Now that this step is complete, there are many issues to decide. A partial list:
• The expansion fee, which is expected to be at least $6 billion.
• The timeline for adding the clubs. It seems like the 2028-29 season would almost certainly be the earliest that could happen.
• The ripple effect. If both Las Vegas and Seattle get teams, they would certainly be in the Western Conference. To avoid having 17 teams in one conference and 15 in the other, the league would look to move a current West team into the Eastern Conference. Geographically, New Orleans, Memphis or Minnesota would be the most logical candidates to move into the East.
New Orleans guard Dejounte Murray was 11 years old when Seattle last had an NBA team. He grew up with hopes of being like Gary Payton, Ray Allen and Shawn Kemp, and even remembers a rookie who played for the SuperSonics named Kevin Durant.
“It’s a basketball city, basketball culture, so it’s mandatory I think that they get it back over there,” said Murray, a Seattle native.
Added Orlando’s Paolo Banchero, another Seattle native: “I think it’s been a long time coming for the city. I think everybody was pretty bummed out when they left. And since then, it’s just been waiting and hoping that one day they will come back. I’m sure with the news, everybody’s excited. I know I’m excited for all the kids growing up because Seattle’s a really big basketball city.”
Golden State coach Steve Kerr said the SuperSonics were “one of the iconic franchises in the NBA.”
“I was shocked when the league left Seattle,” Kerr said. “Incredible fan base. Great basketball market. A ton of talent coming from Seattle. Top 10 media market. Incredible sports city. So, it was kind of shocking to all of us when the league left Seattle. And I think we all hoped it would be a lot sooner than 18, 19 years, whatever it’s going to be, before they got back in the league.