ESPN.com: NBA - Timeline of pro basketball in New Orleans

1967: The New Orleans Buccaneers join the American Basketball Association (ABA). Players include Doug Moe and Larry Brown. Home arenas would include the Loyola Field House, Tulane Arena and Municipal Auditorium. The Bucs advanced to the ABA finals in their first year, losing to the Pittsburgh Pipers in seven games.

1970: The Buccaneers leave New Orleans after the 1969-1970 season and become the Memphis Pros.

1974: New Orleans becomes an NBA expansion city when the Jazz plays its first season in the Municipal Auditorium before moving into the Louisiana Superdome.

1979: The New Orleans Jazz moves to Salt Lake City and becomes the Utah Jazz.

1993: The Louisiana Legislature authorizes $215 million in bonds for a sports package that includes money for what is supposed to be an $85 million NBA or NHL style, 18,000-seat arena with 64 luxury suites.

1994: Top Rank of Louisiana, a business group formed by former Houston Mayor Fred Hofheinz, attempts to buy Minnesota Timberwolves and move them to New Orleans.

1995: Top Rank has all but closed on the Timberwolves when Top Rank enters involuntary bankruptcy, prompting the NBA to reject the deal and keep the Timberwolves in Minnesota. Hofheinz is later indicted on charges he and others spent $1.4 million to influence business deals in Louisiana, including the Timberwolves deal. He is included in a broader federal investigation of since-convicted former Louisiana Gov. Edwin Edwards. The revelations of Top Rank's questionable financing and alleged corruption are seen as a black eye for Louisiana's national reputation and an impediment to future efforts to attract a major pro sports franchise.

1996: Reports surface that New Orleans is trying to lure the San Antonio Spurs, whose owners have begun grumbling about the need for a new arena. New Orleans officials deny those reports.

2000: The Charlotte Hornets and Los Angeles Lakers play a preseason exhibition game in the New Orleans Arena. Doug Thornton, general manager of the Arena and Superdome, gives Hornets co-owner Ray Wooldridge a tour of the arena, advising Wooldridge to keep in touch if remaining in Charlotte does not work out.

Feb. 2001: New Orleans and state officials announce they will make a pitch to lure the Vancouver Grizzlies, who have applied to move. New Orleans would become a finalist along with Memphis and Louisville, Ky.

March 2001: The Hornets apply to move to Memphis, but are forced to withdraw after the NBA grants the Grizzlies permission to move to Memphis. Memphis does not have a stadium comparable to the New Orleans Arena, but has promised to build one and is seen as the best choice for the Grizzlies because of its solid corporate base.

June 5, 2001: Charlotte voters in June soundly defeat a referendum aimed at building a new arena for the Hornets.

Jan. 9, 2002: Hornets owners Wooldridge and George Shinn make an official visit to New Orleans, although talks are believed to have begun earlier. With the visit, New Orleans officially joins Louisville; Anaheim, Calif.; Norfolk, Va.; and St. Louis as cities in the running to be the new home of the Hornets.

Jan. 17, 2002: Gov. Mike Foster announces an agreement to bring the team to New Orleans, while the team files an application with the NBA to move the team. The team also announces season ticket commitments it needs by March 15 to cement the deal: 8,000 general seating season tickets, 2,450 club seats and 54 luxury suites.

March 15, 2002: Hornets owners announce they have come close enough to meeting sales targets to move the team, having sold 55 luxury suites and 8,121 season tickets.

March 20, 2002: NBA relocation committee visits New Orleans to study proposed move. The visit includes a full day of meetings with local, state and regional politicians. NBA Commissioner David Stern calls the presentation among the best he's seen. Stern also says the arena meets current NBA standards.

April 19, 2002: Foster signs a bill adding the Hornets to a tax rebate program designed to bring "quality jobs" to Louisiana that are high-paying and offer health insurance. The Hornets could get up to $3.65 million a year based on a tax credit from a percentage of the team's payroll.

April 30, 2002: Foster signs legislation for $10 million in improvements to New Orleans Arena. The work includes finishing luxury suites and improvements to locker rooms.

May 2, 2002: NBA relocation committee unanimously recommends that NBA team owners approve relocation of the Hornets from Charlotte to New Orleans.