Thunderous Intentions
Fansided

OKC Thunder – Top 10 moments of 2008-2009 season

By Stephen Dolan

UNITED STATES - MARCH 24: Fans wait to enter the Ford Center for a National Basketball Association (NBA) game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., on Tuesday, March 24, 2009. Nearly three decades after an energy bust that forced 122 banks to close statewide, Oklahoma City is in the fifth year of an economic expansion that's produce the lowest jobless rate for a major metro U.S. area. Oklahoma City demonstrated it could support a NBA team, encouraging the Seattle Supersonics to move permanently and become the Thunder, which now draw crowds as large as the Boston Celtics. (Photo by J.P. Wilson/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
UNITED STATES - MARCH 24: Fans wait to enter the Ford Center for a National Basketball Association (NBA) game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S., on Tuesday, March 24, 2009. Nearly three decades after an energy bust that forced 122 banks to close statewide, Oklahoma City is in the fifth year of an economic expansion that's produce the lowest jobless rate for a major metro U.S. area. Oklahoma City demonstrated it could support a NBA team, encouraging the Seattle Supersonics to move permanently and become the Thunder, which now draw crowds as large as the Boston Celtics. (Photo by J.P. Wilson/Bloomberg via Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 12
Next

The settlement

On July 2, 2008, the City of Seattle agreed to settle its lawsuit against Clay Bennett and his OKC ownership group for $45 million. This was the final legal obstacle standing in the way of the franchise’s move to Oklahoma.

“The NBA will be in Oklahoma City next season playing their games,” Clay Bennett said in a very hard to find on the 2008 internet press conference.

Thunder fans weren’t yet jaded by the departure of Kevin Durant at this point. Still, this announcement brought with it a gigantic sigh of relief for anyone worried that the team would somehow remain in Seattle.

After supporting the displaced Oklahoma City Hornets when Hurricane Katrina forced them out of New Orleans, OKC had proven that it was capable of supporting an NBA team. Russell Westbrook replaced Chris Paul. Kevin Durant replaced David West.

The Oklahoma City professional basketball franchise was born.

Home/Thunder All-Time Lists