CHARLOTTE, N.C., Jan. 16 (UPI) -- The Charlotte Hornets have applied to the NBA to relocate the franchise in New Orleans in time for the 2002-2003 season, Charlotte Mayor Pat McCrory said Wednesday.
Hornets officials did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment, but McCrory said he was made aware of the decision from Mike Crum, director of operations at the Charlotte Coliseum, which is home to the team.
"We anticipated this for several weeks," McCrory said at a morning news conference.
An NBA spokesman would not confirm that the Hornets have applied to relocate and said any announcement would come from the team.
The Charlotte Observer reported Wednesday that co-owner George Shinn would inform the team's players and employees of the decision on Wednesday and that he would fly to the Louisiana capital of Baton Rouge to sign a relocation agreement.
The newspaper said the agreement the Hornets will sign with New Orleans would prevent the team from negotiating with other cities, and the only way out of the deal would be if the NBA rejects the move.
It is believed the team also has spoken with Louisville, Ky., Norfolk, Va., and St. Louis.
Twenty-two of 29 NBA owners would have to vote in favor of the move. It is believed that the league would be reluctant to put a franchise back in New Orleans, which has a relatively small television market and corporate base.
New Orleans' television market ranks No. 43 nationally and would be the smallest in the NBA. Charlotte is ranked No. 27. But, New Orleans already has a 17,500-seat arena available with no
major league tenant.
The Hornets last year joined the Vancouver Grizzlies in applying to the NBA for relocation to Memphis, but later withdrew the application. The Grizzlies moved south to Tennessee for the league's first relocation in 15 years.
Now it appears that Shinn and co-owner Ray Wooldridge wish to move to New Orleans, which was home to the NBA Jazz before they moved to Utah in 1979.
The Hornets have been searching for a new home since June when Charlotte voters rejected a package that included a $200 million, publicly financed uptown arena. The team has said it
cannot survive financially at the 13-year-old Coliseum, which lacks the luxury suites found at newer NBA arenas.
McCrory said Wednesday that that the city has submitted a viable proposal to keep the Hornets, but would not get into a bidding war with New Orleans.
"We're putting our best foot forward," McCrory said.
Once a hot ticket, the Hornets are near the bottom of the league in attendance and Wooldridge said recently that he expects the team to lose $20 million this season.
The Hornets are in fourth place in the Central Division with an 18-19 record.
