Grizzlies’ Owner Pays Another Visit to Anaheim

The owner of the Vancouver Grizzlies visited Anaheim again this week, the third known meeting in three weeks between executives of the NBA team and local officials trying to lure the team to the Arrowhead Pond.

Michael Heisley, the owner of the Grizzlies, met Wednesday with Pond General Manager Tim Ryan, sources said. Neither Heisley nor Ryan returned calls for comment Thursday night, and it was not immediately clear who else attended the meeting or what issues might have been discussed or resolved.

Heisley toured Anaheim last week, following a visit the previous week from a team delegation led by Andy Dolich, the Grizzlies’ president of business operations. Heisley said last week that he was concerned about sharing the Pond--and sharing revenue from NBA games--with Disney’s Mighty Ducks. Anaheim City Manager James Ruth said earlier this week that Heisley had been invited to return to Anaheim and discuss his concerns directly with Disney officials.

Heisley’s visit to Anaheim comes as efforts to land the team intensified in Louisville, Ky., and New Orleans.

In Louisville, a developer has offered Heisley five acres of downtown land for an arena in exchange for minority ownership of the Grizzlies. Heisley, who visited Louisville last month, is scheduled to return next Thursday, the Courier-Journal reported.

In New Orleans, where a new arena opened in 1999, officials this week launched a pledge drive, asking fans and businesses to pledge to buy season tickets and luxury suites should the Grizzlies move there.

Heisley is believed to have asked cities to build a practice facility for the Grizzlies and buy out the remaining four years of the team’s lease--estimated at $16 million--at the GM Place arena in Vancouver.