Tulsa Could Receive Boost From NBA Arrival

Oklahoma City joined the big leagues on Wednesday, after a surprise announcement the NBA's Supersonics had settled a dispute with Seattle and is moving the team to OKC. Owner Clay Bennett had one more surprise up his sleeve though, a pledge for preseason games in Tulsa.

The News On 6's Steve Berg reports it would be a nice boost for downtown Tulsa and it could mean even more in the future.

Tulsa Sports Commission Director Mike Dodson says he's happy for Oklahoma City.

"I mean, it'll be in the media all the time and will be good for the state long-term," said Dodson.

And happy to hear Clay Bennett mentions Tulsa at such an early stage in the game.

"Very pleased, very pleased that Mr. Bennett made reference to Tulsa and the opportunities here," said Dodson.

"We hope to play pre-season games in Tulsa.  We've had preliminary discussions about that, but we need to firm that up, now that we know the certainty is here," said Bennett.

"I was shocked and surprised and pumped up," said Chris Plank of 1430 The Buzz.

Surprised as he was, Plank says it makes sense to draw on NBA fans from Northeast Oklahoma and even Missouri and Arkansas.

"You get the sense that this group, Clay Bennett's group, gets the importance of Tulsa to the entire landscape of success for NBA in Oklahoma," said Plank.

Dodson is already setting his sight higher.

"There's a 41-game home schedule that the NBA plays, and I think five or six games a year in Tulsa would be something great for the whole state and would really get us behind the effort here and in Oklahoma City as well.  It'll really help their brand," said Dodson.

Plank says that would be a stretch at first, but maybe not in a few years when the initial excitement in Oklahoma City wears off.

"It's not going to be early, but definitely in the next couple of years, they're going to need us and they're going to need us to help them sell tickets in a major way," said Plank.

Officials say the BOK Center could benefit indirectly from all this. Because the Ford Center will be so much busier now, they say more events could look to Tulsa as an alternative.