Achieving major-league dream comes without thrill of victory

NBA to OKC analysis Berry Tramel and Darnell Mayberry break down the news of a Sonics settlement.
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He was received like a hero, with Oklahoma City's leading dignitaries breaking into applause when Bennett said the magic words that the team formerly known as the Sonics will be in Oklahoma City before Fireworks City sells its last Roman candle of the weekend.

But Bennett didn't act like a hero. Didn't feel victorious, and not because he's about to write Seattle a check for $45 million, with perhaps more to come.

Too much personal cost in recent months, too much work to be done in the future.

Maybe someday, maybe even soon, this son of Oklahoma City can sit back and appreciate his role in the remarkable rise of his hometown to major-league status. But the celebration is for later. For now, Bennett only wants a Fourth of July vacation in Colorado, then to hit Oklahoma City streets and sell, sell, sell this basketball team that as of today doesn't even have a name.

"I don't feel, standing here today, victorious,” Bennett said Wednesday night at the Skirvin Hotel, two blocks from the Ford Center, where his basketball team will tip off less than four months from today. "I just don't feel that.”

Bennett is too bloodied to raise his arms in triumph. Like all owners who try to move franchises out of longtime homes, Bennett took a beating in Seattle. Some of it deserved, some of it not.

"I hope people truly appreciate what Clay went through for us to get to this point,” Mayor Mick Cornett said. "No one likes having their integrity questioned. I imagine that was the toughest part.”

Bennett's name is mud in Seattle until the last basketball is pumped with air. Wild, wild stuff.

"It was a tough experience for all of us,” Bennett said. "So much that happened on both sides ... it was difficult.

"I always tried to stay on my feet, stay centered.”

Bennett thanked his partners for never wavering, then broke down when talking about his family. And if you know Clay Bennett, you know he never publicly lets his emotions go.

But Wednesday, he was a Johnny who came marching home again and let someone else yell "Hurrah! Hurrah!”

Even if Bennett wouldn't celebrate, this was his biggest day. A little kid who dreamed not of quarterbacking the Dallas Cowboys but of owning them now has brought major-league status to Oklahoma City, his hometown.

"Gotta be the biggest (day),” said Lee Allan Smith, an Oklahoma City civic booster. "There'll be some more for him. He's come a long way. I'm very proud of him. Everyone should be.”

Nineteen years ago, Smith and Bennett teamed to bring the U.S. Olympic Festival here, and we quaintly thought that was a big deal.

Bennett refuses still to admit otherwise.

"I remember that event, remember that experience, and how we responded,” Bennett said. "How well the event was conducted, how well it was supported. How much fun we all had.

"That was a very important step.”

Bennett gave a shot at his ownership dream in the mid-'90s, with a National Hockey League expansion push, then he brought the homeless Hornets to town and that hunger returned.

He bought the Sonics two Julys ago and frankly, Bennett was a lot more giddy that day than he was Wednesday.

"I'm happy,” he said. "I'm very happy. I'm proud for all of us in Oklahoma that have wanted this.”

But not victorious and said he doesn't know why. Maybe the trial and its months-long preparation wore him out. Maybe the onerous work ahead tempers any enthusiasm. Maybe when you've been battered and bloodied, it's enough to just get home, to the cheers of colleagues and the realization of a dream.