Editing FedExForum (section)

==Design==
[[File:FedExForum 2015.jpg|left|thumb|250x250px|FedExForum during a [[Memphis Grizzlies]] basketball game]]
Before FedExForum was built, Memphis' primary indoor entertainment venue had been [[Memphis Pyramid|The Pyramid]], built in 1991. However, when city officials sought to lure either the [[Vancouver Grizzlies]] or [[Charlotte Hornets]] to Memphis, they discovered that the Pyramid was already obsolete as a potential NBA venue despite being only 10 years old. Retrofitting the Pyramid to NBA standards of the time would have not only been prohibitively expensive, but would have also required shuttering the arena for an entire season.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/113592646 |title=Pyramid passe as professional sports venue |date=April 10, 2001 |page=2A |first=Rob |last=Johnson |newspaper=[[The Tennessean]] |via=[[Newspapers.com]] |url-access=subscription}}</ref> When the Grizzlies moved to Memphis for the 2001-02 season, they temporarily shared the Pyramid with the [[Memphis Tigers men's basketball]] team while a new arena was being built.

FedExForum was designed by architectural firm [[Ellerbe Becket]]. Concrete work done with the help of Dowco Construction and Apac. The [[arena]] is 805,850&nbsp;ft<sup>2</sup> (75,000 m<sup>2</sup>) in size, covering 14 [[acre]]s (57,000 m<sup>2</sup>). The Arena is round, with a dome. The playing floor is lower than ground level. It is capable of seating 18,119<ref name="FORBES">{{cite web |title=Memphis Grizzlies|url=https://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/32/biz_06nba_Memphis-Grizzlies_325603.html|work=[[Forbes]]|year=2006|access-date=February 19, 2014}}</ref> for basketball and has 1,000 premiere courtside seats. There are 27 courtside suites, 32 club suites, 4 party suites, and 80 club boxes. It also contains a full-sized practice basketball court, visible from the huge lobby. The plans called for a mass transit bus depot, which brought a federal grant of $6 million, but the depot was changed to a premium parking garage, and Memphis had to return the money.

FedExForum's interior was designed to pay tribute to Memphis' musical heritage, with paintings and murals depicting some of the city's most famous artists including [[Justin Timberlake]], [[Elvis Presley]], and [[B.B. King]]. Most of the Arena's restaurants are named in conjunction with FedExForum's overall theme of music with Opus Restaurant and the Blue Note Lounge. The two other restaurants are sponsor-driven with the Lexus Lounge just off the Arena Floor and Jack Daniel's Old No. 7 in the Grand Lobby of the Arena.

FedExForum was the first arena to utilize new "see-through" [[shot clock]] units which allow spectators seated behind the basket to see the action without having the clocks interfere with their view. The idea came when a fan of the NBA's [[New Jersey Nets]] who sat behind the basket at [[Continental Airlines Arena]] sent an e-mail to [[Commissioner of the NBA|NBA Commissioner]] [[David Stern]], asking for technology to improve his view, and [[Daktronics]] obliged with the innovation at FedExForum in 2004.<ref>{{cite web|title=Fans Like NBA's See-Through Shot Clocks|url=http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/10089634/|work=[[NBC Sports]]|date=November 19, 2005|access-date=September 15, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110820044542/http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/10089634|archive-date=August 20, 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> The NBA approved the unit a year later for full use and has seen the new units installed at Philadelphia's [[Wells Fargo Center (Philadelphia)|Wells Fargo Center]], [[Spectrum Center (arena)|Spectrum Center]], [[TD Garden]], [[Moda Center]], [[Capital One Arena]], [[State Farm Arena]], and [[Staples Center]] after the approval. As of the [[2011–12 NBA season]] every NBA arena had implemented the transparent shot clocks, with [[Pepsi Center]], [[The Palace of Auburn Hills]], [[Oracle Arena]], [[Target Center]], and  [[ARCO Arena]] being the last NBA arenas to install the clocks.