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NBA commissioner Adam Silver greets NBA referee Ashley Moyer-Gleich as he arrives for an NBA basketball game between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Utah Jazz, Friday, March 13, 2026, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo\/Jenny Kane)<\/p>\n
NEW YORK (AP) \u2014 Seattle and Las Vegas are one step closer to having NBA teams.<\/p>\n
The league\u2019s board of governors voted Wednesday to approve a plan that will allow NBA officials to \u201cformally explore potential team expansion\u201d to those two cities, which have long been thought of as the front-runners to land franchises.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday\u2019s vote reflects our Board\u2019s interest in exploring potential expansion to Las Vegas and Seattle \u2014 two markets with a long history of support for NBA basketball,\u201d NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said. \u201cWe look forward to taking this next step and engaging with interested parties.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silver was scheduled to hold a news conference later Wednesday to discuss next steps. The league said investment bank PJT Partners has been brought on \u201cas a strategic adviser to evaluate prospective markets, ownership groups, arena infrastructure, and the broader economic implications of expansion.\u201d<\/p>\n
Expansion \u2014 and in Seattle\u2019s case, a return \u2014 isn\u2019t a done deal. But it\u2019s not just a dream anymore, either.<\/p>\n
Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson applauded the vote, saying \u201cthe time is right.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBringing the Sonics back is a top priority, and the state will be a strong partner in this effort,\u201d Ferguson said. \u201cI plan to be there at tipoff with thousands of fellow fans when the Sonics return.\u201d<\/p>\n
New Orleans guard Dejounte Murray was 11 years old when Seattle last had an NBA team. He grew up with hopes of being like Gary Payton, Ray Allen and Shawn Kemp, and even remembers a rookie who played for the SuperSonics named Kevin Durant.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been nearly two decades since those days ended. That said, Wednesday\u2019s vote should finally fuel real hope of a basketball revival for Seattle \u2014 and a new chapter in Las Vegas.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a basketball city, basketball culture, so it\u2019s mandatory I think that they get it back over there,\u201d said Murray, a Seattle native.<\/p>\n
Added Orlando\u2019s Paolo Banchero, another Seattle native: \u201cI think it\u2019s been a long time coming for the city. I think everybody was pretty bummed out when they left. And since then it\u2019s just been waiting and hoping that one day they will come back. I\u2019m sure with the news, everybody\u2019s excited. I know I\u2019m excited for all the kids growing up because Seattle\u2019s a really big basketball city.\u201d<\/p>\n
It is, and so is Las Vegas \u2014 which has become a major part of the NBA ecosystem even without a team.<\/p>\n
The NBA\u2019s Summer League is held in Las Vegas each year and has become a can\u2019t-miss event for league executives, coaches, media, agents and even players who aren\u2019t taking part in the games. The championship round of the NBA Cup, the in-season tournament, has been held in Las Vegas as well. And the city used to play host to the occasional regular-season game; for example, in 1984, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar of the Los Angeles Lakers broke the league\u2019s career scoring record in a game against the Utah Jazz \u2014 who used Las Vegas for some of their home games at that time.<\/p>\n
The idea of putting a franchise there might have seemed unlikely a couple of decades ago. Not anymore, especially not with the NFL\u2019s Raiders, the NHL\u2019s Golden Knights and the WNBA\u2019s Aces all already there and with Major League Baseball on the way.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday\u2019s vote by the NBA Board of Governors is a testament to the incredible growth we\u2019re seeing in Southern Nevada and our state\u2019s business-friendly environment,\u201d Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo said. \u201cLas Vegans have already shown unwavering support for our professional sports franchises, and a new NBA team will provide even more entertainment, more jobs, and more small business growth for the region.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silver had said in December while speaking about expansion while in Las Vegas for the NBA Cup: \u201cI think Seattle and Las Vegas are two incredible cities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Assuming owners will eventually decide to actually expand the NBA past its 30-team footprint, there will be much to figure out. On the short list: the expansion fee (expected to be at least $6 billion), the timeline for adding the clubs (2028-29 would almost certainly be the earliest this could happen) and how the Western Conference will be realigned (at least one team is likely to join the Eastern Conference).<\/p>\n
Golden State coach Steve Kerr said the SuperSonics were \u201cone of the iconic franchises in the NBA.\u201d The team left in 2008 and became the Oklahoma City Thunder.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was shocked when the league left Seattle,\u201d Kerr said. \u201cIncredible fan base. Great basketball market. A ton of talent coming from Seattle. Top 10 media market. Incredible sports city. So, it was kind of shocking to all of us when the league left Seattle. And I think we all hoped it would be a lot sooner than 18, 19 years, whatever it\u2019s going to be, before they got back in the league.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey belong in that city, and a team belongs there,\u201d he added. \u201cThose fans deserve it.\u201d<\/p>\n
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