The crowd support behind Kevin Durant and the Oklahoma City Thunder has inspired some Birmingham residents to believe that kind of enthusiasm could happen here. (AP photo)

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - The NBA in Birmingham?

"Funny you should say that," William Bell said.

He didn't stop there, and an idea that began behind closed doors went public.

The discussion started with the mayor divulging on my radio show that "we had talked to a number of local Birmingham business people about going after (the New Orleans Hornets)."

He added, "If the NBA decides to expand again, we have a group of people that are interested."

Maybe more than he knows. Fol­low the bouncing ball.

I tweeted what the mayor said.

Jon Solomon read the tweet, looked into the idea and wrote a column about it.

George Chamoun read the col­umn in the newspaper and decided to do something about it.

That's how information travels these days.

It's also how a movement begins.

It starts locally and, if there's enough momentum, it goes na­tional. Gradually, a dream is put into words, then suddenly, words are put into action, and the idea of bringing a professional basketball team to the football capital of the South doesn't seem so crazy.

OK, maybe it does seem crazy, even to me, and I like the idea, even as I share my colleague's skepticism about it on a number of fronts. Chamoun has a different view.

That's the advantage of being a 15-year-old getting ready to enter the 10th grade at Mountain Brook High School. He's young enough to dream and old enough to do something about it, but he's not old enough to let the birth and death of the Vulcans, Americans, Stallions, Fire, Bolts, Bandits, Bulls, Steeldogs, etc., stop him in his tracks.

Since Bell spoke, while the grown-ups have been doing what we always do, doubting the future of a new sports venture because of past failures stemming from league incompetence, local indifference or some combination of both, this teenager has been doing something else.

He's been using social media to advocate the idea and gauge whether it really has legs.

He started a Twitter account, @NBABirmingham. By 6 o'clock Tuesday morning, it had 3,168 followers. On the Twitter account, he later included a link to a petition at www.change.org. to support bringing an NBA team here. The petition had 270 signatures at breakfast Tuesday.

"I'm just trying to get the word out," Chamoun said.

He described himself as an NBA fan who doesn't have a favorite team. He's a college basketball fan, too, and has season tickets to UAB games. So it is possible to appreciate the game at both levels.

Chamoun conducted an interesting Twitter discussion Sunday about possible names for the team. He said the suggestions included Vulcans and Bears, and he threw out Honey Badgers.

"Some Alabama fans didn't like that," he said.

Naturally, since that nickname belongs to LSU cornerback Tyrann Mathieu.

Chamoun, who said his friends Alec Lewis and Sam Harmon are helping, has more plans. His next effort will be putting together a website to support the movement. He's asking for assistance from anyone that can help him put together a video.

He wants to sell T-shirts on the website to raise money to make signs, stickers, etc., to publicize the movement, and he wants to help identify potential investors.

That should make the mayor smile.

"I hope one day we can be like the Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA Finals," Chamoun said.

Is it really possible?

It sounds reasonable when you consider that, according to the Team Marketing Report, the average price of a non-premium ticket to see the Memphis Grizzlies this season was $22.95. That was the lowest figure in the league.

It sounds unreasonable when you acknowledge that we would need an expensive new arena to lure either an existing franchise wanting to move or an expansion club should the NBA decide to grow. A dome and a UAB on-campus football stadium are existing ideas still stuck in neutral.

Is there enough fan and corporate interest here to support a team that could compete with the Thunder and the Heat?

Give Chamoun credit. He's trying to answer that question, not with cynicism based on history, but with facts.

If the NBA ever does come to town for something more than an exhibition game, save that young man a seat. And not just any seat. A Jack Nicholson seat.

Drop a civil comment below. Write Kevin at kscarbinsky@bhamnews.com. Follow him at www.Twitter.com/KevinScarbinsky. Listen to him weekdays from 6-10 a.m. on the Smashmouth Radio Network on 97.3 The Zone.