NBA Set to Vote on Exploring Seattle, Las Vegas Expansion Teams
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Fans hold a flag for the Seattle Supersonics during the fourth quarter of a game between the Utah Jazz and LA Clippers at Climate Pledge Arena. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images [/caption]
Seattle basketball fans have endured years of empty promises and delayed timelines since losing the NBA’s Seattle SuperSonics in 2008. The knife was twisted further after watching the Oklahoma City Thunder, formerly the Sonics, win the NBA title in 2025.
But after a near-20-year wait, there is finally a concrete reason to believe the NBA could be returning to Seattle. The NBA is set to hold a vote to begin exploring expansion teams in Seattle and Las Vegas during the board of governors meetings from March 24-25, per ESPN NBA insider Shams Charania.
The target first season for the pair of new teams is 2028-29.
Even if the vote is approved, the teams will not be guaranteed to be added. It would begin the formal process, however, to explore the markets and eventually reach a final vote to approve expansion.
Twenty-three of 30 governors must vote in favor in both rounds of voting, but “There is momentum within the board of governors and league office to approve moving forward with taking bids for franchises in Las Vegas and Seattle,” per Charania.
Obviously, more teams mean more money for the league, and the Las Vegas and Seattle franchises project to be in the $7-10 billion range — similar to the current projected price of the Seattle Seahawks in the NFL now that they’ve been put up for sale.
Furthermore, the Seattle and Las Vegas markets would be projected to be “among the NBA’s top eight revenue generators,” per Charania.
Since both Seattle and Las Vegas would be Western Conference teams, the Minnesota Timberwolves or Memphis Grizzlies are the most likely teams to move to the Eastern Conference. That would align both conferences at 16 teams.
Although expansion has been floated by NBA commissioner Adam Silver many times over the last few years, Charania’s report on Monday still comes as a shock. Silver’s comments always appeared non-committal, which is understandable given he cannot outright award franchises, but still strung fans along as they hoped to see the Sonics return.
But the report is a massive boon to the Seattle fanbase’s hopes of getting an NBA team in Climate Pledge Arena, which already is home to the WNBA’s Seattle Storm — a well-supported franchise that has won four league titles since 2004 and two since just 2018.
Climate Pledge’s opening in 2021 initially reignited the fanbase, hoping that a newer, more modern venue would help attract the NBA back to the city. Now that it’s been host to the Storm and the NHL’s Seattle Kraken for multiple years, it could soon have a third resident.
Despite completing renovations in 1995, the state of the Sonics’ former home, KeyArena, was one of the main factors former Sonics owner Howard Schultz cited for lost revenue on the team. That eventually led to the franchise’s sale and relocation.
The venue is no longer an issue, and now it’s up to the league to finally bring an NBA team back to Seattle. With the reported vote looming, the city is currently closer to that reality than it has been in nearly two decades.
The NBA’s last expansion was in 2004 when it added the Charlotte Hornets. Originally named the Bobcats, the franchise brought back the Hornets name (used for the previous Charlotte NBA franchise from 1988-2002) in 2014.
