NBA Sets 2026 Timeline for Potential Expansion to Las Vegas and Seattle
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Las Vegas — NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Tuesday that the league expects to decide in 2026 whether to add two new franchises, with Las Vegas and Seattle at the center of expansion talks.
Speaking ahead of the NBA Cup championship game in Las Vegas, Silver emphasized that any expansion would involve two teams entering simultaneously. “We’re in the process of working with our teams and gauging the level of interest,” he noted, adding that economics, not geography, is the primary consideration.
The NBA is collaborating with its 30 current clubs to model the financial impact of expansion. The league generates about $11 billion in annual revenue, and additional teams would require that revenue to be divided among more stakeholders.
Las Vegas has hosted NBA Summer League since 2004 and the NBA Cup finals for the past three years, while also supporting multiple other professional franchises and preparing to welcome Major League Baseball. Seattle, widely regarded as a natural choice, has lacked an NBA team since the SuperSonics relocated in 2008.
Silver also dismissed speculation about relocating existing clubs, calling it a separate matter and stating that the league does not rank prospective markets solely by revenue potential.
The NBA last expanded in 2004, when Charlotte became the league’s 30th franchise.
Source: Hoops Wire
