National Basketball Association

Governor, Mayor continue push for Hornets

Published Dec. 23, 2010 3:46 a.m. ET

foxsports

Gov. Bobby Jindal and New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu said the local business community is off to a good start in helping ensure the Hornets remain a Louisiana team.

The pair attended Wednesday night's game against New Jersey together and said during halftime that businesses have committed more than $380,000 to buy tickets so attendance will be high enough to void an early exit clause that would allow the Hornets to get out of their lease after this season.

''It's so important that our fans continue to show up, continue to buy these tickets and support our team,'' Jindal said. ''It's the best thing we can do to keep the Hornets here, not only for the short term but also for the long term.''

Some of the money raised by businesses rallying around the club has been used to buy more than 13,000 tickets, Jindal said. The governor said the Hornets need to average a little more than 15,000 fans during the next nine home games through the end of January, when a two-year average outlined in the lease will be calculated. Attendance for Wednesday night's game against New Jersey was 15,423.

Jac Sperling, the NBA's caretaker of the Hornets, met with Jindal and Landrieu at the game.

Jindal said Sperling and Hornets team president Hugh Weber have not yet made specific requests to the state concerning changes to the lease or improvements to the arena that could improve the club's bottom line and make remaining in New Orleans more viable.

''We've discussed a variety of possibilities not only with Jac and Hugh but some of the people that were interested in buying the team earlier for the last several months. We're not just starting this conversation,'' Jindal said. ''We made it very clear we're interested. We want to keep the Hornets here. We'll be creative. We'll work with them as a partner to make them successful.''

Landrieu said he has been encouraged by interest on the part of regional business leaders in forming an ownership group.

''The response in the business community not only in New Orleans but the metropolitan area has been terrific,'' Landrieu said. ''They understand it's a regional team. I feel very confident that people are going to step up and do what's necessary to keep them.''

The Hornets' current lease runs through 2014. Jindal and Landrieu said hitting attendance benchmarks this year will buy the state and city time to negotiate with the NBA and recruit more local investors. Jindal said he also hoped that when the NBA reaches a new labor agreement, it will include revenue sharing and player salary limits that make it easier for NBA teams to survive financially in New Orleans and the league's other smaller markets.