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Silky Johnson
Joined: 29 Sep 2014 Posts: 3318
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Posted: 12/18/19 9:25 pm ::: |
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https://www.projectq.us/atlanta/Kelly_Loeffler_backs_anti-gay_bill_as_Georgias_new_senator
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Loeffler (photo) told the AJC that she supports the controversial anti-LGBTQ legislation because “people of faith should be protected.”
“And we should all be able to act according to our religious beliefs,” she added.
Loeffler’s support of such legislation is in contrast to the WNBA team she’s co-owned since 2011. The Dream came out against “religious freedom” measures in 2016, according to the AJC.
Loeffler told the AJC she “did not buy the team for political purposes or political statements.” |
Well... that's something...
_________________ Professional Hater. The Baron of #HateHard
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Badger_Ball
Joined: 11 May 2014 Posts: 87
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Posted: 12/18/19 10:17 pm ::: |
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I spoke to my ticket rep yesterday who said they’ve received hundreds of calls from ticket holders since she was named a senator inquiring about whether Ms. Loeffler would be continuing on as an owner. “Hundreds” might be hyperbole on his part, but it was clear that her political position is a consideration that Atlanta ticket holders are weighing in regards to renewal. It’s difficult to support an owner who will be in position to legislate discrimination against her/his players. Separating the team from her politics is not an easy task.
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PUmatty
Joined: 10 Nov 2004 Posts: 16359 Location: Chicago
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Posted: 12/19/19 10:44 am ::: |
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Maybe one reason it's a bad idea to just let the wealthy by Senate seats?
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Silky Johnson
Joined: 29 Sep 2014 Posts: 3318
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Posted: 12/19/19 12:16 pm ::: |
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Badger_Ball wrote: |
I spoke to my ticket rep yesterday who said they’ve received hundreds of calls from ticket holders since she was named a senator inquiring about whether Ms. Loeffler would be continuing on as an owner. “Hundreds” might be hyperbole on his part, but it was clear that her political position is a consideration that Atlanta ticket holders are weighing in regards to renewal. It’s difficult to support an owner who will be in position to legislate discrimination against her/his players. Separating the team from her politics is not an easy task. |
Right! It's one thing to be conservative, but being openly anti-LGBTQ and being an owner of a sports team in a league with a large LGBTQ labor force is a real, real, real bad look.
_________________ Professional Hater. The Baron of #HateHard
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Randy
Joined: 08 Oct 2011 Posts: 10911
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Posted: 12/19/19 5:59 pm ::: |
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Guess I'm a Fever fan now.
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Shades
Joined: 10 Jul 2006 Posts: 63778
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Posted: 12/19/19 6:18 pm ::: |
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Randy wrote: |
Guess I'm a Fever fan now. |
You heard a rumor that McCoughtry was going to the Fever?
_________________ Nnekalonians 1:14 - Thou shalt not accept that which is not earned
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Silky Johnson
Joined: 29 Sep 2014 Posts: 3318
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Posted: 12/19/19 11:46 pm ::: |
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Shades wrote: |
Randy wrote: |
Guess I'm a Fever fan now. |
You heard a rumor that McCoughtry was going to the Fever? |
Well, I hadn't but that works for me, too.
_________________ Professional Hater. The Baron of #HateHard
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Stormeo
Joined: 14 Jul 2019 Posts: 4701
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5thmantheme
Joined: 11 Apr 2016 Posts: 540
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Posted: 12/20/19 5:19 pm ::: |
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Ugh.
Here I was hoping for some good news about Angel.
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Silky Johnson
Joined: 29 Sep 2014 Posts: 3318
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Posted: 12/20/19 10:16 pm ::: |
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Stormeo wrote: |
Silky Johnson wrote: |
https://www.projectq.us/atlanta/Kelly_Loeffler_backs_anti-gay_bill_as_Georgias_new_senator |
I mean, the timing of this couldn't be worse. :? They just finished 12th after finishing 2nd the year before. They just rebranded and moved arenas/cities. Their best player who happens to be queer is now off her contract. We've all discussed that if McCoughtry's able to just leave (if she isn't able to be cored) and then does, the team will continue to be bad/maybe the worst for a little while. This news I'm guessing makes the franchise an even more unattractive one for free agents. They better hope they can core and trade McCoughtry for whatever they can get, cuz I at least just don't see how she re-signs with the team now. |
Yo, if McCoughtry decides that she doesn't want to play for an open bigot, and then Atlanta cores her, to deny her free agency, that would be petty as fuck!
_________________ Professional Hater. The Baron of #HateHard
My team no longer exists, so I'll have to settle for hating yours.
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Shades
Joined: 10 Jul 2006 Posts: 63778
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Randy
Joined: 08 Oct 2011 Posts: 10911
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Posted: 01/05/20 4:28 pm ::: |
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She is also doing commentary on some of the College Park SkyHawks (g-league) team.
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Randy
Joined: 08 Oct 2011 Posts: 10911
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CamrnCrz1974
Joined: 18 Nov 2004 Posts: 18371 Location: Phoenix
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Posted: 01/07/20 2:11 pm ::: |
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Georgia’s Got A New Senator While Other Candidates Are Deciding Whether To Run
The latest in the 2020 Senate races
Geoffrey Skelley (FiveThirtyEight)
On Monday, Republican Sen. Kelly Loeffler of Georgia took office, which means she’ll now have to run in a special election in November to keep her seat — and with a possible GOP challenger, it could be an action-packed race.
…
Loeffler hasn’t held political office before, but she’s already busy working to prove her conservative credentials. She has described herself as “pro-Second Amendment, pro-military, pro-Trump and pro-wall,” in an attempt to combat claims made by some on the right that she’s not conservative enough. Loeffler has also promised to spend $20 million of her own money on the race, which could scare off opponents like Collins or other Republicans from running.
https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/georgias-got-a-new-senator-while-other-candidates-are-deciding-whether-to-run/
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pilight
Joined: 23 Sep 2004 Posts: 66916 Location: Where the action is
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Posted: 01/20/20 9:26 am ::: |
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If the Dream can get Angel to re-sign, they need to go hard after Skylar Diggins. Give up Montgomery or Sykes or even Hayes if necessary. If they still have the #4 pick afterwards, go big.
If Angel doesn't re-sign, start a fire sale. Keep Billings, put everyone else on the market to acquire young talent & draft picks.
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Randy
Joined: 08 Oct 2011 Posts: 10911
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Posted: 01/20/20 11:10 am ::: |
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pilight wrote: |
If the Dream can get Angel to re-sign, they need to go hard after Skylar Diggins. Give up Montgomery or Sykes or even Hayes if necessary. If they still have the #4 pick afterwards, go big.
If Angel doesn't re-sign, start a fire sale. Keep Billings, put everyone else on the market to acquire young talent & draft picks. |
Makes sense - last season was dumpster fire - might as well have a fire sale......I don't see Angel resigning though, after her "long goodbye."
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Stormeo
Joined: 14 Jul 2019 Posts: 4701
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Posted: 01/21/20 1:55 am ::: |
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Randy wrote: |
pilight wrote: |
If the Dream can get Angel to re-sign, they need to go hard after Skylar Diggins. Give up Montgomery or Sykes or even Hayes if necessary. If they still have the #4 pick afterwards, go big.
If Angel doesn't re-sign, start a fire sale. Keep Billings, put everyone else on the market to acquire young talent & draft picks. |
Makes sense - last season was dumpster fire - might as well have a fire sale......I don't see Angel resigning though, after her "long goodbye." |
The main players for Sienko/Collen to trade under a fire sale scenario would be Williams, Breland, and Hayes - possibly in that order. Getting rid of Williams at least means they can still choose to keep both Gülich and Coates if they still don't have a clue as to what either player's respective future is with the team. I believe teams will still covet defensive-oriented post players that can be the first ones off the bench, despite the players' offensive deficiencies.
The bad 2019 Hayes experienced on the court was due to not only her being very much out of place as a first-option player (not the first time), but maybe more so due to the refs inexplicably cutting back on foul calls for much of the season, which her game heavily relies on, and who really knows if the refs will revert back to that once next season starts. So, though this year is definitely the year to trade her if they're gonna do it, her trade value itself is a lot harder to quantify which makes it harder to predict the chance of it happening, especially since she's a SG. It's kind of the same thing with Sykes, but Sykes is young enough to where they might want to see what she can do with different players around her. Montgomery has no trade value whatsoever, but at least with the expanded salary cap, cutting her becomes even more of an option (they probably should've done that with Bentley last year).
That still leaves approx. five young players with little to no starting experience to do whatever they want with. Maybe this is where they get the most creative. And maybe they find that some combination of players - veteran and young alike - is a value increaser.
And not to belabor the point, but even though as Silky said it would be ultra petty for the Dream to tell McCoughtry she's free to leave but then core her, to me it's the right business move. Sienko can do what Curt Miller did with Chiney Ogwumike and just do a super-lopsided trade with whichever team McCoughtry wants to go to in a no-PR-drama kind of move. No one would blame him for only getting back a bag of chips. And maybe they do the same thing with Hayes if she tells them behind the scenes that she wants out. This franchise needs to do what it can do to get what it can get in order to properly start fresh.
On a completely different note, has anyone attended an event at Gateway Center Arena? If so, what's it like?
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TigerVol
Joined: 16 Jul 2008 Posts: 2209 Location: ATL
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Posted: 01/22/20 5:12 pm ::: |
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With all the changes the Dream desperately need to win else the new 4k seat arena may look like state farm from an empty perspective.
Didn't keep the existing Fanbase intact with the move alone.
Need to pull new fans from closer to the arena.
May take a minute but should be very doable - if winning.
Atlanta fans are known for arriving late (any sport) and supporting teams when they win...not so much when they don't... Especially already lost some of the long term core.
_________________ "Never put an age limit on your dreams" - Dara Torres 2008
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Silky Johnson
Joined: 29 Sep 2014 Posts: 3318
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Posted: 01/22/20 5:33 pm ::: |
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Stormeo wrote: |
On a completely different note, has anyone attended an event at Gateway Center Arena? If so, what's it like? |
I've been to a Skyhawks game; I thought the venue was nice. Perfectly suited to host a WNBA team, in my opinion.
_________________ Professional Hater. The Baron of #HateHard
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toad455
Joined: 16 Nov 2005 Posts: 22474 Location: NJ
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Posted: 01/22/20 5:56 pm ::: |
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Silky Johnson wrote: |
Stormeo wrote: |
On a completely different note, has anyone attended an event at Gateway Center Arena? If so, what's it like? |
I've been to a Skyhawks game; I thought the venue was nice. Perfectly suited to host a WNBA team, in my opinion. |
Just so small. I thought the Mystics' arena was small, but this seats 700 less.
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Silky Johnson
Joined: 29 Sep 2014 Posts: 3318
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Posted: 01/22/20 8:06 pm ::: |
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^^^ Yeah, okay. To me, that's a feature, not a bug.
_________________ Professional Hater. The Baron of #HateHard
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ClayK
Joined: 11 Oct 2005 Posts: 11148
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Posted: 01/23/20 10:37 am ::: |
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I don't know the details, obviously, but it seems logical that the rent and operations' cost of a 4,500-seat arena is going to be less, maybe a lot less, than the rent and operations' cost of a 15,000-seat arena, even if the upper areas are curtained off.
If that's the case, then teams in smaller arenas will be closer to profitability, and maybe there would be actual interest in purchasing an existing franchise -- which has always been to me the sign that the WNBA can stand on its own.
So here's hoping this works in Atlanta as well as it did in Washington, and that other areas explore the concept of new 4,500-seat arenas, or recently built older ones. The ambiance of 2,500 people in a small arena is much, much different than in a big one, and all the emotional aspects of the game are magnified, which of course is a huge part of the fan experience.
And there's absolutely nothing better for the league than sellouts with people unable to get tickets to games they really want to see.
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Silky Johnson
Joined: 29 Sep 2014 Posts: 3318
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Posted: 01/23/20 11:57 am ::: |
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ClayK wrote: |
I don't know the details, obviously, but it seems logical that the rent and operations' cost of a 4,500-seat arena is going to be less, maybe a lot less, than the rent and operations' cost of a 15,000-seat arena, even if the upper areas are curtained off.
If that's the case, then teams in smaller arenas will be closer to profitability, and maybe there would be actual interest in purchasing an existing franchise -- which has always been to me the sign that the WNBA can stand on its own.
So here's hoping this works in Atlanta as well as it did in Washington, and that other areas explore the concept of new 4,500-seat arenas, or recently built older ones. The ambiance of 2,500 people in a small arena is much, much different than in a big one, and all the emotional aspects of the game are magnified, which of course is a huge part of the fan experience. |
Agreed. If this doesn't work, it will be because the team isn't any good, and/or the "right" people determine that College Park isn't "convenient" to travel to.
_________________ Professional Hater. The Baron of #HateHard
My team no longer exists, so I'll have to settle for hating yours.
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TigerVol
Joined: 16 Jul 2008 Posts: 2209 Location: ATL
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Posted: 01/23/20 12:37 pm ::: |
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ClayK wrote: |
I don't know the details, obviously, but it seems logical that the rent and operations' cost of a 4,500-seat arena is going to be less, maybe a lot less, than the rent and operations' cost of a 15,000-seat arena, even if the upper areas are curtained off.
If that's the case, then teams in smaller arenas will be closer to profitability, and maybe there would be actual interest in purchasing an existing franchise -- which has always been to me the sign that the WNBA can stand on its own.
So here's hoping this works in Atlanta as well as it did in Washington, and that other areas explore the concept of new 4,500-seat arenas, or recently built older ones. The ambiance of 2,500 people in a small arena is much, much different than in a big one, and all the emotional aspects of the game are magnified, which of course is a huge part of the fan experience.
And there's absolutely nothing better for the league than sellouts with people unable to get tickets to games they really want to see. |
I don't remember the number exactly but remember thinking the cost per game for the new arena was a serious bargain...even without knowing other details.
_________________ "Never put an age limit on your dreams" - Dara Torres 2008
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TigerVol
Joined: 16 Jul 2008 Posts: 2209 Location: ATL
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Posted: 01/23/20 12:38 pm ::: |
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Silky Johnson wrote: |
ClayK wrote: |
I don't know the details, obviously, but it seems logical that the rent and operations' cost of a 4,500-seat arena is going to be less, maybe a lot less, than the rent and operations' cost of a 15,000-seat arena, even if the upper areas are curtained off.
If that's the case, then teams in smaller arenas will be closer to profitability, and maybe there would be actual interest in purchasing an existing franchise -- which has always been to me the sign that the WNBA can stand on its own.
So here's hoping this works in Atlanta as well as it did in Washington, and that other areas explore the concept of new 4,500-seat arenas, or recently built older ones. The ambiance of 2,500 people in a small arena is much, much different than in a big one, and all the emotional aspects of the game are magnified, which of course is a huge part of the fan experience. |
Agreed. If this doesn't work, it will be because the team isn't any good, and/or the "right" people determine that College Park isn't "convenient" to travel to. |
What is that supposed to mean?
_________________ "Never put an age limit on your dreams" - Dara Torres 2008
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