HoopsHype.com Rumors

Ken Berger: Two taxpayer groups call Sac's arena plan "financially irresponsible" and are starting a ballot initiative to put it to a public vote. Twitter @KBergCBS

Sacramento Kings 

Ken Berger: “This comes at a time when the City simply does not have the funds to waste,” said Julian Camacho, chairman of one of the taxpayer groups. Twitter @KBergCBS

Sacramento Kings 

Aaron Bruski: NBA source with intimate knowledge of the Kings situation on SAC anti-arena groups: "Not an issue, no legal standing." Twitter @aaronbruski

Sacramento Kings 

Aaron Bruski: Source on timing of the SAC anti-arena release to media: "It's all PR. Once you do due diligence, you see that there's nothing there." Twitter @aaronbruski

Sacramento Kings 

George Maloof, one of the members of the family that owns the Sacramento Kings, said again today their desire is to sell the team to a Seattle group led by Chris Hansen and Steve Ballmer. Maloof is in Dallas in advance of the NBA Board of Governors meetings tomorrow, and in a brief interview as he walked through the lobby, reiterated the family’s long stance about selling the team to the Seattle group. “We have a binding agreement,” he said. “That’s our commitment, to Chris and Steve. We want to see it through.” Seattle Times

Sacramento Kings, George Maloof, Owners, Steve Ballmer, Chris Hansen 

Ken Berger: Asked an owner today if Hansen backup plan with Maloofs is a game-changer. ”It doesn't make any sense to me,” he said. Twitter @KBergCBS

Sacramento Kings, George Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Owners, Jim Maloof 

Ken Berger: With opposition to relocation unwavering, owner reiterated stance on tomorrow's Dallas meeting: ”It's not about Seattle.” Twitter @KBergCBS

Sacramento Kings, Owners 

Indications the day before the scheduled Sacramento-Seattle vote that the India issue will have very little sway in the final outcome. This is more along the lines of minor development compared to the larger issues -- arena, revenue sharing, relocation fee, etc. -- but it is noteworthy considering SAC mayor Kevin Johnson had made the presence of Vivek Ranadive, born and raised in India before striking it rich in the San Francisco area, a focus of the bid to retain the Kings. In Johnson's mind, Ranadive could help the NBA advance its goal of a greater presence in the world second-most populous country and generate millions for the league. But, said one person very familiar with the thinking of the Board of Governors: "It's not a factor at all." Sulia

Sacramento Kings, Owners, Kevin Johnson, Vivek Ranadive 

But now that Seattle’s advances have been rebuffed by the NBA, sources say it’s Ballmer that has taken on a larger role in decision-making for the Seattle ownership group. The polar opposite of the soft-spoken hedge fund manager in Hansen – Ballmer is known for being loud and outrageous. Vanity Fair ran a seething piece (Microsoft’s Lost Decade) last August detailing a violent incident and more. NBCSports.com

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, Steve Ballmer 

Now that Ballmer has taken on a larger role with the Seattle group, league sources tell PBT that the same bravado he has employed with Microsoft is turning heads at the league office – and not in a good way. It’s no secret that Ballmer is a handful — but a well-connected and filthy rich handful that the NBA would love to have in its stable. At least that was the case. According to league sources speaking to PBT under condition of anonymity, the recent power plays made by Seattle and the Maloof family have “started to weigh on the NBA to the point where any Ballmer-led proposal now or in the future could fall on deaf ears if he doesn’t change course.” NBCSports.com

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, Steve Ballmer 

When asked to clarify, the source said that should the Seattle group continue to pursue a scorched earth policy with the Sacramento marketplace, they would jeopardize the city’s ability to secure an NBA team down the road should an opportunity present itself. When asked how Seattle got to that point, several sources with knowledge of the situation have told PBT that once they recognized the Sacramento bid was likely to meet league requirements, and ultimately secure the Kings, then decision-making for Seattle’s strategy and PR effort slowly shifted into Ballmer’s hands. That strategy has been at odds with the due process the NBA has been following, and recently it has been at odds with the NBA itself. NBCSports.com

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, Steve Ballmer 

“He’s on a rampage,” said one source. “He assumed he could backdoor Sacramento with a willing partner in the Maloofs, but he underestimated Sacramento and now he thinks he can twist enough arms around the league to force his way into the association.” NBCSports.com

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, Steve Ballmer 

A committee of NBA owners who have been studying the future of the Sacramento Kings met Monday but did not change their position to recommend the team be kept in Sacramento and not moved to Seattle, a source told ESPN.com. A final full vote on the matter is expected at owners' meetings Wednesday in Dallas. It remains unclear, however, who will own the Kings after Wednesday's meetings. ESPN.com

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics 

Dale Kasler: Am told the relo/finance committee conf call is over but no recommendations made on #NBAKings Twitter

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics 

Dale Kasler: For those who've asked: I think this relo/fin conf call was just to update. No votes taken. I guess Apr 29 relo recommendation still stands Twitter

Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics 

Seattle fans are waiting to find out whether they’ll get a new NBA team soon, but that doesn’t mean they’ve forgotten how the SuperSonics were taken from them in 2008. Seattle rapper Macklemore, one of the breakout stars of 2013, got wind that the Oklahoma City Thunder have been using his song “Can’t Hold Us” to pump the crowd up at home games, and reacted about how you’d expect. For The Win

Oklahoma City Thunder, Sacramento Kings, Seattle SuperSonics, Macklemore 

Aaron Bruski: Small tidbit. I'm told Chris Hansen's land use attorney Jack McCullough will speak tomorrow before the relo committee. Twitter @aaronbruski

Sacramento Kings, Owners, Chris Hansen, Jack McCullough 

A memo obtained by NBA.com details a potential framework for legal action, citing the Sherman Act's prohibition against group boycotts. In this instance, the (unauthored) memo argues, the league would be vulnerable to a lawsuit by the Hansen group based on the Haywood case won by Spencer Haywood against the league in 1971. That case allowed Haywood to sign a contract to play in the NBA despite not having graduated from college, the existing rule at the time for eligibility. Haywood successfully argued that financial hardship necessitated him coming into the league immediately. NBA.com

Sacramento Kings, Owners, Chris Hansen, Spencer Haywood 

The memo's author argues that Hansen could successfully sue the NBA because if owners vote to reject the sale of the team to him, they would be engaging in a similar group boycott that the Supreme Court ruled was illegal in the Haywood case. But all that may, literally, be an academic exercise. A source directly involved with Hansen's pursuit of the team reiterated Friday that Hansen is not looking at potential litigation as a means for getting the Kings. "It's not part of anything that our group is contemplating," the source said. NBA.com

Sacramento Kings, Owners, Chris Hansen, Spencer Haywood 

Despite repeatedly dismissing overtures from a Sacramento group eager to buy the Kings, the team's owners have not closed the door on that possibility and were receiving updates from the NBA on the Sacramento group's efforts as recently as this weekend, a source said Sunday. The team "still has that option," said a source with knowledge of the Maloof family's thinking. Sacramento Bee

Sacramento Kings, Joe Maloof, George Maloof, Gavin Maloof, Owners