Mark A rumor - Buying stake in the Bucks?

[BCZF]

Wasn't sure where to put this one, feel free to move to wherever..

 

Read the last paragraph of this article, says there is a rumor of Mark A possibly buying/buying a share in your Milwaukee Bucks..

 

Don't see it happening with an arena that that apparently is so old and non revenue generating..

 

Drew Olson Saturday Scorecard: 2008-07-19

 

 

(edit: clickification --1992)

[1992casey]

Here's the pertinent tidbit from the link above.

Question: We need a good, non-Favre rumor. Do you have anything?

 

Answer: Of course. It's probably nothing, but some Brewers players were chatting the other day and they seemed convinced that owner Mark Attanasio is interested in buying the Bucks, or at least a stake in the team.

 

That would be very interesting, don't you think?

[bball123h2]

New arena for Bucks = Miller Park!

[drezdn]

If he has the same attitude towards the Bucks that he has towards the Brewers, it could be great for the team.

[FIPS133]

This is not the first time I've hard Mark connected to the Bucks. While it's just rumor I believe this is encouraging because it shows Attanasio must really like this town. While I have real issues with Kohl's management style I appreciate that he's held the team for a long time and has been remarkably committed to keeping payroll competitive despite market size. It's what he's been spending that payroll on and the people put in place to manage the players and roster that have been the problem.

 

I have to believe there will be some resolution to the arena issue prior to any sale.

[foamboy1]

It's absurd that the Bradley Center has not merged with the Wisconsin Center District to tap into their taxing authority in order to capitalize the improvements necessary for the BC to become competitive. It's hard to believe, but the BC is the lowest producer of revenue in the NBA in terms of current configuration. I love the BC, but it needs updates before the ownership situation can be resolved.

[crewcrazy]

Anything preventing the Milwaukee Bucks from becoming the Seattle Bucks would be great.

[bork]

Franklin Gimble has to go. He seems to be the obstacle to merger. And he'd probably screw up the Bradley Center, if they did merge. Didn't the Milwaukee Theatre boodoggle end up costing something like $60 million, for a venue that's used 3 times a year. Like Milwaukee needed another concert venue. Meanwhile, the Midwest Airlines Center is too small to attract conventions because it wasn't expanded.

[foamboy1]

Good points, Bork. It's really both groups. They have danced around merging before but the egos get in the way. Gimbel leads one board and Ulice Payne leads the other....but they have plenty of other egos involved on both sides. It's a complete no-brainer to solve the BC problems.

I believe the Milwaukee Theater was a bit less than $30 million....it's used some, but not as much as it needs to be. There is no accountability to the taxpayer on any of this...that's the painful part.

[bork]

I found the numbers. It was bid at $32 million and ended up costing $42 (for 12 shows in the next year). That could have been a good start on a Bradley Center rehab.

 

And you're right. The lack of taxpayer accountability is a big part of the problem.

[FIPS133]

Excellent points and I'm thrilled to see you raised the issue of Frank Gimbel. He's running his own show - the Mayor won't challenge him - Doyle is ambivalent and the state legislature generally lumps all things Milwaukee into the "problems" folder and rarely open the folder.

The Milwaukee Theater was a Gimbel power grab to blunt the BC from their "idea" of a separate concert venue and it's a true shame as you say that money wasn't used for the BC, expanding the Convention Center or simply not spent!

I really believe what's needed to get some movement on this is for Kohl to exercise leadership. He hasn't really advocated a position on this except saying he thought renovating the BC was not an option. As the largest and most significant tennant I believe he could say "we need a new facility to be competitive in the future and secure it in Milwaukee for another generation". Publicly say he's signing a 5-6 year extension at the BC and expects a new facility by 2015-2016. I would also expect him to offer a contribution towards a new facility - perhaps $30-$50 million.

With this the community would actually have something real to debate and force the BC and Gimbel to figure out how they can make this work or allow the team to move to KC, Vegas, Seattle....

[MickeyDavis]

Well the MJS did a great expose' on the whole Milwaukee Theater project and what a waste of money it was. They also called out Gimbel for the lack of accountability of the WCD as well as his king like approach to running the WCD.

 

Oh wait, no they didn't. Not a peep from the local media.

[MickeyDavis]

As far as Mark buying the Bucks and what that would

mean for the franchise, certainly having an owner comitted to keeping the team in town is key.

 

The main thing Mark has done is raise payroll to the point where the team can be competitive. Spending money has never been the issue of the Bucks lack of success. Kohl made Glenn Robinson the highest paid rookie in the history of the NBA. It led to the rookie scale they have today. He hired Dunleavy (away from the Lakers) with a then unheard of 8 year deal. He made George Karl the highest paid (at the time) coach in any sport. He gave mega contracts to Ray Allen, Tim Thomas, Michael Redd. No, the problem was never spending money, it was spending it wisely. Much of that was due to Kohl's infamous meddling. Now he has seemed to seen the light and has hired a basketball guy to make the basketball decisions. We'll see how that works.

 

As far as the front office, Doug Melvin and Jack Zduriencik were already in place, as was Yost. Mark talked about hiring a team president but never did. When it comes time to replacing those guys we'll see how he does hiring key personel. There is a pretty good chance that Jack will get a GM gig over the winter.

[foamboy1]

To the point of this thread, I don't believe Mark A. is an interested and serious bidder for the Bucks. There is someone quite interested who has been meeting with Kohl....the BC issues have to be resolved and the acquisition would be part of a larger real estate play in the neighboring areas....a redevelopment project with the Bucks as the centerpiece. It's possible, but there are many moving parts that rely on a number of things aligning correctly.

[endaround]

If we've seen anything Mark A has been loathe to lose money on the Brewers. This may (I stress may) be the first year where he'll lose a small amount in operating expenses. He's been making huge amounts the past few years. I'm not bashing him or anything but people tend not to understand that he didn't come here and suddenly open up the coffers, but he has other income sources so unlike the Seligs he wasn't borrowing to pay spring payrolls until June revenue sharing checks came in.

[homer]

To the point of this thread, I don't believe Mark A. is an interested and serious bidder for the Bucks. There is someone quite interested who has been meeting with Kohl....the BC issues have to be resolved and the acquisition would be part of a larger real estate play in the neighboring areas....a redevelopment project with the Bucks as the centerpiece. It's possible, but there are many moving parts that rely on a number of things aligning correctly.

 

Junior Bridgeman!!! And he'll open like 5 Wendy's on 4th St. and make BC like a giant Mothership Wendy's.

[MickeyDavis]

Some good points. Mark has made it clear that his partners want a return on their investment every year. Many owners are willing to take some short term losses and cash in when the team is eventually sold. True, the Brewers might lose some money this year, but not much. Kohl has been losing money almost every year but he bought the team for less than $20 million and will make a bundle when he sells.

 

If anything Attanasio would be part of a group who buys the Bucks, just like he did with the Brewers. But without a new building agreement in place, he won't be interested. Nor will anyone else.

 

As far as Junior Bridgeman, he also doesn't have the cash to buy the team. And if he did don't forget he's from Louisville. They have a new building and would love an NBA team.