The Warriors at work against Austin’s D-League team, the Toros, on April 19. Santa Cruz’s team won 103-97, to remain undefeated in the postseason. Photo by Chip Scheuer.
In a season filled with bad news and bickering over trash and crime, a sports team united Santa Cruz at a time when dirty syringes had practically been on the verge of becoming the town’s new mascots.
The Santa Cruz Warriors finished the season with the third best record in the D-League and are entering the third round of playoffs. They’ve brought throngs of fans downtown, where they end up eating and drinking before and after games, to the tune of at least $150,000 in revenue.
But it’s more than just their success and economic muscle that have made them an instant hit in Santa Cruz. The team, from owners on down through players, have said and done absolutely everything right here, at every step, in marked contrast to the bombastic way Golden State Warriors co-owners Peter Guber and Joe Lacob stumbled through their first year in Oakland after buying the team in 2010.
Take Taylor Griffin, starting power forward for the Santa Cruz Warriors. He remembers the first time he set foot in Grind Out Hunger Headquarters on 41st Avenue. It was November, and the town’s new basketball team had just picked nonprofit Grind Out Hunger as a partner for its charity of choice.
“I was shocked to find out almost 20,000 kids in the Santa Cruz area are going hungry—whether that’s malnutrition or not getting three square meals a day,” says Griffin, older brother of Clippers superstar Blake. “While we’re here, it’s important to integrate ourselves into the community and help in any way we can.”
Griffin felt moved and signed up to be a “Hunger Fighter.” He recorded a video in support of the cause—and the nonprofit, which was started by local skate and surf mogul Danny Keith. The Santa Cruz Warriors have also donated 60 seats to Grind Out Hunger, which Keith sells to raise money and gives away to kids in need.
The Warriors aren’t just feeding hungry families. This season they have helped kids learn by launching a Read to Achieve program and fought for the environment by raising money for the Sanctuary Exploration Center during their “Green Week.” They partnered with the Special Olympics and the Boys and Girls Club. Not a bad resume for year one.
Talking Points
The Santa Cruz Warriors have made it clear they want to stay in Santa Cruz when the lease on their temporary shell of an arena is up by 2019. If Santa Cruz decides to keep the team, the city could take the lead in building the new facility. So does all the Warriors’ community work prove their long-term value to the community?
“I certainly think so,” says Warriors spokesperson Matt de Nesnera. “That’s not our intention. We understand as a sports team, especially in the minor leagues, it really is about getting involved and making the place you call home a better place. There’s more to it than basketball.”
It may sound hard to believe a team owned by Oakland’s Golden State Warriors—worth $550 million—is making marketing decisions with only its heart and not its wallet. But Griffin, de Nesnera and coach Nate Bjorkgren say that’s how teams play in the NBA Development League—looking out for their neighbors.
Indiana sports writer Reggie Hayes covers the Fort Wayne Mad Ants, who the Warriors swept in the playoffs. He says the Mad Ants support their charities, too, and take kids out shopping around Christmas.
“They do have to attract an audience,” Hayes say, “and I think sincerely the people who run the team like to help the community. But it’s also about trying to sell the team, so people come to the games.”
It may not matter what the team’s intentions are. City councilmember Don Lane, who was mayor during the negotiations to bring in the team, gives the Warriors’ opening season a score of “9.6 out of 10.” A few wrinkles need to be ironed out next year, he says, to address parking and noise issues. Though it’s early, Lane says at this point the Warriors’ long-term future in Santa Cruz looks promising.
Other permanent D-League basketball arenas have ranged in price: some double as hockey arenas and are much bigger than the Warriors’ current 2,500-seat space. The Texas Legends play in a $27 million, 4,500-seat arena shared with two football teams and a hockey team. The Bakersfield Jam financed its own 500-seat arena with $2 million.
Danny Keith of Grind Out Hunger says the Warriors arena has the opportunity to become much more than a basketball hub.
“It’s a Warriors center, but it’s an opportunity for a community center,” Keith says. “That’s the perfect-sized venue. If I had to put money on whether or not the Warriors would be here, I would put money on that. If I have anything to do with it, they’ll be here.”
