NBA expansion is back on the table. And frankly, it feels less like a question of if and more like when.
League owners are expected to discuss expansion during next week’s Board of Governors meetings, with a vote potentially coming on whether to begin taking bids for two new franchises. The likely destinations remain Las Vegas and Seattle, with the teams targeted to begin play in the 2028-29 season.
If it moves forward, the numbers involved are eye-popping.
Industry projections have expansion fees landing somewhere between $7 billion and $10 billion per team. That money would be divided among the league’s current owners and would not be shared with players.
In other words, expansion could deliver a massive windfall for the existing ownership groups.
The vote would require approval from 23 of the league’s 30 governors.
An expansion draft would likely take place the year before the new teams begin play, allowing the franchises to build their initial rosters.
Seattle already has an NBA-ready venue in Climate Pledge Arena, the renovated former home of the Seattle SuperSonics before the team relocated in 2008. Las Vegas has long hosted Summer League and could potentially use T-Mobile Arena.
The NBA hasn’t expanded since 2004. That drought may not last much longer.
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