CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- With the city and NBA in agreement on a new downtown arena and an expansion team to replace the Hornets, the question now is who will own the franchise that is to begin play in 2004.

The contenders are groups headed by Boston businessman Steve Belkin and Washington, D.C.-based Robert Johnson, the founder of Black Entertainment Television.

Belkin's group includes Boston Celtics great Larry Bird, who would be the team's director of basketball operations.

NBA deputy commissioner Russ Granik said Tuesday that the league's expansion committee plans to interview members of both prospective groups Dec. 16 in New York.

''My hope would be that they would make a decision and recommendation to the Board of Governors shortly after that,'' Granik said.

He said no date has been set for a meeting of the full Board of Governors, made up of representatives of each of the league's 29 teams, at which time the franchise would be formally awarded.

The league is expected to seek an expansion fee of around $300 million.

Granik declined to discuss what criteria the expansion committee will examine in choosing between Belkin and Johnson, saying he did not want to restrict the committee's deliberations.

The committee is made up of Jerry Colangelo of Phoenix, Larry Tanenbaum of Toronto, Joe Maloof of Sacramento, Lewis Katz of New Jersey, Stan Kroenke of Denver and George Shinn of New Orleans.

Dean Bonham, head of the Denver-based sports marketing firm The Bonham Group, said whomever the league chooses will have to do a good job selling the new team, given the hard feelings left by the Hornets' departure for New Orleans earlier this year.

''Whoever the next owner is is going to have to go the extra mile in terms of communicating with fans on a level that maybe you don't see normally in other cities,'' Bonham said. ''I think it's really important that the new owner be communicative, maybe to the point of gregariousness.''

Granik downplayed the notion.

''I think the whole premise here is the belief on the part of the league that Charlotte has been a great NBA market,'' he said. ''If there wasn't that feeling, we wouldn't be going down this road.''

Granik insisted neither Johnson nor Belkin has an advantage, despite the widespread perception that Belkin's group is the front-runner.

Belkin has openly pursued the team, making numerous appearances in Charlotte. Former Celtics player and coach M.L. Carr, who would handle community relations for the team, spent the summer as president of Charlotte's WNBA team, the Sting.

And Bird met with city leaders and the media and led a clinic for children before a Sting game in July.

''We wanted everybody to know how committed we were to this project and how committed we are to the fans in Charlotte,'' Belkin said. ''This is going to be the fans' team and the community's team.''

Johnson has kept a much lower profile, but said he is confident he is not at a disadvantage. He said he believes the league will choose the owner ''they feel is best qualified to operate the team.''

''I think that has nothing to do with how many press releases you issue and how many times you're quoted in the media,'' he said.

Johnson's net worth was estimated at $1.3 billion in the Forbes 400 list this year of the richest Americans. He became the nation's first African-American billionaire last year, when Viacom paid $3 billion for BET.

Earlier this year, Johnson offered to buy the Hornets and keep the team in Charlotte, but was rebuffed by majority owner George Shinn. In the late 1990s, he expressed an interest in buying the then-Washington Bullets.

''I wouldn't be pursuing this if I didn't feel the NBA wanted me to be part of the league,'' he said. ''The NBA has steadfastly said there is no front-runner, and I take them at their word. I take Russ Granik and (commissioner) David Stern at their word.''

Bonham is impressed with both contenders.

''I have seldom seen two groups that are as neck-and-neck as these two appear to be,'' he said. ''It's really unfortunate you couldn't get them to join forces.''