The Tulsa Shock has moved here from Detroit. The forerunner of Tulsa's franchise won three WNBA titles. Tulsa got the Detroit team name, a lease at the BOK Center, no players, and Nolan Richardson for its coach. The team is suffering through a rough first season, which is natural for a first year team.
Richardson is a huge asset. The players are in the process of learning a system foreign to most women's teams, and making progress. The BOK Center is at least as good as any in the league. The team in process is being built one player at a time starting with the league draft March.
The current record (5-22) is expected of an expansion franchise. Heck, the Cleveland Cavaliers were not so affectionately named the the Cadavers by local media in its infant days. One Cadaver game had to be canceled because the first home arena had a leak in the roof that dropped water on the court (first rainout in NBA history?). The BOK Center is a quantom improvement over Cleveland's ancient woodframed Public Hall.
The Shock had an opening game attendance of 7,806. Subsequent games have been between 3,300 and 5,000, meaning blue seats showing in the lower level of the BOK.
The success if this infant franchise should be judged on the level of improvement in the first year, not the record. The placement of the BOK center brings with it parking issues (especially at night), driving distance for fans, and maybe the burden of relatively high rent. The team might be better placed at TU's Reynolds Center or the UMAC in south Tulsa. Both relatively new facilities and presumably lower rent.
The Shock has attracted one huge asset in Nolan Richardson. Name recognition and reputation. The coaches brand of basketball is exciting and he will get his cuurent players acclimated to it, and he will bring new players that will also succeed in his system.
To prosper the Shock has to move its home floor. Even if the rent at BOK is lower than other residents, they still need to have a cheaper arena so they can pay whatever salaries are required to attract top players and other operating costs.
In the end, as always, its the botton line, spelled money. Nolan Richarson should get what he has earned and deserves. Another run to achampionship and national recognition. And the publicity for Tulsa wouldn't hurt either.
