The National Basketball Association (NBA) board of governors will vote today on expanding the league to Seattle and Las Vegas, the AP reports.
If the current owners approve the change, which appears likely, the NBA will begin the process of working with potential owners to launch new teams in the two western cities over the next few years.
If the vote passes, it would give hope to many of the league's players who were born or have ties to those cities.
“It's a city with a basketball culture, so I think it's imperative that we get back there,“ said Seattle-born guard Jamal Murray.
“I think this has been a long time coming. Everyone was disappointed when the team moved, and since then we've just been waiting and hoping that one day they'll come back. I'm sure this news makes people excited. I'm personally very happy for the kids who are growing up now, because Seattle is a very big basketball city,“ explained another star NBA player born in Seattle - Paolo Banquero.
The same goes for Las Vegas, which hosts the Summer League every year, as well as the final phase of the recently formed NBA Cup tournament, making it an indispensable part of the NBA ecosystem.
In the event that the owners agree to expand the League beyond the current 30 teams, a lot of new solutions will be needed. The cost of the expansion, which is expected to be at least $6 billion, the dates of the new clubs joining (at the earliest in the 2028/29 season), as well as the changes in the two conferences - it is likely that at least one team will be transferred to the Eastern Conference to maintain balance.
Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr expressed the opinion that the SuperSonics team, which played in Seattle between 1967 and 2008, was one of the most iconic clubs in the NBA before moving to Oklahoma City and renaming itself the “Thunder“.
“I was shocked when the League left Seattle. There are incredible fans there. Great market for basketball. A lot of talent comes from Seattle. It's a great sports city, so it was shocking for all of us when the club left the city. We all hoped that the expansion would happen much sooner than the 18-19 years we had to wait for basketball to return there. They belong to this city, the team belongs to it. The fans deserve it“, said the coach of the “Warriors“.
Among other topics that the owners will discuss is the creation of an NBA League in Europe. Its implementation will have to be done with the help of the world headquarters FIBA and its European branch - FIBA Europe.