Do you care if your local pro teams are owned by someone with local ties? I don’t particularly care, but it is a nice bonus.

Not really. I just want them to care.

When it will make a difference in how the owner treats the team, absolutely.

Stu Sternberg may have done a lot of good w the Rays as far as creating a competitive team, but he sucks in connecting with the locals & always seems to have a drifting eye.

On the other hand, Jeffrey Vinik has been amazing owning the Lightning. He loves the community & does a great job with the team.

Both from the Northeast, but one feels like a TB resident, the other clearly loathes TB as much as TB loathes him.

IDK, Dundon has been good for the Hurricanes.
Tepper has ruined the Panthers to the core.
And the Hornets ownership, local or not has been inept.

I would think home grown owners would be ideal, but in reality, its all about how the team is ran under their watch and local or not that won't change. But I do think that when the teams are strictly viewed as a money flipping asset, that that shows in the ownership and in the team's performance and hires.