After Adam Silver Says Steps Toward Expansion Could Come This Summer, Seattle & Las Vegas Prep Their Bids

NBA expansion has been heating up with talks on expansion, and everyone knows it. This July, expect the NBA to turn up the heat.

That was the takeaway from NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, speaking to the media before Game 1 of the NBA Finals. He was asked about the owners’ temperature on expansion.

“I’d say the current sense is we should be exploring it,” Silver said. “I don’t think it’s automatic because it depends on your perspective on the future of the league. As I’ve said before, expansion, in a way, is selling equity in the league. If you believe in the league, you don’t necessarily want to add partners. On the other hand, we recognize there are underserved markets in the United States and elsewhere.”

“We have an owners’ meeting in July in Las Vegas. It will be on the agenda to take the temperature of the room. We have committees that are already talking about it. But my sense is at that meeting, they’re going to give direction to me and my colleagues at the league office that we should continue to explore it.”

That exploration will be a more formal process, although Silver, who is always cautious in his public statements, wouldn’t go beyond that.

“What I expect is if a decision is made that there should be further exploration by the league office and presumably a committee of team owners, it would be more of a formal process,” Silver said.

What that likely means is the league starts meeting with potential ownership groups.

“There’s been no lack of interest. Certainly, I’ve gotten a lot of unsolicited calls,” Silver said. “I essentially have said to people from several different cities. We’re just not engaging in that process right now. I want to be fair to everyone. So I don’t want to have meeting with some and not others. … so if we were to say yes, we’re now going to move into a more formal exploratory phase, we would take those meetings and in addition likely would engage with outside advisors who would look at markets, look at economic opportunities and media opportunities, et cetera.”

The expectation is that the league will move forward with two teams for expansion in cities like Seattle and, most likely, Las Vegas. Silver had wanted to wait for a new CBA and television deal, which have happened recently.

The NBA also waited for the sale of the Boston Celtics before moving forward, so the league could have an idea what it could ask for in expansion fees. The sale of the Portland Trail Blazers will also be factored into that expansion price tag.