Ahead of last Monday’s preseason contest, emotions were running high for many here in Sacramento. Not just for Kings fans and the community eager to test drive their brand new arena with NBA Basketball.
But also for me.
As I walked down L Street on Monday, along the perimeter of Golden 1 Center, the anticipation mounted. With a new job ahead of me, I couldn't help but quietly reflect on my own path to get to this point.
It had been two years since I last stepped foot in what was then the Downtown Plaza. As part of a contingent of local media, I was invited to tour what would eventually become Golden 1 Center and Downtown Commons.
At the time, the old mall was reduced to rubble and exposed steel. It was, after all, just the first step in a process that was finally bringing a world-class entertainment and sports complex to the capital city.
Two years later, here I was exploring inside the finished product. No doubt I was in complete awe of Sacramento’s fresh, new reality.
The high-tech features, including a state-of-the-art video board, along with a spacious lower bowl are definitely among the components that wow you upon visiting Golden 1 Center for the first time. Beyond the bells and whistles, the arena’s fancy new components weren’t the only elements that struck a chord with me.
Covering and witnessing first hand the cloud of uncertainty that followed the Sacramento Kings for years added special meaning during my first walkthrough of Golden 1 Center. For those of us that lived it, to finally be here today is an unbelievable realization.
As Kings fans, you all know the story by heart, so I won’t rehash too many details. From 2011 to 2013, everyone was playing the guessing game of “Will they stay?” when it came to the franchise’s long-term prospects in Sacramento. There were many moments when fans and media alike both wondered what the future held for the city’s only major professional sports team.
The Kings relocation saga consumed much of my life those three years. From 2013 NBA All-Star Weekend in Houston to Board of Governors meetings in New York, the story put me in a position where sports, business and politics collided. I can recall many days where I split my time between Sleep Train Arena and City Hall in Downtown Sacramento. One moment, I could have been talking hoops strategy with players and coaches. The next moment could have been spent sitting in on hotly contested city council debates.
Not long after that walkthrough of the downtown construction site, I left the Sacramento area for a different opportunity outside of sports media. And in the ensuing two years, I watched the progress of Golden 1 Center from afar, not really knowing if I’d have the chance to be there come opening night of the 2016-17 season.
After several years of experience under my belt, I thought my time as part of the NBA landscape had come and gone.
But here I am today, coming full circle, as one might say, in a new role with the Sacramento Kings. It is a bit surreal to know that we are less than a few weeks away from finally playing regular season basketball in Downtown Sacramento. It’s even more surreal to know that I’ll get to be a part of it.
Jonathan Santiago is the new Digital Managing Editor for the Sacramento Kings, Golden 1 Center and Downtown Commons. He returns to California following a stretch in the world of hospitality and entertainment with Hakkasan Group. Based out of Las Vegas, he worked on digital marketing efforts to promote events featuring some of the biggest names in music today, including Calvin Harris, The Chainsmokers and much more.He previously served as lead editor/writer/producer at Cowbell Kingdom.com, an affiliate of ESPN.com’s TrueHoop Network. He also wrote as a contributor to SB Nation and SLAM Magazine and was a producer at KFBK Radio in Sacramento. In 2007, he started his career in the NBA as a digital intern with the Kings.
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