Ahead of Tuesday night’s Emirates Cup Finals, NBA commissioner Adam Silver spoke with the media. He discussed a variety of topics. One being the decision to expand the league.
Joe Vardon of The Athletic explained that Las Vegas and Seattle are the two American cities the NBA is most focused on. Adam Silver mentioned on Tuesday that two franchises would likely be added simultaneously. Expansion has been discussed in the past. However, Adam Silver said the league will make a ruling in 2026 on adding two new teams.
Las Vegas and Seattle could be the next two NBA expansion teams
NBA commissioner Adam Silver said that Las Vegas and Seattle are still expansion candidates and he expects to have more clarity on whether domestic expansion will move forward sometime in 2026. pic.twitter.com/uXtyK3WfL4
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) December 17, 2025
As the league currently stands, there are 30 teams in the NBA—15 in the East and 15 in the West. To expand the NBA, Commissioner Adam Silver has a small hurdle to clear. The league must speak with all 30 teams to understand their interest in dividing the roughly $11 billion in revenue among two more franchises. That would likely include Las Vegas and Seattle. On Tuesday, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver mentioned those two cities emerging as front-runners.
Additionally, Silver stated the league will make a ruling in 2026. Seattle would be an easy choice for the NBA. They were home to the SuperSonics franchise from 1967 to 2008. For the 2008-09 season, the team relocated to Oklahoma City and became the Thunder. Fans in Seattle have been eager to support a local team for nearly two decades.
“I don’t have any doubt that Las Vegas could support a NBA team”
Adam Silver says the league is continuing to look into domestic expansion with Las Vegas and Seattle as key cities. Nothing official yet but we are in store for an announcement in 2026. @8NewsNow #NBACup pic.twitter.com/GwtalfJIZr
— Madyson Marie (@madysonmmarie) December 17, 2025
Las Vegas is the second franchise looking to be part of potential NBA expansion in 2026. Over the last 10 years, Vegas has been home to expansion across several professional sports leagues. In 2016, the NHL expanded and added the Vegas Golden Knights. Additionally, the Raiders moved from Oakland to Las Vegas ahead of the 2020 NFL season. The WNBA has the Las Vegas Aces as its professional women’s basketball team.
Along with expansion, Adam Silver talked about the relocation of other franchises. He called that a “separate issue” from expansion. Teams like Memphis and New Orleans have been mentioned in the past. However, Adam Silver emphasized that the league cannot force teams to relocate. For now, the NBA’s focus is to tackle expansion in 2026 and make a decision. Will Las Vegas and Seattle be the next teams to be awarded a franchise?
