Seattle mayor Mike McGinn said that he has been informed that there will be no vote regarding the fate of the Kings taken this week when the NBA Board of Governors meets in New York City, reports Bob Condotta of the Seattle Times. A combination of the NBA's relocation and finance committees are meeting in New York tomorrow and the full Board of Governors (the owners of the 30 NBA teams) will be meeting on Thursday and Friday.
Tony Bizjak and Dale Kasler of the Sacramento Bee confirm Condotta's report, adding that while no reason was given for the postponement, David Stern did hint a few weeks back that a decision may not be made by this week. Per the Bee, Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson indicated the city's bid is being finalized and will be ready by tomorrow's NBA meetings. Johnson expressed confidence that the bid "can win favor with both the NBA and the Maloof family," but also implied that it will not match the increased offer Seattle's group announced Friday night.
Votes on the approval of sale and relocation were expected to happen this week, but McGinn said he was told by Stern himself not to expect a decision by Friday. As we outlined yesterday, once it does happen, it will take the votes of 23 of 30 owners to approve the sale of the Kings to the group led by Seattle investor Chris Hansen and the votes of 16 of 30 owners to approve the request to relocate the team.
Despite this latest delay, Seattle continues to move forward with their plans. According to King TV's Chris Daniels, McGinn also announced on Tuesday that a formal deal for Key Arena has been struck between the city and Hansen's group that calls for a minimum of $3MM in permanent investments and guarantees $2MM more annually, which will bump to $750,000 should the arena add an NHL team. The investments will enable seating and technology upgrades along with locker room and club improvements. (Twitter links located here)