NBA vote clears way for expansion to Seattle

The NBA Board of Governors has voted to explore adding teams in Seattle and Las Vegas, moving Seattle closer than ever to hosting pro basketball again.

The league’s Board of Governors on Wednesday voted to formally explore expansion to Seattle and Las Vegas, kicking off a process that could bring a team back for the 2028-29 season

Jake Goldstein-Street
Washington State Standard

After nearly a generation of heartache, the NBA is on the precipice of returning to Seattle.

The league’s Board of Governors on Wednesday voted to formally explore expansion to Seattle and Las Vegas, kicking off a process that could bring a team back for the 2028-29 season.

“For two decades, Washingtonians have mourned the loss of our Sonics,” Gov. Bob Ferguson said in a statement. “Today’s vote is a milestone in the effort to bring NBA basketball back home.”

The vote, which needed support from 23 of the league’s 30 franchise owners, allows the league to formally open the bidding process for the new teams. A later vote from the board would finalize the transactions, should they move forward. That could come as soon as this summer.

“Today’s vote reflects our Board’s interest in exploring potential expansion to Las Vegas and Seattle — two markets with a long history of support for NBA basketball,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. “We look forward to taking this next step and engaging with interested parties.”

The vote brings Seattle the closest it’s been to rejoining the NBA since harboring hopes of moving the Sacramento Kings north in 2013.

Hints of expansion have lingered for years without a substantive update, until recently. There’s been concern that growing the league to 32 teams would be met with pushback from owners unwilling to give up a slice of revenue. But the hefty cost for the new franchises, which could run an ownership group upward of $7 billion, also means a hefty payday for those owners.

Ferguson, who has described himself as a die-hard Sonics fan, said “the time is right,” with the state-of-the-art Climate Pledge Arena hosting the Seattle Storm, Kraken and Torrent. The aging Key Arena was a major impetus for the Sonics to leave for Oklahoma City in 2008.

“Bringing the Sonics back is a top priority, and the state will be a strong partner in this effort,” Ferguson said. “I plan to be there at tipoff with thousands of fellow fans when the Sonics return.”

Ferguson met with Silver twice in the two months before this week’s vote, including this week. He declined to share specifics about the latest conversation when asked about it on Monday.

Seattle Kraken executives have been cited as potential owners of the new NBA team. This week, owner Samantha Holloway added to that speculation by forming a new parent company to run the hockey team and assume majority ownership of Climate Pledge Arena.

Ferguson told reporters he’s had a “number of conversations with Kraken leadership,” including with franchise CEO Tod Leiweke on Wednesday.

“I’ve had a number of conversations with him and Samantha, as you might imagine, and had another one today, and so we’ll be sitting down again to talk about how the state can be helpful,” Ferguson said.

The governor said he hadn’t heard from any other potential owners.

U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., celebrated the news. She is the top Democrat on the Senate committee that oversees sports.

“The debate for NBA expansion has begun,” she said in a statement. “Seattle will be front and center in that debate.”

This story has been updated with additional comment from Gov. Bob Ferguson. It was first published by the Washington State Standard.