Tulsa 66ers Give Back to Community During 2007-08 Season
By DAVID JONES
Contributing Editor
HELPFUL DUO: Tulsa 66ers public relations coordinator Shavon Grayson looks over the shoulder of team Executive Vice President Charlie Seraphin as the two try to come up with the details for helping local charities.
DAVID JONES for GTR Newspapers
The Tulsa 66ers want to do well by giving back to the community they look to for support.
The National Basketball Association Developmental League team is opening its third season against the Colorado 14ers Nov. 30 and a portion of each box office, says Executive Vice-President Charlie Seraphin, will aid some organization or individual. It is, he says, the 66ers way of saying they want to be a caring and contributing member of the community.
It is also their way of realizing that just selling basketball hasn’t worked.
“Last year the team never got traction in the Tulsa market because it tried to simply sell NBA basketball on its own merits. The product we offered was excellent but it didn’t get enough people excited.
“This year we’re reaching out to established constituencies; people who already have a passion for some cause or organization.”
An example can be found in the United Way, which will be the beneficiary of a game to be held Feb. 1.
“We take a $14 ticket, for example, and knock $2 off the price to the public if they respond to a United Way ticket sale. Thus the patron who wants to help United Way already has a discount. Four dollars of the remaining $12 goes to United Way with $8 going to the 66ers. With a capacity of roughly 4,800 seats at the Expo Square Pavilion, that could mean a sizeable donation to United Way.”
Seraphin says the 66ers are already off to a much improved start over what he admits was a rather dismal attendance for the 2006-2007 season.
“By the time the season opens I think we’ll have sold in the range of 800 season tickets. We’re already at 150 percent of all the tickets sold last season.”
There will not only be more givebacks to the community, there will be more games offered. Some nights will have the 66ers game preceded by a high school game with the school sharing in the proceeds. Thus far seven such nights have been scheduled and more may be forthcoming.
Other nights might help one or two people by giving away college scholarships.
Students might get discounted tickets by reading a certain number of books. The possibilities stretch on and on and Seraphin thinks they’ll increase. “When the word gets around about what we’re going I think more organizations will ask us for a special night.”
In the meantime the 66ers will be intent on getting Tulsa fans excited about D-League basketball. “All our games are going to be carried on The Buzz (AM 1300) with four games televised on Channel 47.
Updated 11-29-2007
READER COMMENTS
