated by

2980-524: A three-game mini-series before losing to the eventual champion Golden State Warriors in six games. The next season, the SuperSonics traded Haywood to the New York Knicks , forcing the remaining players to pick up the offensive slack. Guard Fred Brown , now in his fifth season, was selected to the 1976 NBA All-Star Game , and finished fifth in the league in scoring average and free-throw percentage. Burleson's game continued to strengthen as Watts led

3129-466: A vulnerable franchise to move to Seattle began circulating. Most of the discussion centered on Sacramento Kings , a struggling franchise that had been unsuccessfully trying to replace the aging Power Balance Pavilion . The rumors were such that Think Big Sacramento, a community action group created by Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson to develop solutions for Kings, wrote to Hansen asking him not to pursue

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3278-468: Is in SoDo. The neighborhood is also served by public transit service. Sound Transit operates the 1 Line light rail service through the neighborhood, stopping at two stations: SODO at Lander Street, and Stadium at Royal Brougham Way. The SODO Busway runs along 5th Avenue South and carries bus routes from King County Metro and Sound Transit Express . Kingdome The Kingdome (officially

3427-454: The 1970–71 season , Rule tore his left Achilles' tendon and was injured for the rest of the season. Wilkens was named the 1971 All-Star Game MVP . Schulman was awarded American Basketball Association Rookie of the Year and MVP Spencer Haywood following a lengthy court battle . The following season , the SuperSonics had their first winning season at 47–35. On March 3, 1972, the team, which

3576-479: The 1978–79 season after the expiration of their contract with the city of Seattle, the owner of the Coliseum; the team pushed for a move to the Kingdome after the city balked at a $ 30 million plan to expand the Coliseum to 20,000 seats the previous year. On August 22, the King County Council voted 7–2 to approve a 17-year lease with the SuperSonics, with the agreement signed the following day. The following week,

3725-619: The 1980–81 season and Williams missed the year due to a contract dispute. As a result, the SuperSonics fell to last place in the Pacific Division with a 34–48 mark, the only time they finished in last place. Williams returned for the 1981–82 season and the SuperSonics scored 52–30 and 48–34 records during the next two years. In 1981, the SuperSonics created the Sonics SuperChannel, the first sports subscription cable service; subscriptions were available for $ 120 ($ 1.33

3874-415: The 1988–89 season , Chambers had signed with Phoenix, Ellis improved his scoring average to 27.5 points per game and finished second in the league in three-point percentage. The SuperSonics finished with a 47–35 record and qualified for the second round of the 1989 playoffs . The SuperSonics began setting a new foundation with the drafting of forward Shawn Kemp in 1989 and guard Gary Payton in 1990, and

4023-653: The 2000 United States census , SoDo had a population of 2,602, with a median age of 41.2, in 458 owner-occupied residences and 536 rentals. The average annual household income was $ 42,208. The racial breakdown was 41% White, 28% Asian, 14% Black, 9% Hispanic/Latino, 3% American Indian/Alaska Native, and 5% other. SoDo main thoroughfares are First and Fourth Avenues S. and Alaskan Way S. (north- and south-bound) and S. Lander and Holgate Streets, Edgar Martínez Drive S., and S. Royal Brougham Way (east- and west-bound). The western terminus of Interstate 90 , which travels 3,020 miles (4,860 km) east towards Boston, Massachusetts ,

4172-558: The 2001–02 season ; and Charlotte Hornets , who moved to New Orleans and began play as New Orleans Hornets for the 2002–03 season . In months prior to the settlement, Seattle publicly released email conversations that took place within Bennett's ownership group and alleged they indicated at least some members of the group wanted to move the team to Oklahoma City prior to the purchase in 2006. Before that, SuperSonics co-owner Aubrey McClendon told The Journal Record ; "we didn't buy

4321-619: The Kansas City Royals . However, when Senator Stuart Symington of Missouri got wind of those plans, he demanded both teams begin play in 1969. The American League had birthed the Royals and Pilots as a result of the Kansas City Athletics moving to Oakland , and Symington would not accept the prospect of Kansas City waiting three years for baseball's return. On February 13, 1968, King County voters approved

4470-760: The King County Stadium ) was a multi-purpose stadium located in the Industrial District (later SoDo ) neighborhood of Seattle , Washington , United States. Owned and operated by King County , it was best known as the home stadium of the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL) and the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball (MLB); it was also home to the Seattle SuperSonics of

4619-488: The Milwaukee Bucks would need to replace the aging BMO Harris Bradley Center because of its small size and lack of amenities. On April 16, 2014, it was announced owner Herb Kohl had agreed to sell the franchise to New York hedge-fund investors Marc Lasry and Wesley Edens for a record $ 550 million. The deal included provisions for contributions of $ 100 million each from Kohl and the new ownership group towards

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4768-522: The NBA championship in 1979 . The franchise won Western Conference titles in 1978 , 1979 and 1996 ; and six divisional titles—their last being in 2005 —five in the Pacific Division and one in the Northwest Division. The franchise attained a 1,745–1,585 (.524) regular season win–loss record, as well as a 107–110 (.493) playoff win–loss record during its time in Seattle. Both marks would rank in

4917-729: The National Basketball Association (NBA) (from 1978 to 1985) and additionally served as both the home outdoor and indoor venue for the Seattle Sounders of the North American Soccer League (NASL). The Kingdome measured 660 feet (200 m) wide from its inside walls. The idea of constructing a covered stadium for a major league football or baseball team was first proposed to Seattle officials in 1959. Voters rejected separate measures to approve public funding for such

5066-612: The National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Division (1967–1970), and later as a member of the Western Conference 's Pacific (1970–2004) and Northwest (2004–2008) divisions. After the 2007–08 season ended, the team relocated to Oklahoma City , where they now play as the Oklahoma City Thunder . Sam Schulman owned the team from its 1967 inception until 1983. It

5215-640: The Pac-8 single-game rushing record; the Trojans won by nine points, 23–14. In 1994, under then-new athletic director Rick Dickson , the Cougars flirted with the idea of hosting an additional home game at the Kingdome starting in 1997; however, the plan never came to fruition. In the late 1970s, the Kingdome hosted both instances of a Pacific-10 Conference all-star game called the Challenge Bowl;

5364-749: The Portland Trail Blazers on September 22, 1978. A few weeks later, a crowd of 15,219 watched as the SuperSonics defeated the Chicago Bulls , 104–86, on October 14 in their first regular-season game as a tenant. Captain Fred Brown and leading scorer Gus Williams helped lead the team to their first and only championship that season, defeating the Washington Bullets in the Finals and avenging their Finals loss to them

5513-482: The Seattle Mariners was born. The Mariners held their first game in franchise history at the Kingdome on April 6, 1977 , against the California Angels . The Angels shut out the Mariners 7–0 in front of a sellout crowd of 57,762. The first pitch was a strike thrown by the Mariners' Diego Seguí to Jerry Remy . In the top of the first inning, Don Baylor registered the first hit at the stadium with

5662-546: The Seattle Pilots . The league clearly stated Sick's Stadium was not adequate as a major-league stadium, and stipulated that as a condition of being awarded the franchise, bonds had to be issued to fund construction of a domed stadium that had to be completed by 1970; additionally, the capacity at Sick's Stadium had to be expanded from 11,000 to 30,000 by Opening Day 1969, when the team was scheduled to begin playing. The Pilots were supposed to begin play in 1971 along with

5811-595: The Seattle market . After the blackout of the October 24, 1993 game versus the New England Patriots , one more game was blacked out that year, with five games blacked out the following year; KING-TV , which as Seattle's NBC affiliate was the Seahawks' local broadcast home at the time, prevented further blackouts by purchasing all remaining unsold tickets for three games in 1993 and two games in 1994. In

5960-948: The Soccer Bowl in August 1976 , the Pro Bowl in January 1977 , the Major League Baseball All-Star Game in July 1979 , the NBA All-Star Game in 1987 , and the NCAA Final Four in 1984 , 1989 , and 1995 . During the 1990s, the Seahawks' and Mariners' respective ownership groups began to question the suitability of the Kingdome as a venue for each team, threatening to relocate unless new, publicly funded stadiums were built. An issue

6109-465: The University of Washington for a few games when both the Kingdome and the Coliseum were unavailable. Along with the scheduling issues, as with other multipurpose stadiums used by the NBA the Kingdome proved itself to be a less-than-ideal venue for basketball. Although the Kingdome's capacity allowed the SuperSonics to set attendance records, the vast space it afforded meant that it did not have

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6258-564: The Women's National Basketball Association 's Seattle Storm for $ 350 million to Professional Basketball Club LLC (PBC), an investment group that was headed by Oklahoma City businessman Clay Bennett . Schultz sold the franchise to Bennett's group because they thought Bennett would keep the franchise in Seattle rather than move it to Oklahoma City. Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett said: I think it's presumptuous to assume that Clay Bennett and his ownership group won't own that Seattle team for

6407-709: The playoffs , the SuperSonics defeated the Phoenix Suns in a seven-game conference final series to set up a rematch with the Washington Bullets in the finals, in which the Bullets lost to the SuperSonics in five games to give the SuperSonics their first-and-only NBA title. The championship team roster included Gus Williams and Finals MVP Dennis Johnson , second-year All-Star center Jack Sikma , forwards John Johnson and Lonnie Shelton , and key reserves Fred Brown and Paul Silas . The 1979–80 season saw

6556-572: The 1970s, cheap spaces vacated by departing factories were converted by artists into lofts and studios. SoDo has undergone a similar process but has not experienced much of the gentrification experienced by its putative model. Some of SoDo's warehouse buildings remain in their original use; others have been carved up for artists' lofts, art galleries , and an assortment of other businesses. As one travels farther south along First Avenue S., these conversions peter out, and light manufacturing, warehouses, and warehouse-style retail stores predominate. As of

6705-399: The 1977 agreement, King County agreed to pay the SuperSonics $ 15,000 for each game (up to five) that was moved elsewhere because of booking issues. Even then, the scheduling priority meant that the SuperSonics would only play home playoff games at the Kingdome while the Mariners were on the road, with most of the games played at the Coliseum; the team even had to use Hec Edmundson Pavilion at

6854-429: The 1978 NBA Finals; they set it again on April 15, 1980, during a conference semifinal game against the Milwaukee Bucks with an attendance record of 40,172 (also since broken). The Kingdome regular season, single-game attendance record of 38,067 was set on November 22, 1991, when the SuperSonics faced the Chicago Bulls . While leaving a SuperSonics game on February 16, 1983, a 21-year-old man from Olympia fell off

7003-499: The 1988 season. The Dolphins scored a fourth-quarter touchdown to win 20–17; it marked the first home playoff loss for the Seahawks as well as the first road playoff win in 28 years for the Dolphins. It was the last NFL victory for Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Marino and head coach Jimmy Johnson , and it was also the last event the Kingdome ever hosted before its implosion. The Seahawks had an overall record of 101–83 (.549) in

7152-434: The 1999 season, and the Seahawks temporarily moved to Husky Stadium after the 1999 season . On March 26, 2000, the Kingdome was demolished by implosion . The Seahawks' new stadium, now known as Lumen Field , was built on the site and opened in 2002 . King County finally paid off the bonds used to build and repair the Kingdome in 2015, fifteen years after its demolition. In 1959, Seattle restaurateur David L. Cohn wrote

7301-522: The ALDS. Before the 1990 replacement, the AstroTurf surface was converted from baseball to football configuration via the covering of the infield with turf strips; a one-piece surface was placed over the infield after the conclusion of the Mariners season. The surface was attached together via both Velcro and Ziploc fasteners. After the 1990 replacement, separate surfaces were installed for each team;

7450-686: The All-NBA Second Team, and Johnson was also named to the All-NBA First Defensive Team for the second consecutive year. The SuperSonics made it to the Western Conference Finals for the third consecutive season but lost to the Lakers in five games. It was the last time the backcourt of Williams and Johnson played together on the SuperSonics; Johnson was traded to Phoenix Suns before the start of

7599-521: The Coliseum after the 1984–85 season in exchange for upgrades there. The SuperSonics faced the Phoenix Suns at the Kingdome on April 7, 1985, in their final game as a regular tenant, losing 110–125 with 5,672 in attendance. However, exemplifying the scheduling issues, it was not their final home game of the season; the SuperSonics were forced to play at the Tacoma Dome on April 11 because

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7748-578: The Hawks were to remain in Atlanta as a condition of their sale; additionally, Atlanta Spirit were unlikely to sell Hawks to a prospective owner that would seek to relocate the team, in contrast with the group's sale of the now-defunct Atlanta Thrashers of the NHL in 2011. Any attempt to move the Hawks out of Atlanta would have incurred a $ 75 million penalty from the city of Atlanta and Fulton County for breaking

7897-612: The Hawks' lease at Philips Arena before 2017. The Hawks were sold to a group led by Tony Ressler on June 24, 2015. On May 2, 2016, Seattle City Council voted 5–4 against vacating a section of Occidental Avenue South that connected property purchased by Hansen and was deemed critical to the siting of a future arena. The vote was seen as a significant delay to the MOU between Hansen, the city and King County that expired in November 2017. On October 25, 2016, Chris Hansen announced he will fund

8046-472: The Kingdome in 1999. However, while they were able to make the tickets and reservations for Seguí, a payment mix-up prevented him from boarding the flight out of Kansas City International Airport on the day of the game; the incident made him irate such that he refused to visit Seattle again until 2012 , when he was invited as part of the Mariners' 35th anniversary celebration. Despite the disappointment from Seguí's son, then-Mariners first baseman David Segui ,

8195-512: The Kingdome in which they lost 27–20 before a crowd of 60,825. The Seahawks' first regular season game was against the St. Louis Cardinals at the Kingdome on September 12. The Cardinals defeated the Seahawks, 30–24, with 58,441 fans in attendance. At the end of that season, the venue hosted the Pro Bowl , the NFL's all-star game, on January 17, 1977. The Seahawks hosted Monday Night Football games at

8344-421: The Kingdome on April 10. The Mariners had their first win at the Kingdome and team history two games after the opener (they were also shut out in their second game 2–0), defeating the Angels 7–6 on April 8 via a walk-off double from Larry Milbourne . The venue hosted the All-Star Game on July 17, 1979 . The Kingdome was somewhat problematic as a baseball venue. Foul territory was quite large, and seats in

8493-414: The Kingdome twelve times in their history and were 9–3 in those games. The Seahawks and the Oakland / Los Angeles Raiders played five Monday Night games in the Kingdome in the 1980s with Seattle holding a 3–2 edge including a 37–0 blowout victory in 1986. The next year, in 1987 , Bo Jackson of the Los Angeles Raiders rushed for 221 yards, the most ever on MNF, and scored 2 touchdowns. One of his scores

8642-416: The Kingdome twice; the Loggers won both contests, defeating the Lutes 23–21 on September 17, 1977, with 13,167 in attendance, and then defeating them again 27–14 on September 23, 1978, before a crowd of 8,329. The 1977 game set a series attendance record at the time. The stadium also hosted the annual WIAA high school football state championships in an event called the Kingbowl from 1977 through 1994;

8791-538: The Kingdome was ultimately not needed as the grandstand was completed in time for the team's first home game against the Stanford Cardinal on September 5. (Seven years later, the Seattle Seahawks would use Husky Stadium as their home field during the first half of the 1994 season while the Kingdome's ceiling was under repair. ) The Kingdome also hosted a game between the Washington State Cougars and USC Trojans on October 9, 1976. With 37,268 in attendance, USC running back Ricky Bell rushed for 346 yards and set

8940-465: The Kingdome, and were 2–1 in the postseason. The first football (and college football by extension) game played in the Kingdome occurred just after it opened in 1976, when the Washington Huskies varsity team won 10–7 against a team of Husky alumni on May 1 before 20,470 fans. The Huskies looked into temporarily renting the Kingdome for the 1987 season when the north grandstand of Husky Stadium collapsed during construction on February 25; however,

9089-409: The Kingdome, compiling an overall home record of 852–903 (.485) during their 22½-season tenure there. Besides the Mariners and Seahawks, the stadium also hosted the Seattle SuperSonics of the National Basketball Association (NBA) for seven seasons. The SuperSonics, having previously played at the Seattle Center Coliseum , announced on July 29, 1977, that they intended to move into the Kingdome for

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9238-406: The Kingdome; additionally, the Kingdome's surface is partly blamed for Ken Griffey Jr. 's subsequent injuries and decline in performance after the Mariners traded him to the Cincinnati Reds at the end of the 1999 season. The expansion Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League (NFL) played their first game ever on August 1, 1976 , a preseason game against the San Francisco 49ers at

9387-467: The Mariners 9–8 in 17 innings via a three-run homer from Manny Ramirez off Bob Wells ; Paul Shuey staved off a comeback by the Mariners in the bottom of the inning to end the game the next morning after five hours and 23 minutes. The most noteworthy baseball game in the Kingdome's history took place on October 8, 1995 ; in the rubber game of the ALDS , the Mariners defeated the New York Yankees 6–5 in 11 innings in front of 57,411 raucous fans. In

9536-445: The Mariners covered seats in the upper decks in right and right-center with a tarp in order to make the stadium feel "less empty". Additionally, the Kingdome's acoustics created problems for stadium announcers, who had to deal with significant echo issues. However, when the team's fortunes began to change in the mid-1990s and they began drawing larger crowds, especially in the post-season, the noise created an electric atmosphere and gave

9685-432: The Mariners hosted the Oakland Athletics at the Kingdome that day. By that point, the SuperSonics had an average attendance of 7,399, failing to surpass 10,000 seats sold in 29 of 37 games held at the Kingdome in their final season there. Seattle SuperSonics The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly shortened to Sonics ) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle . The SuperSonics competed in

9834-434: The Mariners' first 18 years, their poor play (they did not have a winning season until 1991 ) combined with the Kingdome's design, led to poor attendance. Some writers and fans called it "the Tomb" (because of its gray concrete and lack of noise) and " Puget Puke." After their inaugural home opener, the Mariners didn't have another sellout for the next 1,018 home games until their 1990 home opener on April 13. At one point

9983-409: The NBA by this new group was deemed "not comparable" as to merit consideration. Burkle eventually left the group because of a conflict with other business interests, but offered to be primary developer of lands around the planned downtown location of the new arena to aid in city council passage of public funding for the project. Mastrov took a backseat to Vivek Ranadivé , founder and CEO of TIBCO and

10132-434: The NBA in assists and steals, and was named to the All-NBA Defensive First Team . The SuperSonics again made the playoffs but lost to the Phoenix Suns in six games, in spite of strong performances from Brown (28.5 ppg) and Burleson (20.8 ppg). Russell left the SuperSonics after the 1976–77 season , and the team started the season at 5–17 under new coach Bob Hopkins . Lenny Wilkens was brought back to replace Hopkins, and

10281-443: The NBA league office, began to assemble an alternative ownership group that would keep the Kings in Sacramento and aid in getting a new arena constructed. On February 26, 2013, the Sacramento City Council voted to enter into negotiations with an unnamed group of investors revealed two days later to be headed by grocery magnate and developer Ron Burkle and Mark Mastrov , founder of 24 Hour Fitness . An initial counteroffer presented to

10430-421: The Nordstroms, and Walker for $ 500 million to relocate to Seattle as early as the 2013–14 NBA season emerged. On January 20, 2013, several sources reported the Maloof family had agreed to sell Hansen and Ballmer's ownership group their 53% majority stake in the Kings franchise, pending approval of the NBA's Board of Governors. The next day, the NBA, Hansen, and the Maloofs all released statements announcing

10579-415: The Pilots would not survive long enough to move to their new stadium without new ownership. It was also obvious that the timetable for a new stadium would have to be significantly advanced, as Sick's Stadium was completely unsuitable even for temporary use. However, a petition by stadium opponents brought the dome project to a halt. The Pilots' ownership group ran out of money by the end of the season, and with

10728-446: The Seahawks specifically wanted a stiffer variation of AstroTurf. The replacement surfaces were attached together via zippers . The underlying base of the surface was asphalt , with the AstroTurf essentially consisting of a carpet on top of a pad with respective thicknesses of one-half inch and five-eights inch. Lumps, holes, and ridges were also present in the surface along with gaps within its seams. These factors combined to create

10877-423: The Seahawks' heyday, the Kingdome was known as one of the loudest stadiums in the league. Opposing teams were known to practice with jet engine sounds blaring at full blast to prepare for the painfully high decibel levels typical of Seahawks games. It was where Seahawks fans, who were long called "the 12th Man " and led the Seahawks to retire the number 12 in honor of them in 1984 , made their reputation as one of

11026-520: The Seattle Center Coliseum) for 33 of the franchise's 41 seasons in Seattle. In 1978, the team moved to the Kingdome , which they shared with Major League Baseball (MLB) team Seattle Mariners and National Football League (NFL) team Seattle Seahawks . The team returned to the Coliseum in 1985, and temporarily moved to Tacoma Dome for the 1994–95 season while the Coliseum was renovated and renamed KeyArena. The SuperSonics won

11175-481: The Seattle and Sacramento groups. The BOG voted 22–8 against moving the Kings from Sacramento to Seattle. Though initially resistant to the idea, after negotiations, on May 17, 2013, the Maloof family and Hernreich formally agreed to sell their ownership stake in the Kings (65% of the team, valued at US$ 535 million) to Ranadivé's ownership group. In September 2013, then-Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver announced that

11324-628: The Seattle group and the Sacramento group to each present their proposals. With the meeting of the Board of Governors to vote moved again to mid-May, the groups were asked to make another brief presentation to the full relocation committee on April 29, 2013. The committee voted to recommend rejection of the relocation request to the full board. When the Board of Governors finally convened in Dallas on May 15, 2013, they heard final presentations from both

11473-656: The Sonics were eliminated in the first round, this time to the Los Angeles Lakers in four games. The team returned to the rebuilt Coliseum, now the KeyArena , for the 1995–96 season . Perhaps the strongest roster the SuperSonics ever had was the 1995–96 team , which had a franchise best 64–18 record. With a deep roster of All-NBA Second Team selections Kemp and Payton, forward Detlef Schrempf , forward Sam Perkins , guard Hersey Hawkins , and guard Nate McMillan ,

11622-452: The SuperSonics and Orlando Magic agreed to a sign and trade for Rashard Lewis . The SuperSonics received a future second-round draft pick and a $ 9.5 million trade exception from the Magic. On July 20, the SuperSonics used the trade exception and a second-round draft pick to acquire Kurt Thomas and two first-round draft picks from Phoenix Suns . In 2007, morale was low at the beginning of

11771-527: The SuperSonics finish second in the Pacific Division to the Los Angeles Lakers with a strong 56–26 record. That season, the SuperSonics set an NBA record with a regular season average attendance of 21,725 fans per game, a record that has since broken. Fred Brown won the NBA's first three-point shooting-percentage title, Jack Sikma played in the second of his seven career All-Star Games for the SuperSonics, Gus Williams and Dennis Johnson were named to

11920-434: The SuperSonics in the 1968–69 season . Rule improved on his rookie statistics with 24.0 points per game and 11.5 rebounds per game. SuperSonics won only 30 games and Bianchi was replaced by Wilkens as player/coach during the off-season. Wilkens and Rule both represented Seattle in the 1970 NBA All-Star Game , and Wilkens led the NBA in assists during the 1969–70 season . In June 1970, the NBA owners voted 13–4 to work toward

12069-472: The SuperSonics season as talks with the city of Seattle for a new arena had broken down. The SuperSonics had received a franchise player with second-overall pick in the NBA draft with Durant. With the Ray Allen trade, however, the SuperSonics had little talent with which to surround their rookie forward and lost their first eight games under coach P. J. Carlesimo to achieve a 3–14 record in the first month of

12218-522: The Tacoma Dome; the game came back for one final time in 1999 before the stadium was demolished. Shortly after the Pilots' departure for Milwaukee, the city of Seattle, King County, and the state of Washington sued the American League , claiming a breach of contract . The league agreed to grant Seattle another franchise in exchange for dropping the lawsuit, and the team that would later be known as

12367-549: The Thunder. On September 17, 2024, in the midst of rumors of Seattle getting an NBA expansion team, ESPN reported that "if a team were to return to Seattle, the Thunder would cede the Seattle history back to the SuperSonics." On December 20, 1966, Los Angeles businessmen Sam Schulman and Eugene V. Klein , both of whom owned the AFL side San Diego Chargers , and a group of minority partners were awarded an NBA franchise for Seattle,

12516-475: The Western Conference Finals. In the 1993–94 season , the SuperSonics had the best record in the NBA at 63–19, but suffered a first round loss to the Denver Nuggets , becoming the first number one seed to lose a playoff series to an eighth seed. The Sonics moved to the Tacoma Dome for the 1994–95 season while the Coliseum underwent renovations and went on to earn a second place 57–25 record. Again,

12665-497: The agreement, which also included the 12% minority stake of owner Robert Hernreich, and based the sale price on a team valuation of $ 525 million. David Stern , then NBA Commissioner , confirmed on February 6, 2013, that the Maloofs had filed paperwork with the league office to officially request relocation of the Kings from Sacramento to Seattle on behalf of the potential new ownership group. Johnson, with guidance from Stern and

12814-416: The arena was also included. All parties agreed transaction documents would not be signed and construction would not begin before the state-required environmental impact analysis was completed. By a vote of 7–2, Seattle City Council approved the amended MOU on September 24, 2012. The King County Council reviewed the amended MOU and voted unanimously in favor of approval on October 15, 2012. In June 2012, it

12963-493: The arena without public funding. On November 14, 2016, then Seattle Seahawks ' quarterback Russell Wilson announced he would be investing in the NBA arena effort. While talks about building a new arena were underway, so were talks with another group of investors—including Tim Leiweke , co-founder of the Oak View Group —who wanted to renovate KeyArena, SuperSonics' former home venue. On December 4, 2017, one day after

13112-558: The bottom of the 11th, Martinez doubled to left , sending Joey Cora and Griffey home with the winning runs and vaulting the Mariners into the ALCS for the first time in franchise history. On May 2, 1996 , a game at the Kingdome between the Mariners and the Cleveland Indians was suspended in the bottom of the seventh inning because of a minor earthquake . The earthquake, estimated at a magnitude of 5.3 to 5.4, occurred during

13261-670: The bowl, sponsored by the Olympia Brewing Company , pitted an all-star team of Pac-10 players against a similar team from another conference. The Pac-10 went undefeated with a 27–20 victory (as the Pac-8) over the Big Ten on January 15, 1978, and a 36–23 victory over the Big Eight on January 13, 1979. During the same period, the University of Puget Sound Loggers and Pacific Lutheran University Lutes also faced off at

13410-474: The ceremony went on as planned; David's son, then-seven-year-old Cory Segui, threw the last pitch to Bob Stinson , who was the Mariners' catcher in their first game. In 1989 , Griffey Jr. hit a home run in his first-ever plate appearance at the Kingdome on April 10. On June 27, 1999 , Griffey Jr. hit the last home run ever at the Kingdome against the Texas Rangers . The Mariners played 1,755 games at

13559-410: The city in southeastern Washington); a nearly $ 100,000 Daktronics out-of-town scoreboard was later installed on it in 1990. In 1990 and 1991 , the moving of home plate closer to the backstop, the addition of box seats down the third base line and the removal of a few rows of seats in left field reduced foul territory and made the outfield dimensions longer and asymmetrical. In its early years,

13708-574: The city's team. On May 16, 2012, after coming to agreement, McGinn, Constantine, and Hansen presented the proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to the public. King County Council voted to approve the MOU on July 30, 2012, adding amendments that provided for work with the Port of Seattle , securing the SuperSonics naming rights, offering reduced-price tickets, support for Seattle Storm WNBA franchise, and requiring an economic analysis. Hansen and Seattle City Council announced on September 11, 2012,

13857-487: The construction of what would eventually be the new Fiserv Forum arena. During sale discussions, it was revealed Hansen and Ballmer had expressed interest in purchasing the team for more than $ 600 million but had not made a formal offer, as Kohl only entertained offers keeping the team in Milwaukee. On January 2, 2015, Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Atlanta Spirit , then-owners of Atlanta Hawks , would sell

14006-523: The controversial aspects of the team's departure from Seattle; it won the 2010 Webby Award for Best Sports Film. In 2011, a group of investors led by hedge fund founder Chris Hansen spoke with Seattle mayor Mike McGinn about investing in an arena in hopes of securing an NBA franchise and reviving the Seattle SuperSonics. McGinn offered to Hansen to obtain ownership of KeyArena for little to no money. Rumors Hansen would begin pursuing

14155-465: The council unanimously voted on August 29 to spend $ 1.5 million on improvements to the Kingdome in preparation for the team; the team would pay the same amount over the first seven years as part of the agreement. Additional terms of the agreement had the SuperSonics pay the county 10 percent of ticket sale proceeds (not including admissions taxes) and $ 2,539 in personnel costs per game; the county additionally kept all game concession and parking revenue. On

14304-480: The deal with Chris Hansen expired, Seattle City Council voted 7–1 to approve the renovation of KeyArena. The renovation was considered to mainly focus on fitting out Seattle Kraken for the National Hockey League (NHL), although interest for the revival of SuperSonics remained a possibility with the renovated arena. Hansen and his fellow investors felt having a future arena should be considered as

14453-497: The domed stadium continued despite the lack of a major league sports team to occupy it. In May 1970 voters rejected the proposal to build the stadium at Seattle Center. From 1970 to 1972, the commission studied the feasibility and economic impact of building the stadium on King Street adjacent to Pioneer Square and the International District —a site that ranked at the bottom when the commission originally narrowed

14602-411: The end to the SuperSonics' 11-year run of seasons with a winning percentage of at least .500, then the second-longest current run in the NBA. The 2004–05 team won the organization's sixth-division title under the leadership of Ray Allen and Rashard Lewis , winning 52 games and defeating the Sacramento Kings to advance to the 2005 Western Conference Semifinals . The SuperSonics lost in six games to

14751-552: The established trio of Tony Parker , Tim Duncan and Manu Ginóbili of the San Antonio Spurs , who subsequently defeated the Detroit Pistons in the 2005 NBA Finals . This was also the last time this SuperSonics team would make the playoffs. During the 2005 off-season, head coach McMillan left the SuperSonics to accept a high-paying position to coach the Portland Trail Blazers . The season after his departure,

14900-476: The field of possible sites in 1968. This drew sharp opposition primarily from the International District community, which feared the impact of the stadium on neighborhood businesses located east of the site. The King Street site was approved 8–1 by the county council in late 1971, and the groundbreaking ceremony in 1972 was held on November 2. Several protesters attended the ceremony, disrupted

15049-591: The first major-league sports franchise in the city. Schulman served as the active partner and head of team operations, and named the team SuperSonics as a nod to the city's ties to the aviation industry, with Boeing 's having recently been awarded a contract for an SST project . The Seattle SuperSonics began play on October 13, 1967; they were coached by Al Bianchi , and included All-Star guard Walt Hazzard and All-Rookie Team members Bob Rule and Al Tucker . The expansion team debuted in San Francisco with

15198-411: The floor of the arena as well as additional scoreboards and a new basketball court. The center circle of the court was positioned over first base, with the court itself laid parallel and adjacent to the right-field seats; the portable seats were positioned across the court with one end hovering over home plate. The first SuperSonics game in the Kingdome under the agreement was an exhibition game versus

15347-714: The former Kingdome site; where the NFL 's Seattle Seahawks (formally) along with the XFL 's Seattle Sea Dragons play their home football games and where Major League Soccer 's Seattle Sounders FC along with the National Women's Soccer League 's Seattle Reign FC play their home soccer matches). The Mariners' popular marketing campaign in the early 2000s used the SoDo moniker in the catchphrase "SoDo Mojo". SoDo deliberately echoes SoHo in New York City , where, during

15496-667: The game, the crowd chanted "Save our Sonics" and Durant waved his hands at the crowd. The last game they played was against Durant's future team, the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena three days later. Durant scored 42 points. From 2001 to 2006, Starbucks chairman emeritus, former president and CEO Howard Schultz was the majority owner of the team, along with 58 partners or minor owners as part of Basketball Club of Seattle LLP. On July 18, 2006, after unsuccessful efforts to persuade Washington State government officials to provide funding to update KeyArena, Schultz and Basketball Club of Seattle LLP sold SuperSonics and their sister team

15645-422: The grounds of Seattle Center , site of the 1962 World's Fair . Community members decried the idea, claiming the committee was influenced by special interest groups. The Pilots began play as planned in 1969 , but Sick's Stadium proved to be a problematic venue for fans, media, and visiting players alike. The Pilots only drew 677,000 fans that season, not nearly enough to break even. It soon became apparent that

15794-412: The home team a distinct advantage similar to the effect on football games. The average attendance of 22,064 in 1995 was the lowest in three years with the removal of nine home games for the season, but when put in perspective, it was still higher compared to any of the Mariners' first 14 seasons. Despite its cavernous interior, the Kingdome's field dimensions were relatively small. It had a reputation as

15943-419: The intimate environment of a dedicated arena; furthermore, fans were displeased about the poor sight lines and cold temperatures in the Kingdome. All these factors, plus dwindling attendance due to poor team performance towards the end of their tenancy at the Kingdome, led SuperSonics general manager Zollie Volchok to sign a 10-year contract with the city of Seattle in 1983, agreeing to have the team move back to

16092-483: The issue of $ 40 million in bonds to fund construction of the "King County Multipurpose Domed Stadium" with 62 percent in favor; it was part of the Forward Thrust group of bond propositions that, among other items, had a regional rapid transit system rejected. That year, a committee considered over 100 sites throughout Seattle and King County for the stadium; they unanimously decided the best site would be on

16241-411: The larger Kingdome and played there for seven years with crowds of over 30,000 at 20 games. The team returned to the Coliseum in 1985 and were its main tenant before and after its renovation into KeyArena , which opened in 1995. The SuperSonics played a season at the Tacoma Dome during the renovation and remained at KeyArena until 2008. Seattle SuperSonics' first uniforms had "Sonics" displayed in

16390-428: The latter half of the 1980s were Tom Chambers ' 1987 All-Star Game MVP award, the SuperSonics' appearance in the 1987 Western Conference Finals, despite posting a 39–43 regular season record during the 1986–87 season , and the performances of Chambers, Xavier McDaniel and Dale Ellis . In 1987–88, the three players each averaged over 20 points per game with Ellis at 25.8 ppg, McDaniel at 21.4, and Chambers at 20.4. In

16539-422: The lines, the distance was also listed in fathoms (52.7 fm), presumably to maintain a nautical theme in line with the team name; however, this practice was ditched after the 1980 season . Like the Kingdome's contemporaries, the bullpens were located in foul territory adjacent to the baselines and the stands. The longest game in the Kingdome took place on July 30, 1998 , when the Cleveland Indians defeated

16688-414: The most ravenous fan bases in the NFL, a reputation that has carried over to what is now Lumen Field. The Kingdome's reputation contributed to the NFL's 1989 vote in favor of enacting a rule penalizing home teams for excessive crowd noise; it was especially loathed by Seahawks fans during preseason games, with fan displeasure throughout the league leading commissioner Pete Rozelle to soften enforcement of

16837-400: The move. The approval meant SuperSonics would be allowed to move to Oklahoma City's Ford Center for the 2008–09 season after reaching a settlement with the city of Seattle. On July 2, 2008, a settlement that allowed the team to move under certain conditions, including the ownership group's payment of $ 45 million to Seattle and the possibility of an additional $ 30 million by 2013 if

16986-542: The new stadium; the team was later named the Seattle Seahawks . Construction lasted another two years, and the stadium held an opening ceremony on March 27, 1976. It hosted its first professional sporting event two weeks later on April 9, an exhibition soccer game between the Seattle Sounders and New York Cosmos of the NASL . It set a record for the largest soccer audience in North America at 58,120. The stadium

17135-486: The outfield was symmetrical with a uniform wall height: deep in center, and short elsewhere. For the All-Star Game in 1979, center field was 410 feet (120 m), power alleys were 357 feet (109 m), and the foul lines were 316 feet (96 m); the unpadded wall was green with a top yellow stripe, approximately twelve feet (3.7 m) in height and did not have the power alley distances listed on it. Down

17284-515: The previous season . At the time, the Kingdome was known in the NBA for being the noisiest arena for basketball and for having the largest crowds, with stadium vendor Bill Scott ( a.k.a. Bill the Beerman) taking the duties as cheerleader. In the 1979–80 season , the SuperSonics set an NBA record average attendance of 21,725 fans per game (since broken). The SuperSonics set the NBA single-game playoff attendance record at 39,457 during Game 4 of

17433-411: The proposal would have violated league ownership rules. Schultz dropped the case before the start of the 2008–09 season. In 2009, a group of Seattle filmmakers known as Seattle SuperSonics Historical Preservation Society produced a critically acclaimed documentary film titled Sonicsgate – Requiem For A Team , which describes the rise and demise of the Seattle SuperSonics franchise. The film focuses on

17582-484: The rule before the start of the regular season. Raucous Seahawk fans at the Kingdome were also some of the earliest performers of The Wave . The city of Seattle made numerous bids to host the Super Bowl during the Seahawks' tenure at the Kingdome. However, despite five bids over 12 years, the Kingdome was never awarded the opportunity to host a Super Bowl; its closest chance was in 1989 for Super Bowl XXVI , which

17731-494: The sale on October 24, 2006, and finalized it seven days later, at which point the new ownership group took control. After failing to find public funding to construct a new arena in the Seattle area, the SuperSonics moved to Oklahoma City before the 2008–09 season , following a $ 45 million settlement with the city of Seattle to pay off their existing lease at the KeyArena at Seattle Center before it expired in 2010. The SuperSonics played their home games at KeyArena (originally

17880-423: The same day as the agreement signing, longtime Kingdome critic Frank Ruano filed a referendum petition in an attempt to halt the move, but he announced on September 17 that he would withdraw support from the petition for lack of support. While the SuperSonics had played a few games at the Kingdome over the previous two seasons, their full-time tenancy required the addition of 5,000 portable stadium seats added onto

18029-472: The season. Durant led all rookies in scoring at 20.3 ppg and won the Rookie of the Year award. The SuperSonics, however, posted a franchise-worst record of 20–62. It was their final season in Seattle because Bennett got the right to move the team after settling all legal issues with the city. The Seattle SuperSonics played their last home game on April 13, 2008, winning 99–95 against Dallas Mavericks . Throughout

18178-419: The speakers, and at one point threw mud balls at them. In bidding for construction of the stadium, which had separate offers for the dome and the rest of the stadium, Donald M. Drake Construction Company of Portland, Oregon , was the winning contractor for both with respective bids of $ 28.9 million and $ 5.9 million. Peter Kiewit Sons Construction Company was the only other bidder, offering $ 30.57 million for

18327-419: The stadium and $ 5.8 million for the roof; the latter came with the caveat of the company using its own design consultant. To help alleviate tension between the International District community and county officials, Drake emphasized the hiring of minorities, with minorities eventually representing 13 percent of the workers at the site; a community center and a shelter were also built in the neighborhood. However,

18476-479: The stadium plans in limbo, the team was forced to declare bankruptcy . Despite efforts by Seattle-area businessmen to buy the team as well as an attempt to keep the team in Seattle through the court system, the Pilots were sold to Milwaukee businessman Bud Selig , who relocated the team to Milwaukee and renamed it the Milwaukee Brewers a week before the start of the 1970 season . The push to build

18625-464: The stadium's construction encountered numerous issues; in January 1973, six support beams for the roof were toppled as one or two of them buckled, bringing down the others in a domino effect . By January 1974, the stadium reached 50 percent completion; only reaching 60 percent completion in July, it was clear that Drake would not reach the December deadline at that point. It was also apparent that Drake

18774-442: The team began to decline in performance; after winning the AFC West that year, it suffered a franchise-worst 2–14 record in 1992 . Season ticket sales, which had reached 62,000 that year with a waiting list of 30,000, gradually decreased to 46,000 in 1995 , with the team averaging 46,218 in attendance over five games at the Kingdome in 1994 ; as a result, the Seahawks began failing to sell out games, resulting in their blackout in

18923-542: The team reached the 1996 NBA Finals , but lost to the Michael Jordan -led Chicago Bulls in six games. Seattle continued to be a Western Conference powerhouse during the next two seasons, winning 57 games in 1996–97 and 61 games in 1997–98 for their second and third straight Pacific Division titles. At the end of the 1997–98 season, longtime Sonic and defensive specialist McMillan retired, and disagreements with management led Karl to end his tenure as head coach. He

19072-529: The team regressed with a 35–47 record. On May 22, 2007, the SuperSonics were awarded the second pick in the 2007 NBA draft , equaling the highest draft position the team ever held, selecting Kevin Durant from the University of Texas . On June 28, the SuperSonics traded Ray Allen and the 35th pick of the second-round Glen Davis in the 2007 NBA draft to Boston Celtics for rights to the fifth pick; Jeff Green , Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West . On July 11,

19221-515: The team to Oklahoma City and requested arbitration with the city of Seattle to be released from SuperSonics' lease of KeyArena. The judge rejected the request and Seattle sued Bennett's group to enforce the lease that required the team to play at KeyArena until 2010. On April 18, 2008, NBA owners approved a potential SuperSonics' relocation to Oklahoma City in a 28–2 vote by the league's Board of Governors; only Mark Cuban of Dallas Mavericks and Paul Allen of Portland Trail Blazers voted against

19370-447: The team to keep it in Seattle; we hoped to come here", although Bennett denied knowledge of this. Seattle used these incidents to argue the owners failed to negotiate in good faith, prompting Schultz to file a lawsuit seeking to rescind the sale of the team and transfer the ownership to a court-appointed receiver. The NBA said Schultz's lawsuit was void because Schultz signed a release forbidding himself to sue Bennett's group but also said

19519-413: The team's important sixth man during the championship series years. In recognition of his contributions to the team, Brown's number was retired in 1986. Lenny Wilkens left the organization following the 1984–85 season and Jack Sikma, the last-remaining member of the SuperSonics' championship team aside from trainer Frank Furtado, was traded after the 1985–86 season. Among the few SuperSonics highlights in

19668-569: The team's performance immediately improved. The SuperSonics won 11 of their first 12 games under Wilkens, finished the season at 47–35, won the Western Conference title, and led the Washington Bullets three games to two before losing in seven games in the 1978 NBA Finals . Center Marvin Webster went to New York but the SuperSonics' roster stayed largely intact during the off-season, and they won their first division title in 1979 . In

19817-448: The team. Initially, only majority owner Bruce Levenson would sell his stake but the remaining minority owners announced they would also sell their stakes, putting the entire franchise up for sale. On January 6, 2015, Seattle Post-Intelligencer reported Chris Hansen and film producer Thomas Tull —a minority owner of the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers —would enter separate bids to acquire the Hawks and move them to Seattle. The NBA stated

19966-502: The title games were moved to the Tacoma Dome in nearby Tacoma in 1995. The Seattle and Tacoma Police Departments played a yearly game named the Bacon Bowl to raise money for charity from 1980 to 2005; the Kingdome hosted it from the beginning until 1982, then had a one-off in 1985 during a nine-year span in which the Tacoma Dome hosted the rest of the games. The Kingdome hosted the game again from 1992 to 1994 before it returned to

20115-413: The top half of the NBA's all-time standings . Settlement terms of a lawsuit between the city of Seattle and Clay Bennett's ownership group stipulated SuperSonics' banners, trophies and retired jerseys remain in Seattle; the nickname, logo and color scheme are available to any subsequent NBA team that plays at KeyArena subject to NBA approval. The SuperSonics' franchise history, however, would be shared with

20264-412: The trading of Dale Ellis and Xavier McDaniel to other teams during the 1990–91 season . It was George Karl 's arrival as head coach in 1992, however, that marked a return to regular season and playoff competitiveness for the SuperSonics. With the continued improvement of Gary Payton and Shawn Kemp, the SuperSonics posted a 55–27 record in the 1992–93 season and took the Phoenix Suns to seven games in

20413-432: The upper deck as far as 617 feet (188 m) from home plate. Part of the problem was that the Kingdome was not a multipurpose stadium in the truest sense. Instead, it was built as a football stadium that could convert into a baseball stadium. For instance, most fans in the outfield seats on the 300 level were unable to see parts of right and center field; these areas were not part of the football playing field. For most of

20562-418: Was Haywood's second-consecutive All-NBA First Team selection; he averaged a SuperSonics record 29.2 points per game and collected 12.9 rebounds per game. Bill Russell was hired as the head coach in 1974, and he led the SuperSonics to the playoffs for the first time. The team, which featured Haywood, guards Fred Brown and Slick Watts , and rookie center Tommy Burleson , defeated the Detroit Pistons in

20711-475: Was a 91-yard touchdown and the other was a historic plowing into Seahawks high-profile rookie linebacker Brian "The Boz" Bosworth . The Seahawks regularly sold out games at the Kingdome from its inception and throughout the 1980s; 117 consecutive regular-season home games were sold out between 1979 and 1993 . However, after Ken Behring took over ownership of the team from the Nordstrom family in 1988 ,

20860-596: Was awarded to the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis , Minnesota . In its 1982 bid for Super Bowl XIX , the Seattle City Council voted to give tax exemptions to the NFL if the league selected the Kingdome to host the game. The Seahawks played their final game at the Kingdome on January 9, 2000 , suffering a first-round playoff loss to the Miami Dolphins in their first playoff appearance since

21009-575: Was considered a must because the roof was likely to inhibit the growth of natural grass, like the Astrodome 's roof. The AstroTurf surface was first replaced in July 1983 during the MLB All-Star break; Monsanto , the then-owner of AstroTurf, won the turf replacement contract over SuperTurf (then used by the Metrodome) with a bid of $ 1.2 million. By request of the Mariners and Seahawks, it

21158-430: Was finished at $ 20 million over budget, with part of the cost overrun covered by a $ 12.8 million out-of-court settlement in 1980 between the county and Drake's liability insurers. Like virtually all other multi-purpose stadiums, the Kingdome featured AstroTurf artificial turf for its playing surface, with its baseball configuration featuring dirt sliding pits around each base. When it was constructed, artificial turf

21307-462: Was ill-prepared to work on a project with such scale, with numerous errors, delays, and short-staffing slowing down construction. Efforts to renegotiate the contract failed, and on November 22, Drake stopped work on the Kingdome. The county fired Drake on December 10, bringing in Kiewit to finish construction on the stadium. On December 5, 1974, the NFL awarded Seattle an expansion franchise to occupy

21456-407: Was led by player-coach Wilkens and First Team forward Haywood, held a 46–27 mark but late-season injuries to starters Haywood, Dick Snyder and Don Smith led to the team losing eight of its final nine games. For the 1972–73 season, Wilkens was traded to Cleveland Cavaliers in an unpopular move; without his leadership, the SuperSonics fell to a 26–56 record. One of the highlights of the season

21605-469: Was replaced again in October and December 1990 at a cost of $ 2.56 million; the previous surface was sold off thereafter, with 25 rolls of it sold to the Tacoma Dome for $ 108,200. A strip 40 feet by 4 inches was ripped off left field near second base during a field invasion by celebrating fans after the Mariners won the AL West tiebreaker game in 1995; it was replaced before the first Mariners home game in

21754-475: Was replaced by former Sonic Paul Westphal for the 1998–99 season . The 1998–99 season saw the SuperSonics struggle. Westphal was dismissed after the team started the 2000–01 season 6–9, and replaced on an interim basis by assistant coach Nate McMillan , who was appointed permanent head coach in February 2001. In the 2002–03 season , All-Star Payton was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks ; that season marked

21903-474: Was revealed Hansen's investment partners included Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer , and brothers Erik and Peter Nordstrom of fashion retailer Nordstrom, Inc. Peter Nordstrom had been a minority owner of SuperSonics under Howard Schultz's ownership. Wally Walker , former SuperSonics executive, was also later revealed to be part of Hansen's group. On January 9, 2013, media reports regarding the imminent sale of majority ownership of Sacramento Kings to Hansen, Ballmer,

22052-463: Was that neither team saw their shared tenancy as profitable; both teams also questioned the integrity of the stadium's roof as highlighted by the collapse of ceiling tiles onto the seating area before a scheduled Mariners game in 1994. As a result, public funding packages for new, purpose-built stadiums for the Mariners and Seahawks were respectively approved in 1995 and 1997. The Mariners moved to Safeco Field, now known as T-Mobile Park , midway through

22201-470: Was then owned by Barry Ackerley until 2001, when it came under ownership of Basketball Club of Seattle, headed by Starbucks chairman emeritus, former president and CEO Howard Schultz . On July 18, 2006, Basketball Club of Seattle sold SuperSonics and its Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) sister franchise Seattle Storm to Professional Basketball Club LLC , headed by Oklahoma City businessman Clay Bennett . The NBA Board of Governors approved

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