The NBA’s board of governors voted Wednesday to approve a plan that will allow NBA officials to “formally explore potential team expansion” to those two cities, which have long been thought of as the front-runners to land franchises.
“Today’s vote reflects our Board’s interest in exploring potential expansion to Las Vegas and Seattle — two markets with a long history of support for NBA basketball,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said. “We look forward to taking this next step and engaging with interested parties.”
The league said investment bank PJT Partners has been brought on “as a strategic adviser to evaluate prospective markets, ownership groups, arena infrastructure, and the broader economic implications of expansion.”
Expansion — and in Seattle’s case, a return — isn’t a done deal. But it’s not just a dream anymore, either.