NBA commissioner Adam Silver said it’s up in the air whether T-Mobile Arena would be an adequate fit to host an NBA team should the league choose to expand to the city.
Silver said he has attended hockey and basketball games at the nearly 10-year-old facility, but that there are a number of factors in play on whether the arena could host an NBA team along with the NHL’s Vegas Golden Knights.
“In fairness to T-Mobile, I don’t know,” Silver told the Review-Journal. “I’ve been to games and hockey games in that arena. I’ve been to some basketball games in that arena. It’s a fantastic facility.
“But I think that will be part of our process, better understanding where T-Mobile stands, if they have any plans to make any changes, and probably most importantly, what an ownership group maybe thinking, about where the optimal place is to play in Las Vegas.”
The NBA announced Wednesday that it was exclusively exploring Las Vegas and Seattle for expansion of the league. Silver said the process will be completed this year and at that time it would be decided if they will move ahead with expansion.
The expected expansion fee that would be paid by an interested ownership group is expected to be between $7 billion and $10 billion.
Silver also said that it’s too early in the process to know if T-Mobile Arena could serve as a temporary home for an NBA team while a new arena is constructed.
“I think it’s premature this time,” Silver said.
Two ownership groups have already expressed interest in owning a Las Vegas NBA expansion team. The MAGI, lead by NBA great Earvin “Magic” Johnson told the Review-Journal they are looking to land an NBA team. Johnson met with Gov. Joe Lombardo last month to discuss expansion. Lombardo also already spoke with Silver this month.
Golden Knights owner Bill Foley said he would be interested in owning an NBA team and that they would carry out $300 million in renovations to T-Mobile Arena if he were successful in his bid.
Having two groups with notable figures interested early in the expansion process is a positive, Silver said.
“I think there is enormous interest in that market, not just from people who are based in Las Vegas, it’s, of course, proximate to the Bay Area, to Los Angeles, where there’s a lot of wealth, but it’s also very much a global city,” Silver said. “You have other people when you only have 30 of these in the world and maybe 32 who, and I look across the spectrum of owners we have now, we have many of our owners who are not based in the market where their team is located.
“Look no further than Portland. Tom Dundon, he owns a hockey team in Raleigh, he lives in Dallas, and he just bought a basketball team in Portland. So, there are a global market for these teams.”
Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X.