NBA expansion appears inevitable. Even commissioner Adam Silver seems to know growth is near.
While fans have long talked about adding teams to the league — and potentially bringing back the Seattle SuperSonics in the process — Silver provided a legitimate roadmap for how this all could play out during the NBA Finals.
Speaking to Shaquille O’Neal ahead of Sunday’s Game 2 between the Denver Nuggets and Miami Heat, Silver explained that once the NBA completes its next media rights deal in 2024, the conversation on expansion can begin in earnest.
At that point it seems clear the only thing truly left to discuss is where the league wants to go. These cities appear most likely.
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The most obvious choice given how successful the Vegas Golden Knights, Las Vegas Aces and Las Vegas Raiders have been since moving to the desert. Plus, they already have the backing of LeBron James — which is really all you need to get anything done in the NBA these days.
(AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Much like Vegas, it has an arena ready to go. Unlike Vegas, Seattle has a passionate fanbase starved to get a team back in the city. There’s so much basketball history in the area between the Sonics and the WNBA’s Storm to make this an easy transition.
If and when the NBA goes back to Seattle, the scenes will be electric.
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The league has been flirting with Mexico City for awhile now and if the NBA is going to go big by adding teams to the league, they might as well go really big and expand its international footprint.
In December, Silver mentioned the league would seriously consider Mexico City for expansion, which adds a bit of fuel to any potential bids.
(AP Photo/Frank Gunn)
They would need to choose a new name. “Vancouver Bobcats”is available.
The T-Mobile Center in Kansas City has lightly flirted with the NBA and NHL in the past but still doesn’t have an anchor tenet. Yet one of basketball’s hotbeds would absolutely embrace an NBA team of its own.
We’ve seen the city rally behind the Kansas Jayhawks, Kansas City Royals and, of course, the Kansas City Chiefs. There’s no doubt an NBA team would work here, but would it be worth it for the league to add another mid-size market to its portfolio?
(AP Photo/The Courier-Journal, Michael Clevenger)
Similar to Kansas City, there’s no question Louisville would welcome an NBA team, but it doesn’t make much sense for the NBA to consider Louisville — even if all the stadium infrastructure is in place with the KFC Yum! Center.
Metropolitan 92’s French power forward Victor (C) arrives for The National Basketball League’s annual awards in Boulogne-Billancourt, on the outskirts of Paris, on May 17, 2023. Victor Wembanyama, was voted MVP of the season for the first time, and again named best youth and best defender at the National Basketball League’s annual awards. The San Antonio Spurs on May 16, 2023 were awarded the top pick in next month’s NBA draft, leaving them in pole position to land French prodigy Victor Wembanyama. (Photo by FRANCK FIFE / AFP) (Photo by FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 3720 ORIG FILE ID: AFP_33FE78R.jpg
(Photo by Jordan Brand via Getty Images)
The other major international city the NBA keeps toying with. A ton of things would have to change first — scheduling immediately comes to mind — but it’s not too difficult to imagine why the league would want in on France, and potentially other European cities after.
Just think about Victor Wembanyama bringing a team back to his home after conquering North America.
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