Where Will the NBA Expand Next? Top Contenders Revealed! 

Seattle should be 1st priority

The most likely expansion locations will be out west, Seattle & Las Vegas so that they could place the Timberwolves in the Eastern Conference. Some people could argue Memphis or New Orleans move to the east instead because they are technically further east than Minneapolis, but Minnesota makes more sense to be in the Eastern Conference and be on the same division as the Chicago Bulls Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers, as examples, because 1) the other top North American sports leagues have Minnesota have a rivalry with Chicago 2) all of the Timberwolves current Western division rivals are too far away from them, and 3) it reduces travel time for Timberwolves whenever they go on the road

Kansas City deserves another chance to have a NBA team and should play in the eastern conference in their time frame honestly

1. Seattle 2. Vancouver 3. Vegas 4. Kansas City 5. Nashville

The Grizzlies and Raptors were not the last expansion teams.. What about the Charlotte Bobcats who are now the Hornets? That's how there is a New Orleans Pelicans franchise, who were originally the Hornets

Seattle Sonics

Going with Seattle for tradition and Las Vegas because of the size of that market. Plus, geographically both make a lot of sense.

They should've brought Seattle back a long time ago. Look how many teams Los Angeles has.

Bring the Sonics Back!!!!

1 Seattle 2 Mexico City 3 Vegas 4 Nashville 5 Kansas City 6 Quebec

I miss the Supersonics. Shawn Kemp was my all time favorite player

Seattle and Las Vegas to be next hopefully,good friends!!!👍🏾

Seattle, Las Vegas, Pittsburgh, Kansas City

Listen, it's Seattle and Vegas...Then Mexico City and Vancouver

I think the NBA has the potential to expand to 40 teams in the future: 20 in the west and 20 in the east. - San Diego - Baltimore - Pittsburgh - Las Vegas - Kansas - Nashville - Seattle - New Mexico - Vancouver - Buffalo

NBA can not add only 1 expansion team in next round since NBA would have an ODD number of teams. They're gonna add 2 teams which will be in Seattle and Las Vegas, and both teams will be in the Western Conference and then the NBA is going to move the New Orleans Pelicans and the Memphis Grizzlies to the Eastern Conference where they should've been all along geographically speaking.

montreal

Seattle and Mexico City will be the best places for basketball

Last Vegas, Kansas City, Canada, Mexico,

Seattle should have their team back! It's just appalling when OKC claims that they "have" q chip out of Sonics' success in the past.

The biggest question is - will the league delay expansion long enough that LeBron James can be a party to an ownership group. Reality is they should have considered it last TV rights deal, not proceeded and learned from that how opportune the moment would be and done it with this TV rights deal.

Seattle & Las Vegas r definitely locks 4 an expansion franchise. Pittsburgh Kansas City Nashville & St. Louis r also great choices

No Montreal? The metro is literally bigger than Seattle or Las Vegas… Plus why does California have 4 teams? While Canada who is the same size only has one?

Seattle I think is an inevitably. Vegas will probably get that second slot. KC is a maybe. I don't see Mexico CIty happening because if they went outside the US, Canada would happen first. Nashville, I think is a no-go simply because someone will have the idea to move the Grizzlies to the Eastern Conference, which could make more sense for their logistica and bottom line.

I wish the would do a 4 team expansion 😔 sadly that will probably never happen

Vegas and Seattle will get an expansion team first but KC, SD, Pittsburgh, Nashville, etc will definitely be in the running for the next round after this.

I know it'll never happen but I just want Mississippi to get SOMETHING ONE DAY

San diego, pittsburgh, louisville, kansas city, virginia beach, seattle, vegas, montreal, vancouver and mexico city

I'd love it if Ballmer would just buy the Lakers and move them into that crazy new building. Clippers can go to Seattle or Vegas. Whoever owns the Nets can buy the Knicks and the Nets can go elsewhere. Utah should move to Vegas. I think there are plenty of star quality players to expand but with all the load management and injuries, 30 or maybe even 25 teams seems like you'd be more likely to have a good game every night. Might be fun to hit new markets a different way, get creative. Have the In Season be the whole season in neutral locations, Nashville Kansas City, Louisville etc

Seattle and Las Vegas

Correction: there hasn’t been an NBA expansion team since 2004, when the Charlotte Bobcats had their inaugural season. The original Hornets franchise moved from Charlotte to New Orleans in 2002, and then Charlotte got a new team in 2004 with the Bobcats moniker and the number of NBA teams was raised from 29 to 30. In 2013, Bobcats ownership purchased the Hornets-rights from New Orleans including the original Charlotte Hornets’ history and records

Vegas and Seattle will get it this round but I’d love to see one go to Mexico City one day.

Vancouver and Seattle deserve a 2nd chance

Seattle KC and Darkhorse Louisville

The last expansion was in 2004 when the Bobcats joined.

Maybe one in Montreal besides The Seattle Supersonics.

Seattle and las Vegas are front liners

Pittsburgh and Leominster, Massachusets.

I’m pretty sure Nashville will never be in consideration for a NBA team unless the Grizzlies leave Memphis. Tennessee is not a state big enough to support two teams from the same league.

T-Mobile makes too much damn money. Lol

Seattle and Vegas were already in the books way before this video. Stop getting the other cities excited lol

Montréal should be a strong candidate. Montréal would also become a large market team

Seattle and Vegas are going to be the next two cities getting NBA franchises.

San Diego, Louisville and Pittsburgh deserve a look as an NBA team too

702 _&_ Seattle

Seattle and Las Vegas are obvious

I was born in Seattle in 1973, where I grew up. Sonics and Blazers fan. Japanese-American and male. I was 6 years old and finishing up kindergarten, when the Sonics won the championship. At my elementary school was a mural of Sonics players, numbers 1, 8, 24 and 43 (Gus Williams, Lonnie Shelton, Dennis Johnson, and Jack Sikma). 1993-94 was one of the BEST years of my life (not even that first round loss to Denver could ruin my year), and 1996 was pretty special, too. I'm a "jersey guru," and have a LOT of jerseys, and here is a sampling of my Sonics jerseys: Hersey Hawkins, Brent Barry, Wally Szczerbiak, Luke Ridnour, Don MacLean, Jon Sundvold, Russ Schoene, Vitaly Pitapenki, Steve Hawes, Robert Swift, Kendall Gill, Ervin Johnson, Jerome James, Aaron Williams, Peja Drobnjak, Vladimir Radmanovic, Nick Collison, Kevin DuRant and Rashard Lewis.

just bring back the Supersonics!!!!!

BALTIMORE

You mean Charlotte to New Orleans with Charlotte getting an expansion team to replace the relocated one (Bobcats until 2014, Hornets since)

1-Vegas, 2-Seattle, 3-KC those are the easiest and most logical choices

They will go to places that give the NBA the biggest expansion fee, it's that simple. Didn't know LeFraud wanted to own a franchise in Vegas, it explains why they dragging their feet. With NBA LOVING china, I wouldn't put a china team over a european or african team first. PS. You forgot to put the New Orleans Pelicans on the map of NBA franchises.

2 NBA teams in TN? Nashville would be better off with an MLB team. Seattle and LV should be #1 and #2 for expansion teams.

If Seattle doesn’t get a team I will never watch a NBA game again.

Seattle and Kansas are the only ones l would consider out of those.

Seattle should've been having a team before now. But I don't think Sliver will allow it because he's a old commissioner crony. Las Vegas and some other city will get a teams before Seattle.

Expand by six (Seattle, LV, KC, Montreal, Louisville, Virginia Beach), go big.

Conneticut

I want returns Seattle supersonic please..... He deserve it

Vegas, Seattle, and Tampa!

Let's expand to Canada. Look at what just happened in the Stanley Cup Final. Yes there are a lot of Basketball Fans in Canada as well. Calgary before Edmonton though. Calgary is building a brand new Arena for the NHL Flames.

I feel like Mexico City is a horrible idea. Sure it’s great for expanding the team, but the problems comes from the players, players already hate having to play for Toronto because it’s in a different country, and hate playing in Denver because it’s so high. MC would alter players entire way of life, and it’s even higher than Denver. They would need to know a different language, change their food options, be extremely far from family. And more. The only thing that makes sense for MC is the fans it would add, other than that it’s a horrible option

The last expansion team to join the NBA was the Charlotte Bobcats in 2004. Not the Toronto Raptors and Vancouver Grizzlies in 1995 😅

Seattle 💚🏀 and Kansas City ❤🏀

Kentucky should get a team! They love basketball

It's a done Deal: Seattle & Vegas !!

Expansion is on the horizon, and with the CBA completed and Media Rights Deal beginning its negotiation period, it seems that it is only a matter of time before the NBA expands. I strongly believe Seattle and Las Vegas will be awarded teams in the next expansion round, but given Adam Silver and Marc Tatum’s rhetoric surrounding Mexico City, it is reasonable to believe that Mexico City will be considered as well. However, these are some logistical issues with expansion that the NBA simply cannot avoid: Altitude- This one is huge. Mexico City has an elevation of 7,349 ft, more than 2,000 feet more than Denver. The altitude is visibly a problem for players. This isn’t the Olympics. This isn’t baseball. This isn’t football. In the NBA, players do not have days to prepare for events in extremely high elevation. They will have to fly into Mexico City, play that night, and then fly out the next morning. When the Heat played the Spurs in December in Mexico City, the entire Heat team, one of the best conditioned teams in the NBA, looked incredibly exhausted. 41 games in Mexico City simply is not realistic. Even for the G league team, opposing players such as Willie Cauley-Stein have had to sit out games due to the altitude. Imagine Embiid or Zion playing in Mexico City. Travel: This one isn’t as big of an issue, but it’s hard to ignore. Yes, Mexico City to NYC is a shorter flight than NYC to LA, but you have to consider that Mexico City is far from EVERY NBA team. The nearest NBA city from NYC is Philly, which is 94 miles. The nearest NBA city from Mexico City is San Antonio, which is 700 miles. Portland may be far from other NBA cities, but it is much closer to Sacramento and San Francisco than Mexico City is to San Antonio, and presumably Seattle when it returns will also be very close to Portland. Mexico City is out of the way for any road trip. Add the hassle of international travel and it becomes clear that travel would be an obstacle, regardless of what Mark Tatum might have said in December. Desirability: I also strongly believe that players will not want to live in Mexico City. The country as a whole is less developed than Canada and the United States, and while Mexico City is very nice and cosmopolitan, it is still very culturally different than the United States and Canada, not to mention the language barrier that exists. Expecting players to move their families to Mexico City is something that I do not think is reasonable from the NBA's point of view. The NBPA does not have a direct say in expansion, but given how much the league front office and owners value players, it would be hard to imagine the NBA expanding to Mexico City against the will of the players. Again, Mexico City has world-class restaurants, clubs, and venues, but if players do not want to play in Toronto and especially did not want to play in Vancouver, Mexico City seems next to impossible. I mean, you cannot even drink the tap water in CDMX, and MLB and NFL players have reported getting sick from the food. The G-League players that rave about Mexico City are also making much less money, so the five star treatment they receive is a major step up from anything else they would get. NBA players are making much more money, so they would gain little from the cushy lifestyle that the G-League players in Mexico City have. Also, G-League players have fewer options to play basketball professionally, so they would be much more willing to play in Mexico City, but because NBA players have options, it is hard to imagine many players choosing Mexico City over the US or Canada. Keep in mind Mexico City has an HDI of 0.815, while the lowest US state, Mississippi, has an HDI of 0.866. These things matter when considering where players want to or would even tolerate playing and raising a family. Finally, CDMX can be very racist to black people, and anti-black behavior is unfortunately more tolerated in Mexico than the US or Canada, which would undoubtedly affect NBA players in Mexico City. Safety: On paper, Mexico City is safer than some NBA cities, but it is the perception that still makes it an issue. The view is that because Mexico City is in Mexico, by extension Mexico City is unsafe. For this reason, the G-League team in Mexico needs armed security to and from games. Now, imagine how much additional security NBA players would need. The players would also effectively be made to live in a bubble in Polanco, which will probably create extra challenges for getting to and from games. Traffic and pollution are also absolutely horrendous. These are simply issues which do not exist in Seattle or Las Vegas. Edit: While Mexico City appears to have lower crime rates than many NBA cities, I strongly believe Mexican crime statistics are severely underreported compared to American crime statistics. Experts have indicated that over 90% of crimes go unsolved in Mexico, so it would not surprise me if Mexico City’s true crime rate is actually higher than any NBA city. Plus, Mexico police is much more corrupt than American/Canadian police on all levels, so that certainly doesn’t help. Currency: Selling tickets in pesos, a currency much weaker than USD or CAD, and paying salaries in USD is also bound to be an issue. Look, an NBA team in Mexico City is somewhat an intriguing idea, but from a logistical standpoint, it will be a disaster. I do largely think that Silver and Tatum's rhetoric regarding Mexican expansion has been that of PR to keep the Mexican market engaged, as well as to place pressure on Seattle or Las Vegas. Just my thoughts.

Anchorage😉

I want to see Seattle back. And Las Vegas. But I miss Seattle. Shawn kemp and Gary Peyton.

The best that's will be seattle

I feel like since there isn't ofc a magenta, or a brown team in PRO SPORTS INCLUDING PRO BASKETBALL I REALLY think that the NBA should get a magenta, or a brown NBA team as a second, or third color INSTEAD of just RED almost all the time IMO because in PRO BASKETBALL there's isn't ofc a magenta, or a brown team in the NBA INCLUDING. So I feel like atp it'll be AMAZING, and EVEN better if we could HOPEFULLY get a magenta, or a brown NBA team as a second, or third color for a change if anything INSTEAD of just RED most of the time since the expansion for the NBA is coming soon cause there's ALREADY alot of teams in the NBA that are already red lmao 💯.

Seattle and Vegas seem like the most likely to me

I've lived in Oregon for 23 years. But, I lived west of Seattle for 14 1/2 years before. I am loyal to all the Seattle teams: the Huskies; the Seahawks; the Sonics; the Kraken; the Sounders; and the Mariners! I hope the Sonics return!!!!

2nd apron was made in preparation for the expansion.

Clay Bennett is the Art Modell/Robert Irsay of the NBA

Seattle and Las Vegas will be the next two expansion teams. After that, Vancouver should be next. They were royally screwed last time by historical ineptitude both on and off the court. The city has also changed a lot since the Grizzlies left. Preseason games always sell out and basketball has become much more popular since the Grizzly days.

Vegas & Seattle

Cheyenne Wyoming deserves a team

They need a team in Adfton Cwhyoming. 😊

We need a team in Buffalo Ny 🐃. You might ask why? The fan in buffalo support their team even when they lost.

Ever since Sonics left NBA Seattle hasn't been the same anymore. Homelessness and crime rate increased. Seattle is now a wasteland. Bring back Sonics!

Bring back to Cincinnati Royals and a team to Hershey, Pennsylvania. Call it the Hundo, or the 100. Logo will be wilt Chamberlain holding up the piece of paper showing that he scored 100 points in a single game

I think that Vegas, and Pittsburgh would be ideal

It was charlotte to New Orleans

A few years ago there was a rumour that the Kings were moving to Seattle

Okay, let’s settle things right now! Here’s the list that NBA Expansion Team will move in the other states next year. 1)Sacramento will move to Kansas City to return for Kansas City Kings. 2) New Orleans will move to Pittsburgh as recall Pittsburgh Pelicans. 3)San Antonio will move to St. Louis as recall St. Louis Spurs. 4) and finally, Seattle returns to NBA team and new NBA expansion team will be Las Vegas. Thats all I have it for the future of NBA expansion of 32 teams. What do you think?

Huntsville, AL has every high entitiy you can think of including NASA, Facebook etc

If Seattle rejoins nba I feel like they should try a new team name as well because the word super sonic is a character from saga/Nintendo and why not have a new Canadian team join as well out of all of sports nhl has the other teams on ice but what if we bring basketball over to the other side by the u.s right next to Washington.

Seriously, Los Angeles could use a third team.

St. Louis?

Can we get the Hawks back... 🙄

Las Vegas will be the new expansion team. No doubt about it. Peace...

KD would be traded back to Seattle Supersonics by 2025 in exchange of Lottery Picks. Meanwhile, Lottery Picks from the Los Angeles Lakers would end up being traded to Las Vegas Aces. LeBron should already get a Coaching Job or START owning at least 1 NBA Team.

SO ARE WE JUST GOING TO IGNORE THE FACT THAT WE NEED A MAGENTA, OR A BROWN NBA TEAM AS A SECOND, OR THIRD COLOR LOL 💯.

Las Vegas Vipers! Come on!

Vegas Seattle

There will ONLY be two teams added and they are Seattle and Vegas..NO other cities were considered

Ottawa or Winnipeg?

NBA expansion teams: Cincinnati Barons, Kansas City Comets, Las Vegas Ramblers, Louisville Collonels, Seattle Supersonics, New Mezico Geicos.

Seattle and Vegas will be next. Do one on NFL...it's crazy Toronto doesn't have an NFL team.