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Editorial: Bobcats' D-League team should be in Asheville

by Dennis Justice
April 10, 2009 - NBA G League (G League)


The announcement of expansion of the NBA's minor league, the NBA Development League, to the northeast expands that league to fourteen teams. Currently, the Charlotte Bobcats share their D-League affiliate, the Sioux Falls Skyforce, with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Many NBA executives, from Pat Riley to Danny Ainge, have publicly stated they want their NBA team to have their own D-League team. The advantages are obvious. It helps with player development and instills the parent club's coaching style.

Charlotte, just like every other NBA team, will eventually have to field their own D-League team, and probably will announce one within the next two years. So begins the search for the right location. As someone who watched the D-League games in Asheville when the city had the Altitude, let me tout the reasons Asheville is clearly the best choice.

Sure, Charlotte could decide to have their D-League team play at Time-Warner Cable Arena, copying the Lakers' decision to just have games at the same venue they play in, the Staples Center. That is, if they really don't care that nobody will watch the games at all, generating no interest for the Bobcats. Asheville is just far enough away where the fans will care about the team, and not forget it's the Charlotte-based team.

While other cities in the Carolinas have venues with tons of seating, Asheville will have a new venue at UNC-Asheville, the Kimmel Arena, which is just right for a new D-League team. It will seat about 3,500, be a basketball-centered facility that won't compete with other sports, and be quite intimate.

The best part is, since Kimmel Arena will not be completed until 2011, it would give the Bobcats time to announce a team, and take at least a year to market it. The previous time the D-League was in the southeast, they only gave themselves five months to market, playing in venues too big for it, and it was a disaster. It's always better to have fans in a smaller venue, because they will be more excitable than if they were spread out in a larger arena, where they feel scared to even raise their voice. This is especially true since all the D-League games are broadcast for free on their website. Then, as the fan base builds, eventually move to a bigger venue. Regardless, the risk/reward favors Asheville over other potential suitors.

The biggest advantage for Asheville is the Altitude is still the only D-League team with two championships (2004, 2005). And it should be pointed out that Asheville never got a chance for a "three-peat." That history cannot be ignored when the Bobcats finally announce their D-League city.

Whether they keep the name "Altitude" or go with something like "Freaks" (Asheville was called "the freak capital of America" by Rolling Stone Magazine for our, ahem, eclectic downtown, so why not have fun with it?), the Bobcats could develop their own players for an up-and-coming team, and show good financial sense in these troubled times, by choosing Asheville over any other city.

Justice is from Fletcher, North Carolina. He runs wncsport.com, a regional sports website. His E-mail is wncsport@aol.com.

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The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer(s), and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


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