Seattle arena backer cleared to shop for NBA team

Seattle, you have a green light.

With developer Chris Hansen on the verge of a $490 million financial agreement with the Seattle City Council — it’s been recommended for approval but there is a final vote ahead on the renegotiated memorandum of understanding — the possibility of an NBA return to Seattle has never looked better.

What they need now is a team.

Hansen, at a celebration event for the deal at a Seattle bar Thursday, told the AP the NBA has been watching the process. He also tried to caution fans that this is not going to be instantaneous.

“I worry that people are expecting us to get this deal done and it be like magic and a team would be here this year. It’s like, `Poof and we’ve got a deal done and where is our team?’ This is a far more difficult process. I think anybody who is intimately familiar with the NBA knows this is a tough next phase we have to go through.”

A lot of people are looking to Sacramento and the Kings as a team Seattle bound, but that is not likely in the short term. The Maloof family (which owns the Kings) seems to live in a fairytale land where someone will build them an arena but let the Maloofs retain majority ownership of the team and rake in the profits from the arena. Something that’s going to happen right after my first date with Kate Upton.

After that, there are not easy to move teams out there. The New Orleans Hornets just got a new owner who will keep them in town. The Memphis Grizzlies are about to get a new owner and have a rock-solid lease anyway. Owner Herb Kohl is looking for future owners that keep the Bucks in Milwaukee.

But Seattle is in the market. It may not happen as fast as Seattle fans want, but they are shopping and that is a big step.