Las Vegas and Seattle Lead NBA Expansion Race
NBA governors meet 14-15 September to weigh expansion, with new franchises in Las Vegas and Seattle valued at a combined $15-18 billion.
NBA owners will discuss league expansion at a governors' meeting on 14-15 September, with Las Vegas and Seattle the clear front-runners for new franchises, according to Sports.ru.
No timeline has been agreed for either bid, and the two markets are unlikely to move on the same schedule or at the same price. Bids for the Las Vegas slot opened at $8 billion, but it quickly became apparent that figure would not be enough to win the franchise. Seattle's numbers point lower, and a second public bidder for that market has only recently emerged.
Several teams are already pencilling in a distribution of $500-600 million each from the expansion pool, implying a combined valuation for the two new clubs of $15-18 billion. The benchmark remains the Lakers, whose sale this summer valued the franchise at $12.5 billion, a record for the league.
Las Vegas has spent the year building out its sports infrastructure well beyond basketball. The city approved $75 million in public funds last week toward a $158 million renovation of the Raiders' Allegiant Stadium, with the NFL franchise covering the balance. An NBA franchise fee running into the billions would sit on top of that.
Whether either city's bid closes before or after the other now looks like a matter of price as much as timing.
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