Getty Image / Rick Stewart
When the Seattle Supersonics moved to Oklahoma City to become the Thunder prior to the 2008-2009 season, it was a travesty. Seattle was a great basketball town that loved their Sonics, only to have the team ripped away from the city by a new ownership group with ties to Oklahoma City.
Ever since they left, there’s been speculation that Seattle would be first in line for an expansion team when and if the league expanded again. On Tuesday, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell made a joke about the Supersonics returning, but it did not go over well.
The team moved, in part, because of a lack of support to build a new arena from local and state government. But, the arena, Climate Pledge Arena, has virtually been redone top-to-bottom since, and now hosts the an NHL franchise in the Seattle Kraken, as well as the WNBA’s Seattle Storm. The city is ready for an NBA team again.
On Tuesday, Bruce Harrell had his State of the City address and tried to make a joke about the Supersonics returning. Take a look.
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell – during the State of the City address – goes off script….
video from @tkjohnsonimages of @komonews pic.twitter.com/n8tyvaLnP3
— Chris Daniels (@ChrisDaniels_TV) February 18, 2025
The crowd didn’t like that, and for good reason. What was the point of doing that, exactly? People in Seattle are passionate about getting their team back.
It’s safe to say that this stunt went over like a lead balloon. That being said, bring back the Supersonics!