Blues owner pursues NBA team

ST. LOUIS -- St. Louis Blues owner Bill Laurie, twice stymied in his effort to buy an NBA franchise, will meet with a co-owner of the Charlotte Hornets Wednesday in St. Louis.

The meeting, said Blues President Mark Sauer, is an "informal get-together" with Hornets' co-owner Ray Wooldridge and the city's business and political leaders. The meeting will also include further discussions between Laurie and Wooldridge, who have met once before to talk about bringing the Hornets to the Savvis Center.

Any discussion between the two men would likely include talks about who would actually own the club should it move to St. Louis. Laurie has said he wishes to own any franchise that moves into the Savvis Center, which he owns along with the Blues, while the Hornets ownership has expressed a desire only in moving the team, not selling it.

Wooldridge has said his first choice, should the Hornets leave Charlotte, is Louisville, Ky. But political leaders there have expressed doubts about publicly financing a new arena for the team. Norfolk, Va., is also courting the club.