Topline
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver hinted, once again, at expanding the country’s second-biggest pro league Sunday night, marking one of Silver’s most direct confirmations the league is looking to branch out beyond its current 30 teams, as speculation builds around two new teams in Seattle and Las Vegas.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver hinted at expanding the league to Seattle and Las Vegas, where … [+]
Key Facts
In response to a question from NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal in an interview ahead of Game 2 of the NBA Finals, Silver said expansion to Seattle and Las Vegas is a “possibility,” and that the league needs to first conduct TV media negotiations, which are expected to begin next spring.
Once negotiations are completed, Silver said the league will “turn to expansion,” adding that the NBA “doesn’t have anything specific in mind right now,” but that it “makes sense over time.”
Silver has been back-and-forth on the idea of expansion over his nine years at the helm of the league, and denied expansion rumors when asked ahead of last year’s NBA Finals, telling reporters there are no discussions in place, though he re-emphasized the league “will invariably expand, just not at this moment.”
Silver has previously speculated on expanding to Las Vegas—a burgeoning sports city that in the past five years added the NHL’s Golden Knights and brought in the NFL’s Oakland Raiders, and could lure the MLB’s Oakland Athletics to the city after the dismally performing team secured a site near the Las Vegas Strip for a $1.5 billion new stadium.
In October, he told ESPN the city “will make a great location for a franchise one day,” but that expansion is not a “front burner” issue for the NBA—Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman said she believes the NBA will be “among the next” leagues to branch out to Nevada and Los Angeles Lakers star Lebron James has also hinted at potentially owning a future team in Las Vegas.
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell also said last month he believes the city will have a team in a “much shorter window” than five years, calling Seattle is the best-positioned city for a new team because it already has a “great stadium” and “the financing” for a team—Seattle lost the SuperSonics after more than 40 years in 2008.
Surprising Fact
Silver has also hinted at expanding the league south of the U.S.-Mexico border with a potential team in Mexico City, telling reporters in December expansion within and outside of the U.S. is the league’s “manifest destiny” and that a team in the Mexican capital would “flip the switch a little bit in terms of opening up a large geographical area to NBA interest.” Bringing a team to Mexico City, where the league has hosted a handful of games over the past 30 years, could also come with complications “from a regulatory standpoint,” Silver added, comparing potential international trade issues to those of the NBA’s lone team playing outside the U.S.: the Toronto Raptors.
Key Background
The NBA hasn’t expanded in nearly 20 years, since the creation of the Charlotte Bobcats (now Hornets) in 2004, though some team owners have moved their teams elsewhere in recent years. In 2008, The Seattle SuperSonics became the Oklahoma City Thunder after more than 40 years in Washington, and in 2012, the New Jersey Nets moved across state lines to Brooklyn. In 2002, the Charlotte Hornets moved to New Orleans, and in 2013 changed their name to the Pelicans.
Further Reading
How NBA Expansion Could Impact Collective Bargaining Agreement Negotiations (Forbes)
NBA And NHL Host Cities Will Rake In Millions This Weekend—Here’s How Much (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2023/06/05/nba-expansion-commissioner-hints-at-expanding-league-in-2024-as-seattle-and-las-vegas-eye-teams/