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The road to 32 NBA teams is officially open.
The association’s Board of Governors approved a vote Wednesday to explore offers and candidates for expansion teams in Las Vegas and Seattle, ESPN reported.
ESPN noted that the association is looking at the 2028-29 season for teams to begin play, and it’s a matter of “when, not if.”
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A general view of the opening between San Antonio Spurs center Luke Kornet and New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns during the Emirates NBA Cup Finals at T-Mobile Arena. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
A Seattle team would mark a return to a city that had an NBA champion in the SuperSonics in 1979. They moved to Oklahoma City and became the Thunder in 2008, less than a year after drafting Kevin Durant with the second overall pick.
Seattle and Las Vegas are now poised to become the Big Four for the first time – after decades of the Mariners and Seahawks, the NHL expanded to Seattle in 2021 to welcome the Kraken, 13 years after the Sonics left.
As for Las Vegas, after decades without professional sports due to concerns over legalized gambling, it will soon have a professional team in each of the four major sports leagues. The NHL expanded into the city in 2017, bringing in the Vegas Golden Knights, and the Oakland Raiders moved to Southern Nevada three years later. The Athletics of Major League Baseball will be here in 2028 – they currently play in a minor league stadium in Sacramento while their Vegas stadium is under construction and their lease in Oakland is up.
Bids are expected to be at least $7 billion and could even reach $10 billion.
Seattle SuperSonics and Kevin Durant fans stand in stands with signs during the game against the Phoenix Suns at Key Arena. (John W. McDonough/Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)
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LeBron James made news last week when he withdrew from the Las Vegas bidding process after setting his sights on owning a team there.
“It’s a sports city. I hope I can bring my franchise here one day,” James said during the NBA Cup, whose semi-finals and final will be played in Las Vegas, in 2023.
But when asked last week if he was still interested in owning a team, James said bluntly“No, I’m not. Not at all.”
James was a business partner of Fenway Sports Group, owner of Boston Red Sox and Liverpool of the Premier League, since 2011.
However, before James’ comments, Athletics reported that because bids could reach as much as $8 billion for the Vegas team, the group is not interested in participating in the bidding.
The WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces also left San Antonio in 2018 and have won three titles since then.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver speaks during a press conference during the Emirates NBA Cup Finals at T-Mobile Arena on December 16, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Kirby Lee/Imagn Images)
The NBA has not expanded since 2004, when the association returned to Charlotte for the Bobcats after the Original hornets moved to New Orleans. That team is now called the Pelicans, while the Bobcats reverted to the original Hornets nickname in 2014.
Las Vegas hosted the 2007 NBA All-Star Game.
