FedExForum
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FedExForum is a sports venue officially opened in September of 2004. It is in the southern part of downtown Memphis, Tennessee at 191 Beale Street and Third Street. It is the home of the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association and the men's basketball program of the University of Memphis (the Tigers). Their previous home was the Pyramid Arena. The arena was built at a cost of $250 million and is owned by the City of Memphis; naming rights were purchased by Memphis' most well-known business, FedEx. The venue also has the capability of hosting ice hockey matches, concerts, and family shows.
FedExForum was designed by architectural firm Ellerbe Becket. The arena is 805,850 ft² (75,000 m²) in size covering 14 acres (57,000 m²). It is capable of seating 19,000 people and has 1,000 premiere courtside seats. There are 27 courtside suites, 32 club suites, 4 party suites, and 80 club boxes.
FedExForum was the first arena to utilize new "see-through" shot clocks which allow spectators seated behind the basket to see the action from the game without having the shot clock units interfere with their view. The idea came when an NBA fan in New Jersey who sits behind the basket at Continental Airlines Arena sent an e-mail to NBA Commissioner David Stern, asking for technology to improve his view, and Daktronics obliged with the experiment at FedExForum in 2004.
The NBA approved the unit a year later for full use, and has seen the new units installed at the Wachovia Center and Charlotte Bobcats Arena after the approval.
The facility has hosted the Conference USA men's basketball tournament since 2005. It will be the site of the Midwest Regional finals in the 2009 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament.
External links
| Current arenas in the National Basketball Association | ||
| Eastern Conference | Western Conference | |
|---|---|---|
| Air Canada Centre | AmericanAirlines Arena | Bradley Center | Charlotte Bobcats Arena | Conseco Fieldhouse | Continental Airlines Arena | Madison Square Garden | Palace of Auburn Hills | Philips Arena | Quicken Loans Arena | TD Banknorth Garden | TD Waterhouse Centre | United Center | Verizon Center | Wachovia Center | American Airlines Center | ARCO Arena | AT&T Center | Delta Center | FedExForum | Ford Center | KeyArena | New Orleans Arena | Oakland Arena | Pepsi Center | Rose Garden | Staples Center | Target Center | Toyota Center | US Airways Center | |
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