Kansas City News Blog

Photos by Scott Spychalski

Click on Dwayne Wade throwing it down for a slideshow of last night's Heat-Hornets game.

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Matt Moore of Hardwood Paroxysm covered Thursday night's Heat-Hornets game at the Sprint Center. Here's his dispatch.

The NBA in Kansas City. Man, that's weird. It's like barbecue in St. Louis. It's just absurd. And coming into Thursday night's game between the Heat and the Hornets, I expected the city of KC to mostly respond in kind. Sure, there would be a fair amount of folks who came out for Mario Chalmers, Julian Wright and Mike Beasley. But in total, a preseason game in Kansas City on a school night would be nothing but a primary example of why the NBA could never work in this market, and an illustration of how small a niche professional basketball occupies.

Maybe not. Hey, my bad.

When you consider the circumstances (preseason, school night, football season, MLB playoffs), the announced crowd of 17,116 was actually a huge win for the NBA in this market. And while the play was sloppy in the Heat's 97-81 win over the Hornets, the crowd stayed appreciative through the end of the game. It was savvy marketing on the part of the promoters to bring in two teams with Kansas connections, as Chalmers was received how you would imagine Achilles was received by the Greeks -- you know, before that whole arrow thing. Wright's return to Kansas was only slightly less hyped. Beasley had a fair amount of supporters in the crowd, though he was largely silent for most of the night.

The biggest buzz last night in the building, though, was the building itself. Everyone I spoke with from the NBA marveled at the arena and were stunned it didn't have a tenant. I'd like to mention how hard it is not to roll your eyes and scream, "I KNOW, RIGHT?! ME NEITHER!" Yes, in all caps and everything. The Sprint Center staff seemed to be on point as well, and compared with the concerts I've attended there, it really felt like the right environment for a game. The arena was made to host sporting events, and it really shined last night. Even Hornets coach Byron Scott complimented the "fantastic" facility.

Photos by Scott Spychalski

Chris Paul

​CP3, Hornets point guard Chris Paul, told me, "This arena is a great arena. I mean, just look at this guest locker room. They're definitely doing it right here."

The crowd died at times, but then, the same thing happens with about 80 percent of NBA regular-season games in NBA cities. One notable thing: The crowd seemed genuinely interested in not only the big plays, but the game itself. It makes sense that a city in the heart of basketball country would have high basketball IQs, which makes it all the stranger that there isn't even an NBA Development League squad filled with KU, K-State, and Mizzou also-rans.

As for the game, things went about as you'd expect from a preseason match-up. Both coaches are still trying to get a feel for their squads, and with Udonis Haslem out for the Heat and Emeka Okafor and Ike Diogu out for the Hornets, you could feel the incomplete sense of chemistry from both squads. Throw in a Dwyane Wade coming off a rib injury and Chris Paul pretty worn down off a back-to-back, and the game wasn't exactly the stuff of legend.

But it was special for the conquering heroes, who clearly loved playing in front of the "home" crowd. So does Chalmers, who's now seen the whole country with the Heat, think Kansas City could be an NBA city?

"Definitely Kansas City could definitely be an NBA city. Great city, and it's a big city at that. And you look at this place, the Sprint center -- it's a great arena."

Good to know the starting point guard of the Miami Heat has Kansas City's back.