NBA takes key step toward adding Las Vegas, Seattle teams

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is laying the groundwork for an expansion to Seattle and Las Vegas.

The NBA board of governors voted to “authorize the league to formally explore potential team expansion to Las Vegas and Seattle,” the league said in a Wednesday statement.

NBA officials will soon begin evaluating potential markets, owners and arenas in those two areas, and the “broader economic implications” of expansion, it said.

“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,” said NBA commissioner Adam Silver in a statement.

Seattle was home to the NBA’s SuperSonics from 1967 to 2008, before the team moved east to become the Oklahoma City Thunder. While Las Vegas has never hosted an NBA team, the city hosts several league events and programs. Each city hosts a WNBA franchise: the Seattle Storm and the Las Vegas Aces.

Seattle and Las Vegas have also welcomed newly created or relocated teams from other sports leagues, including the National Hockey League’s Seattle Kraken and Las Vegas Golden Knights, the National Football League’s Las Vegas Raiders and Major League Soccer’s Seattle Sounders.

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