Kings sale: Kevin Johnson says Seattle 'deverves a team, just not ours'

Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson addressed the public at a downtown press conference on Tuesday and had some important words for all interested parties with respect to the Sacramento Kings' potential sale to a Seattle-based group.

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His message? That California's capital city wouldn't go down without a fight:

"Don't celebrate too early," he said. "I just say to the fans in Seattle: be cautiously optimistic. Be smart. But this isn't about our city against their city, or one mayor against another mayor," Johnson said. "We have something that's ours and we want to keep it, and we're going to do everything we can to make Sacramento the final resting place of the Sacramento Kings."

The message was well-received, and Johnson held true to his word to fight until the last second. But the question now is whether or not his strong words will be enough to facilitate any change in the situation. Sacramento is still just a few short steps away from losing the Kings for good, and they need someone with local ties to step in with a substantial offer before any kind of effort to keep the team carries any real weight.

Johnson explained that he was devastated when Seattle lost the Supersonics in 2008 and that the Emerald City deserves to have a team.

"Just not ours," he added.