The Warriors will postpone their move to a new arena in San Francisco for a full season, according to Tim Kawakami of The Bay Area News Group. Team president Rick Welts told Kawakami on his “TK Show” this afternoon that litigation filed by opponents of the arena forced the franchise to push back its relocation to the fall of 2019.
The announcement means the Warriors will remain at Oracle Arena through the 2018/19 season, instead of leaving after the end of the 2018 season. Welts said the lawsuit is the only remaining obstacle to the move. Once construction on the new facility begins, he estimates it will take two seasons to complete.
Welts added that the facility will be an NBA-only arena. It will be built with NBA dimensions, rather than being designed to fit both basketball and hockey.
A poll in December showed public opposition growing to the proposed new facility in San Francisco’s Mission Bay Neighborhood. The survey, conducted by EDC Research, found just 49% of voters supporting the project, down from 61% in July.
San Fran has never been rumored for a NHL team or even Minor League team but at least gets a NBA team.
Lawsuits won’t stop the warriors from coming back to San Francisco. They, like everyone else, want out of oakland. Public support has never been higher. They pull these “polls” that interview 200 people who routinely participate in polls. Talk to anyone in San francisco.