Seattle sues Sonics over arena lease

SEATTLE, Sept. 25 (UPI) -- Seattle has sued the SuperSonics, seeking to hold the team to its lease at a city arena and blaming playing bad basketball for the team’s losses.

The city also hired former U.S. Sen. Slade Gorton as its lawyer in the lawsuit filed Monday in King County Superior Court. In legal papers, Seattle city officials asked a judge to issue an order barring Clay Bennett, the Sonics’ majority owner, from taking the case to arbitration, The Seattle Times reported.

"Too often, pro sports teams have run over local governments and gotten their way with them,” City Attorney Tom Carr said. “Today we are standing up and saying 'no.' We have an agreement. We are going to enforce that agreement. We want you to honor your promises."

The city and the Sonics’ owners have had an increasingly contentious relationship. In April, the state legislature rejected Bennett’s demand for a $500 million arena in Renton outside Seattle, and in August part-owner Aubrey McLendon was fined by the NBA after he told an Oklahoma newspaper that he and Bennett wanted to move the team to Oklahoma City.