11/05/24
May 18, 2009
Someone's Getting a RAW Deal: The Denver Nuggets should be hosting the Los Angeles Lakers for Game Four of the Western Conference finals next Monday night. Unfortunately, Kroenke Sports -- which owns the Nuggets and the Pepsi Center -- booked in and confirmed Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Entertainment for the same night. More than 10,000 tickets and a contract signed and returned on April 15 - the final night of the regular season - later, it's time for the schedulers to get it on!
posted by wfrazerjr to basketball at 09:17 PM - 18 comments
Kroenke is also the biggest shareholder of the Arsenal, where are the Gunner fans to stick up for him? Actually I'm surprised this doesn't happen more often, per NoMich's comment.
posted by billsaysthis at 09:55 PM on May 18, 2009
They should combine the events. I'd love to see someone hit Pau Gasol with a chair while Chauncey Billups distracts the refs.
posted by Mr Bismarck at 07:21 AM on May 19, 2009
Now yer thinkin'!
posted by NoMich at 09:04 AM on May 19, 2009
As an Arsenal fan, I'm with Mr Bismarck. How's that for a defense?
posted by trox at 09:20 AM on May 19, 2009
They should combine the events. I'd love to see someone hit Pau Gasol with a chair while Chauncey Billups distracts the refs.
Or maybe K-Mart could trying committing a flagrant foul against the Big Show and see what happens.
posted by TheQatarian at 10:20 AM on May 19, 2009
Didn't the Penguins have to change a playoff date against Washington because of a Yanni concert?
I can hear Vince telling the people who made this mistake, "You're FIRED!!!!"
posted by dbt302 at 12:23 PM on May 19, 2009
It's not the WWE's fault. They got a contract back from Kroenke Sports on the final day of the season. It's like Vince said, it's almost like they were betting the Nuggets didn't make the conference finals.
posted by wfrazerjr at 01:26 PM on May 19, 2009
Let me see here, WWE or NBA. Is there really any difference? Are either one of them real? I might go see Sesame Street on Ice but neither of the other ones since only the BIG markets can get the NBA (having to play against 7) and we all know WWE isn't real is it!!!
posted by coach at 02:24 PM on May 19, 2009
I love pro-wrestling. Ergo I DESPISE WWE so I hope they wind up having to do Raw from an old fridge box at the back of the venue. (I may hate basketball, but I hate McMahon more.)
posted by Drood at 05:36 PM on May 19, 2009
I wish I was a fan of the Nuggets or Lakers, then I could say that both events are "smackdowns"--LOL but I digress.
posted by jagsnumberone at 07:10 PM on May 19, 2009
Actually it was more like they were betting on the Lakers wrapping up their series in 5 or 6 games and not going to a game 7.
posted by marathonman6953 at 03:22 PM on May 20, 2009
wfrazerjr wrote: "It's not the WWE's fault. They got a contract back from Kroenke Sports on the final day of the season. It's like Vince said, it's almost like they were betting the Nuggets didn't make the conference finals."
If you blame Kroenke Sports, then you can blame the lakers for letting a "Beat Up", Houston team (missing its two best players) take them to seven games. All the planets had to line up for this to happen, & I think the NBA can move that game back and everyone would be happy.
posted by bo_fan at 03:30 PM on May 20, 2009
No, I can just blame Kroenke Sports. Booking outside events during the NBA playoffs is just plain stupid.
The situation has been resolved, as the WWE now has two dates at the Staples Center and will return to Denver (in a different venue) in August. Here's a short video chat with Shane McMahon and John Cena about the upcoming event and what the WWE might do to make light of the situation.
One scheduled bout -- Vince McMahon vs. a Kroenke lookalike.
posted by wfrazerjr at 11:22 AM on May 22, 2009
I love how McMahon is translating this drama into free publicity.
Kroenke is stupid if they thought WWE should move to a different night. Did they think USA was going to change their television schedule because Kroenke messed up?
posted by bperk at 11:32 AM on May 22, 2009
What I don't understand: Why would the NBA schedule a playoff game on a night it knew Denver's arena was already booked? Do they schedule the conference finals for specific dates even before knowing the teams?
posted by rcade at 12:10 PM on May 22, 2009
What I don't understand: Why would the NBA schedule a playoff game on a night it knew Denver's arena was already booked? Do they schedule the conference finals for specific dates even before knowing the teams?
From watching david stern interviews, I think the NBA lets teams know when home games would be in advance, and it us up to the teams to worry about scheduling their arenas.
posted by jmd82 at 01:01 PM on May 22, 2009
The NHL scheduled the Caps-Penguins game around a freakin' Yanni concert. Presumably the NBA could have done the same.
posted by bperk at 02:10 PM on May 22, 2009
Doesn't this actually happen quite a bit? It's pretty hard for an arena owner to turn down a WWE gig, a Sesame Street on Ice, a big name concert, whatever. Thems are big money events.