New Orleans Hornets officials trying to secure business aspect of franchise Published: Sunday, May 01, 2011, 7:15 AM 原文：http://0rz.tw/qS4HQ Facing the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs was a formidable challenge on the court for the New Orleans Hornets. 季後赛场上面对两届冠军的湖人对黄蜂而言是个巨大的挑战。 Off the court, the team continues to confront an Everest-sized mountain to climb in the offseason: posting up, if you will, against the ongoing ultimatum of improving the franchise’s financial situation to make it a more attractive investment for a potential owner, identifying that potential owner, negotiating a more favorable, extended lease agreement with the state, increasing the season-ticket base and attracting additional corporate sponsors while maintaining those already on board. 而在场外，黄蜂季後的处境就如同在爬圣母峰的人们一样的艰难。试着想一下，球队正在 试着在最後时刻努力改善本身的财务状况，让球队对於那些潜在的投资买家而言更有吸引 力，而与那些潜在买家谈判时能够取得有利的谈判位置，还有和政府的租赁协议也要重新 议定，当然还有增加季票的销售，吸引更多企业赞助，最後还有球员阵容调整等。 The sweaty work has ended for Chris Paul, his teammates and Coach Monty Williams and his staff. 对於CP3和教练Monty和他的工作夥伴而言辛苦的工作已经结束了。 The grueling task of achieving those other goals, already under way, can now shift into overdrive for Hornets chairman and governor Jac Sperling, the man appointed by NBA Commissioner David Stern and charged with accomplishing those goals so the Hornets can be removed from league stewardship and turned back over to a private owner. 而那些季後艰难的任务则已经开始展开了。现在战场则转移到黄蜂的总裁和管理人Jac Sperling身上，Sperling是联盟老大David Stern安插在黄蜂的代理人，主要工作是帮助 黄蜂摆脱联盟托管，将经营权转移到私人企业手上。 “None of that has really changed,” Sperling said Friday, a day after the Hornets were eliminated in the playoffs by the Lakers. “All those things are still true. I wouldn’t say there’s an order to it. It’s consistent in that they all have to be done simultaneously. And then the ultimate goal is increasing the financial performance of the club so that we can make it attractive for a local buy. 在被湖人淘汰後的隔天，Sperling说：目前还没什麽进展。不过我们正往正确的方向去走 ，很多事情都是同时进行的。当然我们最终的目标是让球队财务状况健全，让球队可以吸 引买家来入主。 “That’s the ultimate goal here. Making it attractive for a local buyer and putting it on sound financial footing for long-term sustainability. We’re making good progress on those fronts. We’re not there yet, but we’re making really good progress. The governor and the mayor have been spectacular supporters for us, and salesmen, and helping us try to achieve those goals. They ’ve been great.” 这是我们的终极目标，让球队吸引在地人来入主并把球队的财务状况改善到符合长期经营 的状态。我们有取的不错的进展，但是目前还没有定案，可是我们真的取的不错的进展。 对我们来说，州长和市长都相当支持我们，还会充当推销员，帮助我们实现这些目标。 Shortly before the end of the regular season, the Hornets debuted the “I’m In ” campaign aimed at increasing the season-ticket base for next year to 10,000. 在例行赛快要结束前，黄蜂发起了『I'm In』的活动，目的是用来提高明年季票销售达到 10,000张以上。 Although the team’s surprising six-game run in the first round of the playoffs against the Lakers sparked interest, Sperling isn’t ready to quantify just how many tickets were sold during the two-week postseason euphoria (the team said late last week the number was around 7,600), although he allowed that the spike was “positive and heartening.” 没去评估因为这轮季後赛亮丽的表现而卖出的季票有多少（销售小组上星期曾表示，目前 季票卖出了7,600张），Sperling同意这令人感到欣慰。 But more than the excitement engendered by the competitive nature of the series against the Lakers, Sperling said the Hornets’ playoff push revealed the potential for positive long-term viability for the franchise in New Orleans, the city of his birth. 不过有个更好的消息是这一系列对湖人的比赛，Sperling表示，黄蜂在季後赛的表现显示 出球队留在纽澳良是有搞头的，这也是他出生的城市。 “People are excited about it, but what it shows for the future is that this is a team that’s well-managed, well-coached, we’ve got good players, and the fans should see that,” Sperling said. “And it’s a team that has a lot of heart. The players do. It’s all very positive. I think the future looks very bright. Sperling说：人们兴奋了，但这表现出来的是这支球队有良好的管理团队、良好的教练和 优秀的球员，以及球迷们看到他们所想看的。 “And as a result of that, I think it’s helping us achieve those other goals of season tickets, sponsorships and with the state, as well. Certainly their performance has helped that.” 因此，我觉得这些帮助我们达成其他的目标季票销售、企业赞助、政府协议以及留在这里 ，他们的表现多少帮助了这些事情。 Although NBA teams are forbidden to speak about the possibility of a lockout when the collective bargaining agreement with players ends June 30, a work stoppage might be financially beneficial to small-market teams who could be saving millions in playoff payroll costs if regular-season games are canceled. 虽然NBA禁止球队在6/30劳资谈判结束前发表任何对於封馆的言论。但是封馆可能对於小市 场球队的财务状况有利，如果例行赛取消了，他们将可以节省几百万季後赛的成本开支。 On the court, Hornets General Manager Dell Demps said he prefers to look at this offseason not as a challenge. 在球场上，Dell Demps并不把这个暑假当作是个挑战。 “I look at them not as issues, but as opportunities,” he said. “There were challenges coming in, but we looked forward to those. I look at this as opportunities because I think we can do some really big things here. I’m very optimistic. I think the stars are going to line up, and the Hornets are going to be here for a while.” Demps说：我不认为这是个难题，而是转机。是有些挑战，但是我们期待着。我觉得这是个 好呛司，因为我觉得我们可以来搞一票大的，我是很乐观看待的。我认为明星球员要排队 （排队？我看不懂……），而黄蜂将会继续留在这里。 It is that type of optimism which Sperling, a noted deal-maker in the realm of sports, has brought to the organization that, when he arrived, was mired in long-term debt that totaled more than $100 million. 这种乐观多少来自於运动界着名的交易达人Sperling，是他把这精神带来黄蜂的，当他刚 来的时候，球队的长期负债总额超过一亿镁。 Since taking his position in December, Sperling has seen an internal commitment within his organization’s staff to meet the challenges that confronted it while taking steps to run the franchise — on Stern’s mandate — in a fiscally responsible way, on budget, and maintaining its competitive edge through Demps and Williams’ work on the court. 自从去年12月上任以来，Sperling就给了他的团队员工看了Stern的圣旨，圣旨上明示球队 的财务操作步骤以及运用稳健的方式去执行。而在球场上在薪资上限内则让Demps和Monty 去发挥保持球队的竞争力。 And in the coming months, Sperling said, the Hornets will continue pressing toward the goals he laid out when he arrived in December. 在未来的几个月内，Sperling表示黄蜂将会依照当初12月上任时订下的目标去走。 Early on, Sperling said, he talked with state officials about the Hornets’ lease agreement at the New Orleans Arena, but not substantially. 早些时候，Sperling表示，他曾和政府官员谈过黄蜂与纽澳良球场的租赁合约，不过没有 很具体。 “We’ve had conversations, but we haven’t started negotiating yet,” Sperling said. “No specific time frame for it. The season just ended. We’ll all catch our breath here. We’re having conversations and talking concepts. I wouldn’t characterize them as negotiations at all. Obviously, you want to get something done sooner or later. But there’s no sense of urgency. The season-ticket piece and sponsorship piece have more urgency to it, and we’re working hard on those. ” Sperling说：我们有讨论过，但还没进入谈判阶段。这件事情并没有时间表。球季刚结束 而已。我们将在这里好好聆听各种意见。我们正在互相讨论以及交流双方的意见，我不认 为这算是谈判。季票的销售和企业的赞助比这件事情更急迫，我们对於这些事情都很努力 去执行。 And sooner or later, Sperling said, the prospect of a buyer for the team also will emerge, although the league’s expected new economic structure, once a new CBA is in place, might come first. Sperling表示，迟早球队未来的老板会出现。虽然联盟目前期待着新的财务结构，但是一 旦新的CBA定案之後，未来球队老板很可能就会出现了。 “We look forward to having a team in New Orleans for many years to come,” Sperling said. “Honestly, I’m an optimist by temperament, but we have some big hurdles to overcome, both in season tickets and sponsorships and a long-term relationship with the state. Significant hurdles. Sperling说：我们希望能有支球队能够长久留在纽澳良，老实说我抱持着乐观的看法，虽 然我们还有很多障碍需要克服，像是季票销售、企业赞助和与地方政府的关系维持上。 “But I would say the community has responded great. We’re moving in a really positive direction. The team’s performance was spectacular. I’m optimistic, but I’m also pragmatic. I understand we have to achieve certain objectives that are not necessarily easy to achieve. But I think they’re doable.” 不过我认为社会上已经有很大的回响，我们正往着正确的方向前进。而球队的表现又让人 惊艳。我很乐观，但也必须务实看待。我明白我们要达成预计的目标没那麽简单，但是这 些是可行的。 Jimmy Smith can be reached at [email protected] or 504.826.3814. Related topics: jac sperling, new orleans hornets ownership --

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