Wednesday's appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show" saw NBA Commissioner Adam Silver express that Las Vegas is “definitely on our list” as an expansion team candidate.
Silver has stated this before, but after Las Vegas recently played host to Super Bowl 58, a little FOMO (fear of missing out) might have inspired Silver to repeat himself.
Last week’s Super Bowl — hosted in Sin City — should have convinced every major league that Vegas is ready for prime time. Nevada sportsbooks broke a Super Bowl record, taking in wagers of more than $185 million.
More than 200 million viewers got to see how well Vegas handled one of the biggest sports events in the world. In fact, Super Bowl 58 was the most-watched telecast in history.
The NBA, however, wants more time before making an official commitment to Vegas. Silver’s first priority is nailing down the NBA’s next media deal. Its current contracts with TNT and ESPN run through the 2024-25 season.
"We want to figure out what our media relationships are going to look like, but then we will turn to expansion," Silver said.
Las Vegas seems an obvious choice for an NBA expansion team. Vegas is currently the home of the back-to-back WNBA Champions, the Las Vegas Aces, and the NBA also hosts its annual Summer League at UNLV's campus.
"Our summer league has become almost like a franchise in Vegas..
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) February 14, 2024
It's two weeks of basketball at a time of year in Vegas when there's not a lot else going on"
Adam Silver #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/zmwcVxQYQZ
Meanwhile, the NBA’s elite G League team, Ignite, has its home court in Henderson — just a few miles from the Vegas Strip.
There are other cities up for consideration. Seattle — once home to the NBA SuperSonics — is a likely candidate, while Kansas City has certainly proven its ability to support a major league franchise.
Meanwhile, Nashville is angling to add to its current portfolio of NFL, NHL, and MLS teams, and cities in Canada and Mexico have also been discussed as NBA expansion prospects.
Regardless, Las Vegas should be considered the front-runner.
Defying the odds
It wasn’t always this way for the Sin City.
Las Vegas was shunned for years by major league sports due to the worry about the city’s close gambling ties. Also, it was unclear whether the tourist-centric city could generate the fan base needed to support a team.
However, two things changed all of that.
In 2017, the NHL took a chance, becoming the first major league franchise in Las Vegas. The Golden Knights had an outstanding first season, reaching the Stanley Cup finals to sold-out crowds. Less than a year later, the US Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Protection Act, paving the way for legal sports betting across the country.
Since then, Vegas has added a WNBA team, an NFL team, and hosted the city’s first F1 race in decades. The only question now is which major league franchise will be next: The MLB or the NBA?
Determining whether MLB is a safe bet is difficult. Although the owners have greenlit the relocation of the Oakland Athletics to the Strip, the ongoing drama and feints concerning the move introduce uncertainty. Additionally, there remains the crucial task of securing funding and constructing a stadium.
Meanwhile, Vegas has all the infrastructure in place to welcome an NBA expansion team into the fold.
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