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Coyotes’ bid for new arena hits another snag with cancelation of land auction

Coyotes’ Bid for New Arena Hits Another Snag with Cancellation of Land Auction
PHOENIX (AP) — An auction for a tract of land where Arizona Coyotes owner Alex Meruelo had hoped to build a new arena has been canceled.
The Arizona State Land Department announced Friday it was canceling next Thursday’s auction and reordering the steps so the applicant can file for a special use permit.
“We understand the delay in an auction is a disappointment for our applicant and members of the public, but the change in timing is the prudent decision for the Trust,” ASLD said in a statement. “ASLD remains open to working with our applicant to bring the land forward to auction in the future if a special use permit is received.”
The 110-acre tract of land in North Phoenix had been targeted by Meruelo in hopes of ending the Coyotes’ long-running bid to find a permanent home. When the auction for the land appraised at $68.5 million was pushed back until this summer, Meruelo followed the advice of the NHL and opted to sell the team to Utah Jazz owners Ryan and Ashley Smith in April.
The Smiths moved the franchise to Salt Lake City, renaming it the Utah Hockey Club. Meruelo retained the Coyotes’ name, logo, and trademark with plans to resurrect the team as an expansion franchise if a new arena is built within five years.
Cancellation of the land auction now puts that in doubt.
“Today, after a year of planning and meeting every obligation required under Arizona law, the Arizona State Land Department unilaterally canceled the auction that was scheduled to occur on June 27th for the site that has been identified as the future home of the Arizona Coyotes,” the Coyotes said in a statement. “This unprecedented action by the State of Arizona seriously jeopardizes the future of NHL hockey returning to the desert.”
The Coyotes have been searching for a permanent home almost since the day the franchise moved from Winnipeg in 1996.
The team shared a downtown Phoenix arena with the NBA’s Phoenix Suns before moving to Glendale in 2003. When the city of Glendale backed out of a long-term lease agreement, the Coyotes moved across town to play at Arizona State University’s Mullett Arena in 2022.
The 5,000-seat arena, by far the smallest in the NHL, was supposed to be a temporary solution until the Coyotes could find a new home. The NHL was reluctant to have the team continue playing at Mullett for several more years while Meruelo tried to secure the North Phoenix land, leaving the sale to the Smiths as the only viable option.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said the league would need about 18 months to reactivate the franchise and was going to keep a close eye to make sure Meruelo and his group were hitting appropriate milestones in the process.
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AP NHL:

NEXT: Thunder GM says Josh Giddey didn’t want to come off the bench, prompting trade

Thunder GM says Josh Giddey didn’t want to come off the bench, prompting trade CHICAGO (AP) — The Bulls and Thunder finalized a deal sending Josh Giddey to Chicago and Alex Caruso to Oklahoma City on Friday, with the Thunder granting the 21-year-old Giddey’s trade request after he resisted the team’s plans to use him off the bench. Giddey, a 6-foot-8 point guard from Australia, gets a fresh start after a challenging season in which his numbers dropped and he lost his starting job in the playoffs. In a statement, Thunder general manager Sam Presti said he told Giddey after the season that the team envisioned using him as a reserve in 2024-25 “to maximize his many talents and deploy our team more efficiently over 48 minutes.” “As we laid out to Josh how he could lean into his strengths and ultimately optimize our current roster and talent, it was hard for him to envision, and conversations turned to him inquiring about potential opportunities elsewhere,” Presti said. “As always was the case, Josh demonstrated the utmost professionalism throughout the discussions.” The Thunder went 57-25 to earn the top seed in the Western Conference and lost to Dallas in the conference semifinals. Giddey was frequently booed on the road this season after an anonymous social media user accused him of having an improper relationship with an underage girl, leading to investigations by police in Newport Beach, California, and the NBA. Newport Beach police completed their investigation in January and said The NBA also later dropped its investigation. Giddey was the No. 6 overall pick in 2021 and he made the All-Rookie second team. He is a member of Australia’s national team that will play at the Paris Olympics this summer. He is an exceptional passer and his size makes him a solid rebounder. Giddey averaged 16.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 6.2 assists in his second season, but those numbers dropped to 12.3 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 4.8 assists in 2023-24. Giddey’s play improved in the second half of this season after the Thunder traded for Gordon Hayward. In April regular-season games, Giddey averaged 16.3 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 5.5 assists while shooting 57.2% from the field. Giddey’s playing time was reduced in the playoffs. He opened the second-round series against Dallas as a starter before being moved to a reserve role for the first time in his NBA career. The 30-year-old Caruso, who plays point guard and shooting guard, was undrafted in 2016 and played for the Thunder’s G League affiliate, the Oklahoma City Blue, in 2016-17. He established himself as a defensive presence in four years with the Los Angeles Lakers and then three years with the Bulls. He has career averages of 6.8 points, 2.9 rebounds, and 2.9 assists. He averaged a career-high 10.1 points this past season. He was on the all-defense first team in 2023 and the second team in 2024. “Alex Caruso is a player we have always highly valued and followed,” Presti said. “He is the quintessential Thunder player; he is an exceptional competitor and teammate with a multi-dimensional skillset.” The Thunder also have Cason Wallace, a second-team All-Rookie selection this past season, at point guard. ___ AP NBA:

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