The Sacramento arena deal will be a major subject of discussion at this week's NBA Board of Governors meetings. The Kings' owners, the Maloof brothers, intend to ask their fellow owners for support in forcing the city of Sacramento to negotiate a better arena deal, according to a Sacramento Bee report.
The Maloofs, the city of Sacramento, and the NBA worked out a tentative deal to keep the Kings in Sacramento long-term, but the team's owners have denied agreeing to certain aspects of the deal. While not all of the team's concerns have been made public, one point of contention is the $3.26MM the Kings are required to pay in pre-development fees. The Maloofs deny agreeing to that cost, and so far commissioner David Stern and the NBA have contributed the team's portion.
It's unclear whether or not Stern will be willing to reopen negotiations, though one former NBA executive believes the commissioner is more likely to side with the city. Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson and city officials won't attend the Board of Governors meetings in New York, since they don't feel further negotiation is required.
"We've done everything we were asked to by the NBA," said Assistant City Manager John Dangberg. "We are hopeful the NBA and the team can … bring back a solution."
Besides the pre-development costs, some other sticking points for the team, according to the Bee, are concerns about parking issues, a lack of decision-making authority, and issues with the proposed lease terms and revenue streams.