374 sLAde goRton: A hALf centuRy in poLitics
happened and the city failed to land a new NBA team by 2013, the Okla-
homans had to write the second check. Stern said the NBA “would be
happy to return” to Seattle at a future time.
The Legislature balked once again. In his bid for a third term, Nickels
was defeated in the 2009 primary—the loss of the Sonics adding to the
voters’ general dissatisfaction with City Hall.
“The settlement was highly favorable,” Gorton maintains, “yet still de-
nounced by the sporting press and others. They wanted what we couldn’t
get—a permanent team. So it ended up hurting Greg Nickels, the only
politician who really had the courage to do something positive.”
At this writing, Seattle has no replacement team. Even more gallingly
to Sonics fans, Kevin Durant, the club’s blue-chip 2007 draft pick,
emerged as a superstar. The Thunder made the playoffs in its first sea-
son. By 2011 it was a genuine contender.^14