NBA Board to Vote on Seattle, Vegas Expansion Plans Next Week

The National Basketball Association's board of governors will meet next week to vote on moving forward with expansion plans targeting Seattle and Las Vegas as potential new franchise locations. The decision requires approval from at least 23 of the 30 current team owners, with new franchises expected to cost billions of dollars.

The National Basketball Association could take a significant step toward growing from 30 to 32 teams when league governors convene next week to discuss adding franchises in Seattle and Las Vegas, according to two sources familiar with the plans who spoke to The Associated Press on Monday.

Team owners will vote on whether to proceed with these two cities as the exclusive focus for expansion efforts, the sources revealed.

The sources requested anonymity since the league has not made these details public.

Getting approval requires support from three-quarters of team governors, which means at least 23 of the 30 franchises must back the proposal. League officials will also receive updates about ongoing discussions between the NBA and FIBA regarding plans for a new European basketball league, one source indicated.

ESPN was first to report the scheduled vote.

The expansion discussion comes as no shock since the board meets just a few times annually, and Commissioner Adam Silver has repeatedly stated that a final decision about adding one or two new teams will come before the end of 2026.

“Not a secret, we’re looking at this market in Las Vegas. We are looking at Seattle,” Silver said in December, while in Las Vegas for the NBA Cup final. “We’ve looked at other markets as well. I’d say I want to be sensitive there about this notion that we’re somehow teasing these markets, because I know we’ve been talking about it for a while.”

Multiple complex issues remain under consideration, including determining expansion fees for new franchises — expected to reach billions of dollars, with some league insiders believing costs could surpass $6 billion — and evaluating how two additional teams might affect game quality.

Silver explained last July that team owners requested a comprehensive examination of expansion impacts, including how it might dilute player talent across the league and the various consequences of selling ownership stakes.

Adding both Las Vegas and Seattle would likely require moving one current Western Conference team to the Eastern Conference to balance the league with 16 teams per side. Based on geography, Minnesota, Memphis, and New Orleans appear to be the most logical candidates for such a switch.

Seattle previously hosted the SuperSonics until the franchise relocated to Oklahoma City in 2008. Las Vegas has pursued a team for years, with Basketball Hall of Famer Magic Johnson frequently mentioned among potential ownership groups for a franchise there.