It’s true; Louisville is not new to the professional sporting stage. The city of Louisville has played host to the National Football League, American Basketball Association and Major League Baseball over the course of the last century or more. Most recently though, the Kentucky Colonels of the American Basketball Association were the most victorious team in the league between 1967-1976. After 1976 the ABA and NBA merged and the Louisville Colonels were absorbed and seized to exist.
The city of Louisville has supposedly pursued pro NBA teams in the past like the Charlotte Hornets and Vancouver Grizzlies before their moves to their current cities. Talk has begun to resurface in recent months about the possibility of a team coming back to Louisville. After all, what better place for a pro team to play than the beautiful KFC Yum! Center?
Back in December, University of Kentucky Head Coach John Calipari expressed his interest in the idea of an NBA team in Louisville.
“Anything that's good for the city of Louisville is good for our state. I believe [the NBA] is good for the city of Louisville, which makes our state even better." -John Calipari
The key words there are “good for the city of Louisville.”
A professional team would mean more jobs, more revenue and of course more eyes on our fine city. Many fear a pro team would tarnish the fervor for college basketball in Louisville, but the fact is it would likely only strengthen it.
Think about it, college hoop stars would love an opportunity to share a venue with a pro team and a pro team would love to have buffet of college hoop stars to try and recruit from. More recruits for the University of Louisville means a higher caliber team and likely higher enrollment numbers.
You can just feel the excitement welling up inside of you can’t you? The thought of a Louisville NBA team competing with the likes of the Chicago Bulls and the Boston Celtics once again; it seems so fantastical and far-fetched, but it really isn’t it. If the people of Louisville really truly want it, they need to ask for it or better yet – demand it. C’mon, the Louisville Clippers, Louisville Kings anyone?
Qoute courtesy of ESPN.com and the Associated Press
Logo courtesy of the NBA.
