Adam Silver left no doubt about his support for expanding the NBA to Las Vegas in the near future.
Silver discussed multiple topics with media ahead of the NBA Cup Championship Game between the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks on Tuesday night in Las Vegas, via insider Brett Siegel. Expansion was one of the key subjects the commissioner discussed throughout the press conference, wanting the league's interest to look at Seattle and the Nevada city.
“I'd say in terms of domestic expansion, that is something we're continuing to look at,” Silver said, via ESPN. “It's not a secret we're looking at this market in Las Vegas. We are looking at Seattle. We've looked at other markets, as well. I'd say I want to be sensitive there about this notion that we're somehow teasing these markets, because I know we've been talking about it for a while.”
“As I've said before, domestic expansion, as opposed to doing a new league in Europe, is selling equity in this current league. If you own 1/30 of this league, now you own 1/32 if you add two teams. So it's a much more difficult economic analysis. In many ways, it requires predicting the future.
I think now we're in the process of working with our teams and gauging the level of interest and having a better understanding of what the economics would be on the ground for those particular teams and what a pro forma would look like for them, and then sometime in 2026 we'll make a determination.”
What lies ahead for Adam Silver, NBA
Expansion continues to be a hot topic for Adam Silver and the NBA.
Introducing two new teams to the league opens up many doors for opportunities. It brings in more eyes to the spot on top of adding more revenue and ratings.
The NBA hasn't had a brand-new team since the Seattle Supersonics relocated to Oklahoma City to become the Thunder they are in present day. Charlotte also changed in the last two decades, seeing the Hornets go to New Orleans before getting the name back after the latter rebranded to the Pelicans.
The league has stuck with 30 teams since the mid-2000s, which organized the alignment of the conference's respective divisions. Adding two more teams would present this issue in the future, which will emphasize the importance of Silver to address this in the most serious manner possible.
