Columnist Dean Juipe: Survey puts Las Vegas in NBA hunt

Dean Juipe

Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2001 | 11:01 a.m.

Dean Juipe's column appears Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. His boxing notebook appears Thursday. Reach him at juipe@lasvegassun.com or 259-4084.

Let's return to the subject of the NBA's Vancouver Grizzlies moving to Las Vegas.

A week ago when the item surfaced, it had little more than a fanciful feel to it.

It was one more team that was ready to relocate and had included Las Vegas on its long list of possibilities. It seemed meaningless.

But in the ensuing days, Las Vegas appears to have gained some ground at the expense of the two cities that were the early front-runners for acquiring the financially troubled franchise.

Have things really changed so much that a move to Las Vegas is more than speculative and might actually have some legitimacy? Probably not. But what is becoming more apparent is the feeling that while Las Vegas may not yet be ready for the Grizzlies it might very well be ready when the next NBA team is prepared to uproot, and that team is the Toronto Raptors.

We'd rather have the Raptors.

But let's look at what's going on with the Grizzlies.

A sports/business publication called Sports Business Journal has just come out with a survey examining the cities that could land the Grizzlies and it lists Las Vegas at No. 1. It put a heavy emphasis on the city's personal-income and disposable-income levels, and it downplayed such pertinent items as arena availability and what could be a contentious battle between the league and the state pertaining to NBA wagering in Las Vegas sports books.

As such, the survey looks to be flawed.

Nevertheless, it spoke highly of Las Vegas and it may even be reflecting an inference or between-the-lines comment made by team owner Michael Heisley when he was interviewed for the story.

Heisley did say he was against moving the Grizzlies to St. Louis, as the rental proposal he has received from the operators of the arena there struck him as offensive. At least for the short term, St. Louis is out.

So, too, is what we thought was an equally prime target, New Orleans. While it has a vacant arena it must be dying to lease, an analysis of that city's disposable income came up with some unfavorable numbers. If this study is to be believed, residents of New Orleans can't afford to support an NBA team.

That leaves Las Vegas, Louisville, Memphis, Anaheim and perhaps Chicago (which already has the Bulls, of course) as contenders.

But Las Vegas is hindered by its lack of a suitable arena and its unwillingness to build one (at least at the present time). Any incoming team would have to build its own arena, and we don't know if Heisley is ready and willing to do it.

Even if he is agreeable to that $200 million investment, there's the question of the state taking legalized wagers on NBA games and the NBA's insistence that such a practice would have to be curtailed in the valley, if not statewide. I've found myself in the minority every time I've said I think the city's sports books would back off the NBA games (for the good of the community), but if the majority view is more accurate the gambling issue is an insurmountable stumbling block.

The negatives remain significant.

But in what could be a first, Las Vegas is getting a serious look.