Talks around the NBA going through an expansion has started heating up after the finalizing of the new collective bargaining agreement. With LeBron James’ interest in owning a franchise in Las Vegas being reiterated, another current NBA star is eyeing an ownership role in the future.
Kevin Durant has expressed an interest in owning an expansion franchise, saying that an ideal situation would allow him to bring a franchise back to Seattle.
“That would be cool, in a perfect world. Whatever opportunity comes up, hopefully, I can be a part of something special. Seattle would be the ideal spot. They deserve to have a team there again. I would love to be a part of the NBA in that fashion, but we’ll see.”
"Seattle would be the ideal spot. They deserve to have a team there again. I would love to be a part of the NBA in that fashion."
Kevin Durant on his dream of owning an NBA franchise.
(via @cnbcevents)pic.twitter.com/m0ArBaySM6
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) July 26, 2023
Kevin Durant was drafted by the Seattle SuperSonics in 2007, with the team rebranding to the Oklahoma City Thunder at the end of the 2007-08 season. The city has a rich basketball culture but has been without a team for the last 17 years. They have an NBA-level arena waiting to be filled, so a return of the Sonics or an entirely new franchise in Seattle is still a likely possibility.
When Is An Expansion Likely Taking Place?
There have been whispers of the NBA expanding to 32 teams for the last two seasons, but nothing official has been put in place. When we asked Deputy Commissioner Mark Tatum about the same in May, he implied the decision is years away as the league will prioritize negotiating the new media rights deal before a league expansion.
“Right now, expansion is not right at the top of our list. I will tell you that we got our CBA deal done. That’s our agreement with the Players Association. So that was just recently completed and announced, you know, two months ago or so, and the next big thing that’s on our agenda is really getting through the national media rights deal… We won’t really focus on expansion until that point.”
The league has more talent than ever, and expansion teams could allow more talented players to grow in the league. The league has not expanded since 2002-03 when the New Orleans Hornets (now, Pelicans) were added to increase the team size to 30. After over 20 years of the 30-team format, a shift to 32 teams would be incredibly exciting for the league.
We sincerely appreciate and respect you as a reader of our site. It would help us a lot if you follow us on Google News because of the latest update.
Thanks for following us. We really appreciate your support.
